Love to hate a player or hate to love?

In a different kind of way than you ask...yes. I hated Chris Chelios (in a completely respectful way...I hated how good he was and what a pain in the *ss he was to the Wings) but I remember how pleased I was when I first heard the Wings had acquired him. I still root for him....trust me I know what playing hockey at 47 feels like when you leave the rink (and although I am a guy who loves to this day to stand right in front of goaltenders I have never taken and given beatings like he has) and yet he is perfectly willing to pay that price at the highest level to this day...you have to respect that.

Taking the player thing to the coaches - I really want Dan Bylsma to do well. He's a hometown boy, but the Penguins?!! Ugh. He brought the cup home this year, which hurt. Ouch.

I love to hate Pronger. I don't care what coast he's on.

I also hate to love Ovechkin. He's a dynamo on the ice, his exuberance is contagious, but I want to ***** slap him when he scores against my team! LOL

As much as I hate to admit it <places head on chopping block> Bertuzzi is growing on me. Yeah, I said it. I haven't been a huge fan of his; but he is growing on me. I *never* thought that would happen. Either he's grown up, or I have . . .

Pronger!

live it up man on the Flyers. perfect fit. he's gonna do damage, and i don't mean the hospital type (although maybe that too). i think that the Atlantic is ready for a shift in power. wow. what a competitive division right now.

great question. now you got me thinking about others.

this isn't quite "hate to love", but oddly enough, my least favorite Wings, that I've grudgingly tried to focus on their positives are: Lilja, Rafalski, Samuelsson, Hudler (and yes, actually before the last two left.) i remember in 07 i was questioning Samuelsson and Lilja. Cleary was an interesting choice, but he has proven his worth and grit. i don't see a lot of grit w/ these 4. did they contribute? yes, and i'm grateful, but i wasn't heartbroken to see them go. of course, now, it looks like we'll miss them, but adversity can be a good thing, especially to shake off complacency.

i also loved to hate Forsberg. i'm not so sure about that "until he's on my team" bit. but beggars can't be choosers. Pronger is a dominant force, but has displayed questionable judgement. however, his positives far outweigh the negatives. and in this competitive NHL, the Wings can't just buy talent anymore. i think i was spoiled pre-cap. I didn't like the "dirty" element to Forsberg. nothing vicious, but sneaky. however, like many wings fans, i think i turned a blind eye to our "dirt". lol. whereas i'm cheering for Pronger now, (i want to see how Pitt handles Philly this year), i wasn't cheering for Forsberg... ever. also, if Malkin was on another team, i think i'd cheer for him more.

I am cheering on Jose Theodore this year to spite never being a big fan! (not outside the conference but still....)

I have a hard time with the Crosby thing...so many mixed emotions, great player and hometown boy BUT a Pen!

Something related.....on the signs coming into town they have this "Home of Sidney Crosby" crap....well, this summer they added a piece to it...."We proudly await the cup."

Well, I got to thinking that I should go up the street sometime this week and take the bolts of one of them (there are two) and stick it in my basement...how much would that be worth in 20 years?! Well, coming home earlier today, I noticed it was gone...whether someone got the idea just before me or if they took it down because it was no longer applicable I don't know.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_3WkIQw4ovq0/Sk-TwFBU-fI/...

Seriously...what would that be worth on EBay....dammit, I should have grabbed it while I had the chance....now I have to hope that the Pens win another cup....not!

Laying Low- I met Schultz at Chickie andd Pete's one time...GREAT guy (as you probably know the enforcers are always the most grounded off the ice)

VIP- Chelios and Claude the Fraud....good ones...very eassy to hate...Tucker, Barnaby for me too.

San- I have! I also considered covering it with Flyers garb the last two postseasons....my fault they lost because I didn't.

Chris Pronger. I loathed his hide until he signed for the Ducks. When he's not laying out questionable hits and shooting a blast from the blue line he's quite funny in person.

Dany Heatley.

After the Snyder accident which I don't need to go into details about, I didn't root for him. I respected him and his scoring prowess, but I never rooted for him. However, when he was traded to SJ, I was elated, because the Sharks got a premium sniper playing alongside a brilliant passer, which is Thornton.

1. Barry Bonds - Who doesn't? 2. Rickey Henderson - His name should be ''Cocky.'' 3. Gary Sheffield - What a joke, calls Torre a racist. No wonder he played for so many different teams!

Even when he went to the Kings, Dave Schultz was always Public Enemy #1. I could only root for him when he played against the Rags.

I guess more recently, I couldn't root for Shanahan while he was with the Rags, but I still have great respect for him. Still hope he catches on somewhere.

I never really thought aboot it but I guess Ray Bourque,even though he was my first sweater,I never really liked the guy until he went to Colorado and got his elusive ring.I probably wouldn't hate Brodeur so much if he played for Anaheim and didn't whup on the Flyers 8 times a year.

Much like you though,I don't care what Conference he is in, I will never like Darcy Tucker.

I'm waiting for this to scenario to happen with Simon Gagne...

Wait, a second... Actually, I'm glad it happened with RJ Umberger! Now I can actually root for that Pittsburgher! :b

Great question, by the way.