When Dorks Think They're Cool
They aren't.
Jim Matheson is a bitter loser who doesn’t have the courage to do his job properly. He is either incapable or afraid of criticizing management and calling out Oilers GM Ken Holland of the abysmal job he did during the 2021 offseason. Instead, he decided to bully one of the best hockey players alive, superstar power-forward Leon Draisaitl.
What a dork. I can’t believe that dork is in the Hockey Hall of Fame. I guess Matheson was hoping Draisaitl would do his job for him. This was the actual question he asked:
What do you think is the No. 1 reason for the losses now? Is there one thing in your own mind where you say, ‘we’ve got to get better at that?’
This is lazy journalism and I can’t even imagine what answer he was hoping for. Anyways, just for fun, here is what I think would have been a perfect response:
The number one reason for the losses right now is our general manager Ken Holland and his failure to address any of our needs this past offseason. He traded literal assets for a washed up and overpaid Duncan Keith. Then, he grossly overpaid Cody Ceci, Tyson Barrie, and Zach “The Mensch” Hyman. He also completely failed to address our goaltending issues. If you’ve ever watched us play, you’d know Koskinen is among the most unreliable goaltenders in hockey and with a quick Wikipedia you’ll find out that Mike Smith is old. We are bad both on paper and reality. I hate it here. I wish I was a Maple Leaf.
Of course, Draisaitl isn’t going to say any of that. His actual response was more than fair.
“We need to get better at everything.”
They do. He’s right! But he has 54 points in 35 games. He won a Hart Trophy two years ago. He is an unreal player who can take over any game at any time. He should not be criticized by some hack writer trying to make it about himself.
Matheson then asks: “Why are you so pissy, Leon?”
He should have said “It’s Mr. Draisaitl to you, dork. Next question.”
I guess I need to accept that there is no accountability in this world. That gross slob Doug Ford took a Facetime call while driving and it aired on live TV the other day and nothing happened. Matheson should have his media pass suspended for being an agitator and an unprofessional dork (for lack of a better word). But instead, he will be in the Hockey Hall of Fame forever while my hero Don Cherry isn’t. What a world. And worst of all he thinks he’s a martyr. Look at his follow up tweet.
The fact that other writers would support this guy just goes to show we have the wrong people covering the game, and it needs to drastically change. Also referring to yourself as a scribe is mad cringe yo.
Athletes, coaches, and management are obviously deserving of criticism. I think it’s great if reporters are willing to ask the hard questions. If I had a media pass, I’d ask why the Leafs anthem singer is so bad, and why they never do anything to improve the dreadful in-game vibe at the Scotiabank Arena. But I do think the media members should be respectful of the people they are interviewing, and Matheson crossed a line. He knows Draisaitl can’t respond to him genuinely and he was looking to get a rise. Shame on that dork. Also, someone came out with a different story yesterday of Matheson being a horrible guy. This story is wack:
But when it comes to pathetic losers that live to make it all about them, there is only one king. Perennial favorite for Dork of the Year, your old hockey coach Steve Simmons, is the absolute worst in the business. So many stories to choose from, where do I begin? I guess what sticks out the most is the way he treated Phil Kessel.
Seriously, how does he keep his media pass? A reporter should not be able to ask aggressive, rude, impossible to answer questions without having to face any repercussions. Then there was his infamous hotdog article Simmons wrote when the Leafs traded Kessel.
“The hot dog vendor who parks daily at Front and John Street. just lost his most reliable customer. Almost every afternoon at 2:30 p.m., often wearing a toque, Phil Kessel would wander from his neighbourhood condominium to consume his daily snack.”
This story was literal fiction. You are not allowed to write fiction when you cover sports! How does he get away with this? I also thought it was gross when he made it public that Auston Matthews (#1 on the list of Hottest Maple Leafs, look it up) had contracted Covid back when it was faux pas.
How does this dork keep his media pass and why do players respond to him with anything other than “no comment”? It blows my mind how such an insufferable weasel has had so much success in his field.
The only way I can understand it is this. Brittany Murphy went from dating Eminem to this guy:
Anyone can do anything.
There is a reason Spittin’ Chiclets is so popular. Hockey fans prefer the opinions of guys on the inside as opposed to guys way on the outside. “Journalists” like Matheson and Simmons have literally nothing in common with the people they are covering, and they are bitter about it. Athletes are living the dream, and when Ryan Whitney and Biz interview them, they ask questions that lead us to a greater insight of that dream which brings us joy. That’s probably why we all loved “Entourage” back in the day. I watched the TNT broadcast of the Leafs and Rangers last night. Watch this interview with Ryan Reaves from after the game.
This is the correct way to interview a player. There is a mutual respect. Keep it light, its sports, we’re just trying to have fun.
But most of all, don’t be a dork.