Читать книгу Hope and Heartbreak in Toronto. Life as a Maple Leafs Fan онлайн

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There are Leafs fans out there who, without a shred of evidence, claimed that this was all part of a big conspiracy perpetrated by the head office to deny a Leafs–Habs final, which would have run counter to their plans of expanding the game into sunnier climes. These fans, who are otherwise sensible human beings, swore that the “fix” was in that night — a claim that gathered some steam when Don Cherry hinted that he, too, believed something fishy had happened.

There are no shortage of Leafs fans, often perched on a bar stool and with the help of one too many drinks, who still feel the need to regale those around them with their theory that NHL commissioner Gary Bettman may have been involved. It’s enough to make 9/11 Truthers blush, and it’s all codswallop, of course, but it gives you a sense just how much the thought of Kerry Fraser still stings, even now, two decades later.

Wayne Gretzky and Doug Gilmour shake hands at the conclusion of the Kings’ victory in Game 7.

Courtesy of Graig Abel.