麻豆传媒映画

It鈥檚 become a tradition in sports that whenever a new player joins a team, fans will go searching through his social media. Sometimes that search unearths an embarrassing comment, like it did for or .

Earlier this week, an incoming member of the media was placed under the same scrutiny. Canucks fans discovered that the new afternoon drive host for Sportsnet 650, Andrew Walker, . I wrote about some of those tweets and why Canucks fans care so much about them and it unexpectedly blew up and brought some undue attention to Walker. I spoke with him about the controversy and what he hopes and expects from 麻豆传媒映画when his show launches.

It was a conversation that I thoroughly enjoyed and I truly hope that fans in 麻豆传媒映画give him a chance come September.

[Interview has been edited for length.]

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Daniel Wagner: I guess we鈥檒l start out with, do you hate the Canucks?

Andrew Walker: [laughs] No. Here鈥檚 the thing: a lot of media don鈥檛 really like any team. But not liking a team or not growing up as a fan doesn鈥檛 equate to hatred. I don鈥檛 like using the words, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 care,鈥� because of course I care, but no, I don鈥檛 hate the Canucks.

DW: You don鈥檛 have a rooting interest, but you鈥檙e not wishing for their downfall?

AW: I鈥檓 not wishing for their downfall. I think in the media, we can be mercenaries sometimes. You make me the right professional offer, I鈥檒l move to Atlanta and do Falcons talk. The one constant is, I want the team in my city to win. It鈥檚 good news for me, it鈥檚 good news for the city, it鈥檚 good news for the economy, it鈥檚 good news for ratings. I hope the Canucks make a bunch of good decisions and the city comes alive, that would be awesome.

DW: It鈥檚 more enjoyable to talk to fans on the radio when they鈥檙e happy, right?

AW: For sure it is. Being in Toronto, Toronto was always this loser sports market, that was the rep, but in my four years here, the Raptors started being awesome, the Blue Jays got back to the playoffs, and the Leafs went through this rebuild and now people are excited. When you go in every day and discuss good things, it鈥檚 better than discussing apathy and it鈥檚 better than discussing losing, that鈥檚 for sure.

DW: You were in Calgary and Toronto for recent rebuilds with the Flames and the Leafs, what was it like going through that with the fans?

AW: It was the same in all three markets in that there was a long process getting in. I think every organization has that moment where people are saying, 鈥淥kay, time to rebuild,鈥� but it takes time to even get to that way of thinking. Maybe the Sedins are part of that in Vancouver; in Toronto the fixtures of that were Dion Phaneuf and Phil Kessel and in Calgary, the fixtures of that were Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff. You just can鈥檛 snap your fingers and completely turn the page; it鈥檚 a process.

DW: Did you experience a lot of impatience from the fans in those markets?

AW: I think Toronto fans are naturally impatient, but this was a dream scenario. You鈥檝e made the statement, we鈥檙e going to rebuild, we鈥檙e committing to this, and in the span of 11 months, you traded Phil Kessel, you traded Dion Phaneuf, you drafted Auston Matthews, and all of a sudden, you鈥檙e good. The Toronto Maple Leafs next year could theoretically compete for a Stanley Cup. That鈥檚 stunning. And it took literally no time at all.

I think, while there鈥檚 no Auston Matthews in this draft or anything like that, the relative quickness to which Toronto turned it around should give every market hope, because you never know.

DW: Part of the reason there was such a backlash when people saw those tweets is, I think there鈥檚 a sense that some of the fans want a homer on the radio. What do you say to fans who want you to be a fan of the local team?

AW: I get it. Media gets jaded, and I鈥檓 not jaded. I鈥檓 a huge sports fan. I truly believe that there鈥檚 nothing better than emotional investment. I could say that I grew up as a Canucks super-fan, but it would just be a lie. They鈥檙e a hockey team to me.

I鈥檓 not a fan. When they do something bad, I鈥檓 not going to rationalize why it鈥檚 so good. And I鈥檓 not an analyst either, in the sense that I鈥檓 not going to watch a game and break down a power play. I鈥檓 a talk host.

I have opinions of what I see, I like to engage the listeners; we discuss things. I think there鈥檚 two sides to it too: you can be a huge fan of a team and that can cloud your judgement, but I also think, and maybe people are painting me with this brush because of 7-year-old tweets, you can have a bad bias towards a team too. You can be that grumpy contrarian on the air and that鈥檚 not me either. I would love the team in the city I鈥檓 working in to win.

DW: I guess that gets to the purpose of sports talk radio: what in your mind is the whole purpose of being a sports talk radio host and having a sports talk show?

AW: How I envision a show is a pretty old-hat type of description, but I truly believe that the best sports convos you have are at a bar with a buddy, talking about the game.

I always picture two guys driving to work in a car and they鈥檙e listening in to your conversation: it鈥檚 interesting, entertaining conversation and they feel like they鈥檙e a part of it. And when you seamlessly go into a commercial break or throw a tease, they feel that the conversation isn鈥檛 over yet and they pick it up where you left off in the car driving to work as sports fans. That鈥檚 kind of my dream scenario where I think radio is the best. It鈥檚 not always easy to pull off, but that鈥檚 the purpose of sports talk radio to me.

