Please Fans, Wake Up!

When the NHL All-Stars are named early in the New Year there will be one glaring stand-out; Rory Fitzpatrick. The people who closely follow the league will attest that Fitzpatick is a very distant afterthought when mentioning the list of possible All-Star candidates. Actually, who am I kidding? I doubt anyone outside of Vancouver or his hometown of Rochester, NY knew he was even in the NHL. The likes of Pronger, Lidstrom, Nidermayer, Phaneuf and Zubov are often common place in the leagues mid-season exhibition. This year, a travesty will happen, and the future of all-star fan balloting may hang in the balance.

With a quirky, but somewhat ingenious marketing ploy, the Vancouver Canucks and Rory Fitzpatrick's faithful followers have united as one to carry this blue collar representative to the second spot among NHL defensemen in Western Conference balloting as of today.

With the implementation of a basic website and parody t-shirts, the marketing group at the Canucks has done a fantastic job to bring some attention to a sport that desperately needs it. I only hope that's all it brings; attention.

The fans are asked to voice their collective opinion and vote for who they think deserves to be in the starting line-up for the goal parade we call an All-Star game. This is not a new process for the league; it is done across the board, by all professional sports. Do I think it is the best formula for finding the most deserving players? No. Is it rewarding for the fans to have an input into who they would like to pay to see play in one game? Yes.

Indirectly, it is the fans that pay the players inordinate amounts of money to play a game, but it's not their right to make a mockery of the system.

If Fitzpatrick does make the starting line-up, he was quoted as saying that he wasn't sure if he would actually accept the honor; that he would discuss with his fellow colleagues around the league and get their input.

RORY, YOU'RE NOT AN ALL-STAR!! This should not be something you have to think about.

It is a great honor to be recognized by the fans for your dazzling play, consistency, production, and plain hard work. From these attributes, Fitzpatrick is 1 for 4, yes, he works hard.

In fact, Rory has only played in 20 games so far this season and has an ever impressive 0G, 0A and -1 +/- rating to show for his “hard” work. This is far from All-Star figures and would alienate him amongst his peers if indeed he does decide to make the trip to Dallas.

Don’t think this is a new coming of age for fans. We have been rallying behind fan-favourites in years past, despite the fact they may not be truly having an All-Star year.

Grant Hill was voted to start the 2001 NBA All-Star game although appearing in only 4 games that year due to his infamous ankle injuries. Mike Schmidt was voted into the 1989 MLB All-Star game even after he announced his retirement from the game only two months into the season. These two examples pale in comparison to Mr. Fitzpatrick however.

Hill is a great talent, although unfortunately having to deal with recurring seasons plagued with injuries. He actually had to sit out that All-Star game due the an injury. Schmidt, being a multiple league MVP and 12-time All-Star, was simply being thanked by the fans who got to marvel in his brilliance for so many years. He too did not participate in the game.

Even this past year we have seen how far teams will go to increase the attention their club is receiving. A.J. Pierzynski of the Chicago White Sox was engulfed in a marketing campaign that made light of his altercation at home plate earlier in the season with Cubs catcher, Michael Barrett.

Barrett, steaming mad that Pierzynski had just scored and had something to say about it, clocked Pierzynski in the side of the head. The campaign read "Punch AJ." Although not entirely deserving of the honor, the catcher still did have decent numbers and wasn't buried at the end of the bench.

In this case though, Fitzpatrick is not deserving whatsoever. He will be out of place with the other true All-Stars of the league. What will he be thinking while he's sitting in the dressing room lacing ‘em up before the morning skate; "Wow, this is fun. I've only played half the games this year and have accumulated a total of 9G and 18A throughout my 10 year career."

On his player bio at nhl.com his highlights for the year read: Logged a season-high 20:16 of ice time and had a plus one rating, Oct. 26/06 at Chi.

20:16 of ice time!?! This is your highlight for the season? And against Chicago nonetheless, one of the leagues worst teams.

If Fitzpatrick does get voted into the All-Star game I can only hope he has the decency to withdraw gracefully. He can thank all of his avid supporters, but letting the players who are deserving of the honor to go instead.

Being named an All-Star should not be taken lightly. The life of a pro athlete can be over at any minute and for this honor to be tossed around like a joke is somewhat disheartening.

Maybe what fans are trying to say is they don't care who plays in the game. If this is the case, well, then all hope for a bright future is seemingly lost.

So please, get out and vote. Vote for Lidstrom. Vote for Neidermayer. Vote for Phaneuf. Vote for Liles. Vote for Visnovsky. Vote for Schneider. Please, vote for a real All-Star, not Rory.

- JW