Toronto Maple Leafs: Not So Sweet, Caroline

The Toronto Maple Leafs need some new musical choices.

The Toronto Maple Leafs organization is in the midst of a possible identity change with a new General Manager to be named in the coming days or months. With that will come many changes to the organization of which most fans will never notice or even see. I have a suggestion for one of the lesser consequential and obvious changes.

I am very fortunate to have attended most home games this season and there are some things that I began to notice that I likely wouldn’t have if I watched all my games at home. But for those that get to attend even a handful of games a year they may have noticed a pattern with song selection. One song in particular stands out among the rest. The song in question… ‘Sweet Caroline’ by Neil Diamond.

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It is not so much THAT the song is played but rather WHEN the song is played.

This season it was played during the TV timeout after the 9:30 mark remaining in the third period of every single game (last season it was one timeout later, usually around the 6:30 mark remaining in the third period). My displeasure is not in the repetitiveness, or that it is Neil Diamond, or even the song itself. I like the song as much as the next guy. Rather my displeasure lies in the matter of playing the song every single game…even if we are losing.

I love to see the fans cheering and singing along and having a great time at the leaf game. I too have joined along similar to when we saw Marner and Matthews famously sing Bon Jovi. But forgive me if I am a little bitter when the Air Canada Center PURPOSELY plays “good times never seemed so good” when we are down by 3 to the Boston Bruins with less than nine minutes and thirty seconds left in the game.

The experience and amazement and adventure of being at a Maple Leafs game is not lost on me. I understand that thousands attend each game for their first time ever (and possibly their only time). Ticket costs makes it extremely difficult for most fans to ever attend a game. I am very happy that they are singing along to the timeless Neil Diamond song. So often the music puts us all in such a great mood. But do we have to play it when we are losing in the third period?\

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Instead, how about we play it at the beginning of the game? Play it in the first period when things are still fun, even if we are down on the scoreboard.

This may seem petty (and I admit that it is) and I may take the wins and losses of every Maple Leafs game a little more personal that I really should, but I hope we can find a more appropriate song for the latter half of the third period next season.

Dubas, are you listening?

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