DW: When you envision that talk with a buddy at the bar, do you want to have someone that you potentially disagree with?

AW: Potentially. I believe in conversation, not confrontation. I think it鈥檚 okay to have disagreements and get passionate and get heated, but number one, it can鈥檛 be contrived, and number two, it can鈥檛 be all the time.

I think you should have a really good partnership on the air and hopefully that鈥檚 what it is with Scotty [Rintoul] and I think that when you get super-heated with each other about a topic, I think it should happen so rarely that when you do, it鈥檚 kind of an event and people notice. If it happens too often, then it鈥檚 just white noise.

DW: With Rintoul, he is the local guy, where you鈥檙e coming from an outside perspective, do you think that will give you some good openings for conversation?

AW: I think so. It鈥檚 one of the reasons we really pushed for Scotty to be on the show and he was the guy that Sportsnet decided on, because he鈥檚 local, he has a deep understanding, he鈥檚 been there, he鈥檚 familiar. But also, it鈥檚 2017. I鈥檝e never lived in Vancouver, but I have a TV, I have the internet, I鈥檝e been in the industry for 15 years, I know what鈥檚 going on with the Canucks. It鈥檚 not like I鈥檓 moving to Wales and covering soccer, it鈥檚 Vancouver.

I think it鈥檚 really good to have Scotty there, because even if you don鈥檛 like me, you can trust Scott. You know that he鈥檚 been there and he鈥檚 one of you guys, and I will be soon! Give it a couple months and you鈥檒l forget all the tweets from 2011, which were designed to pander to a market anyway. When you work in Calgary, Flames fans hate the Canucks, Canucks fans hate the Flames, it鈥檚 just how it works!

DW: You鈥檝e been in Toronto for the last four years and I noticed in a couple different interviews, both you and Rintoul were quick to say that you鈥檙e not 鈥渁 Toronto guy.鈥�

AW: I grew up in the west. I鈥檝e lived in Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba, I鈥檝e worked in these provinces, and I grew up around it: people in the west do not like Toronto. I get it. People in 麻豆传媒映画especially don鈥檛 like Toronto and I think when they were putting together this station, there鈥檚 a big reason why it鈥檚 not littered with Toronto people, because that can easily piss people off.

When I say I鈥檓 not a Toronto guy, I鈥檝e loved my time in Toronto. I think every market in North America has pros and cons: I鈥檓 going to miss some things about Toronto and some things I won鈥檛 miss at all. One of the reasons that this deal came together for me is that I am a western guy. I know that Vancouver鈥檚 a different market where some people don鈥檛 think they鈥檙e the west, they鈥檙e a stand-alone in the Pacific, but I鈥檓 from the west, I love the way of life, it鈥檚 closer to friends and family. I have more friends in 麻豆传媒映画than I have in Toronto and I鈥檝e never lived in Vancouver. That says something.

DW: What excites you about starting the show in September?

AW: What鈥檚 exciting to me is that it鈥檚 from the ground floor. We鈥檙e starting fresh. I am such a competitor: I love challenges and I love to compete. I think the competition in the market is good for everybody, but what I like the most about it is there鈥檚 no pre-existing culture, there鈥檚 no pre-existing notion, I get to come in and help start this thing from scratch.

You look at George McPhee in Vegas, they鈥檙e trying to build something and say, 鈥淭his is the way we do things,鈥� and that鈥檚 what I鈥檓 most excited about in Vancouver. You don鈥檛 have to break down any silos, you don鈥檛 have to break down any generalizations or reputations, we can just build a really good entity from the ground floor and I鈥檓 just really excited to be a part of that.

DW: I just wanted to loop back to something you said earlier about those 2011 tweets. You said some of that was just pandering to the local market: do you worry that because people see that, they would accuse you now of pandering to the 麻豆传媒映画market?

AW: Pandering is a tough word and I know I used it, but listen: you assimilate into the culture you鈥檙e in. I think a lot of sports is representative of a city.

Put it this way: if somebody from the Avalanche does something s***ty to Bo Horvat, I鈥檓 sitting here in Toronto and I can have an opinion about it, but it鈥檚 not going to bother me to the core. I don鈥檛 live there, I鈥檓 not invested in it, it鈥檚 not a topic. But if I鈥檓 in 麻豆传媒映画and someone from Colorado does something to one of the Canucks players, you鈥檙e going to talk about it, you鈥檙e going to tweet about it, you鈥檙e going to make a meme about it, you鈥檙e going to joke about it, it鈥檚 a thing. You assimilate into the culture.

I love sports so much because sports is like religion: you鈥檙e cheering for something bigger than yourself. Sports is such a huge part of the culture of any city. I might not fight to the death defending the Canucks honour, but I鈥檒l fight to the death 鈥� or social media death anyway 鈥� to defend the city that you鈥檝e chosen to call home and raise a family.

DW: But pandering is kind of a loaded word.

AW: Pandering is a loaded word. How would I describe it? Do I hate Vancouver? No, I love Vancouver. It鈥檚 a beautiful city. Do I hate the Canucks? No. But if I鈥檓 in Calgary and you can make people laugh with a tweet about the Canucks, which they eat up, yeah, that鈥檚 part of your repertoire. It might be pandering, but pandering is okay.

I鈥檓 not going to say, 鈥淭his is an amazing move by the Canucks, because it鈥檒l make Canucks fans happy,鈥� because that鈥檚 pretty lowbrow. But you find out what works and what people want to hear in your market and you try to give it to them sometimes. That鈥檚 part of the job.

DW: One of those tweets that made me laugh was when you took a shot at analytics with a 鈥渕athletes鈥� comment. What are your thoughts on analytics, because that is a big debate in this market: you鈥檙e going to get a lot of people calling in hating or loving analytics in sports.

AW: I can only be myself. I鈥檓 not going to change everything I am in a certain market, but I am staunchly, if you have to pick one side or the other, I鈥檓 an eye test guy over the numbers side.

I realize that every NHL team has their own sets of analytics that they use and I certainly 鈥� obviously, you鈥檇 be dumb if you thought otherwise 鈥� think they can help, but I will never be the guy that allows numbers to make me think that a good player is bad or a bad player is good. But I can also tell listeners that I will never be the guy that doesn鈥檛 watch the game. I watch every game, I鈥檒l re-watch every game, and I鈥檒l come up with my own opinions.

To me, it鈥檚 never been a numbers issue, it鈥檚 always been a people issue. For the life of me, I don鈥檛 know why that community can be so toxic. They annoy me, quite frankly. I鈥檓 respecting it more and more, but I鈥檒l always be on the other side of the analytics crowd, for sure.

But I鈥檝e got to be better, personally, and I have been better. All those tweets are from years ago. I鈥檝e been better at not picking fights, because sometimes that鈥檚 all they want. They don鈥檛 want to change your mind about a player, they just want to pick a fight and be validated when you lose your mind.

The thing that bothers me the most about the analytics crowd is the hills they will die on. If you want to look at Justin Williams and tell me his possession stats, that this player is better than he looks, I鈥檒l listen to that. Justin Williams, there鈥檚 a reason he鈥檚 clutch, he鈥檚 a better player than we would think, because maybe he drives any line that he plays on, but if you鈥檙e going to die on the Frankie Corrado hill, if you鈥檙e going to die on the Martin Marincin hill, because, 鈥淟ook at these numbers!鈥� You know, 鈥淪hea Weber is a bad defenceman, look at these numbers,鈥� then you need new numbers.

DW: That will make a certain segment of the 麻豆传媒映画audience very happy, some of them not quite as much, but that鈥檚 okay. It鈥檚 okay to have differing opinions. But I鈥檒l give you a chance to pander here: what are your thoughts on Mark Messier?

AW: [laughs] What are my thoughts on Mark Messier?

I adore Mark Messier, like I adore Michael Jordan, but I do not remember Michael Jordan as a Wizard and I do not remember Mark Messier as a Canuck. Put it this way, I forget that he played for the Canucks and I forget that he was/is hated in Vancouver, but I guess I鈥檓 going to have to learn.

DW: You don鈥檛 even picture those seasons as happening?

AW: No, I really don鈥檛. I don鈥檛 picture Jerry Rice as a Seahawk, I don鈥檛 picture Mark Messier as a Canuck. Unfortunately, that鈥檚 what you get when you live in the market, because you鈥檒l never forget it. I like to picture that Brett Favre was never a Viking, but that doesn鈥檛 mean it didn鈥檛 happen.

DW: I think there is a fair amount of the Canucks fanbase that wishes those years didn鈥檛 happen either, so you might be in good company. In any case, thanks so much for taking the time to talk to me after I made your day terrible.

AW: You know what, it鈥檚 fine. I probably wouldn鈥檛 reverse it if I could. I had about 7000 Twitter interactions over the last 48 hours and that鈥檚 good. It鈥檚 not a bad thing. I just think stuff like that has to be in the context of, 鈥淭his was 7 years ago from, at the time, a 26-year-old kid halfway through his career.鈥� Put it this way, if you search my Twitter handle and put in any hockey team, I鈥檓 sure you could find a tweet of me slandering any organization in the NHL, right?

That 2011 team, no one was cheering for them. That鈥檚 not me hating on the Canucks, but you know how it was, it was them against everybody. But, in 1994, I鈥檓 10 years old, I was all-in on that Canucks team. I loved that team, of course I cheered for them against the Rangers, what kid didn鈥檛? I was in Saskatoon and I loved those teams with Linden and Bure, but Twitter wasn鈥檛 around.

People can鈥檛 judge just because the 2011 team was unlikeable and the 鈥�94 team was likeable. You go through phases as a sports fan and teams go through phases too. I don鈥檛 believe in hating organizations. I think different teams can be unlikeable. This Canucks group is more likeable, what are you going to do?

That was a very unique team in 2011. I am not alone in that I wanted Boston to win, but also that whole thing of, 鈥淥h, he鈥檚 a Bruins fan.鈥� [laughs] I am not a Bruins fan.
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