Quebec Block Party

Scandal on the streets of Ottawa...Panic on the avenues of Montreal...

French-Canadian politicians are up in arms over the selection of Phoenix's Shane Doan as captain of the current Canadian squad now participating in the World Championships in Moscow.

Apparently, back in 2005, Doan was tabbed as uttering a common slur to an official of French descent. Later, though, it was revealed that said official heard the slur, but was uncertain who let it slip. When the time came for Hockey Canada's decision to elevate Doan to the captaincy, a veritable tidal wave of dissent washed in from the province of Quebec. According to several prominent Quebec politicians interviewed on TSN on Tuesday, outrage does not center on Doan's alleged comment, but on the selection itself given that there is only one other player born in Quebec on the roster, and that player, Matthew Lombardi of Calgary, is part of the Anglophone community and does not have French lineage.

This is a tough question to handle, and will always be. How can Quebec, only one province out of 10, realistically find equal footing as a primarily Francophone society, while also being responsible for roughly half of all Canadian-born NHL players? The battle goes back to the mid-18th Century in the aftermath of the French and Indian War, when England gentrified Eastern and Atlantic Canada and basically threw all the French out into the wilderness. Their modern-day descendants, the Quebecois, found a foothold in the province of Quebec in the early 20th century and have spent that entire time imposing rules which make it difficult for native English speakers and those of non-French descent to thrive.

All the principles of Hockey Canada are natives of Ontario and westward. There seems to be no Eastern input, and no French-Canadian influence either. It's no wonder that Doan, a native of Alberta, was a natural selection to wear the "C" - the ideal amongst English Canadians for a strong-willed, rugged leader-type has most always come from the nation's heartland. There is an inherent stigma attached to French-Canadians about their attitudes (devil-may-care), their style of play (more skilled and floating than willing to make contact), and their sense of entitlement because of the Montreal dynasty and the consistent level of talent found in the province compared to all others.

However, the old arguments about a cultural bias usually crumble when players from each side are stacked up against each other. In this case, Hockey Canada has a point. Which native Quebecer could have supplanted Doan as captain? Alex Tanguay? Pascal Dupuis? Patrice Bergeron? Maybe you can make a case for Vinny Lecavalier, but most of the old-school Quebec-born players are gone, and the young ones are not ready to assume a position on the national team, let alone the captaincy.

Maybe the French just wanted a show trial for somebody. Then again, they'd be on TV decrying the fact that Francophone players were just given a show trial and not serious consideration. It will never be enough as long as the English are in power and the French are marginalized. No wonder they treat Quebec like their own independent country.

Nonetheless, there have been few great French-Canadian players who have been worthy of being leaders, either for an NHL team or on the national stage. Mario Lemieux is a modern example, and even he was far from perfect in terms of attitude and actual leadership skills beyond his God-given talent and desire to survive through pain. Denis Potvin was one, but he was born in Ottawa and raised bilingual with English dominant.

In addition, one of Quebec's own is calling for an end to the nonsense, because of that pesky national unity issue when it comes to all things hockey. Maybe he recognizes that dearth of leadership quality in Quebec natives, or maybe he's just embarrassed at more of his colleagues' grandstanding and tilting at windmills. I guarantee if Canada at least reaches the semifinals, all this BS will go away faster than an ice floe during the Spring thaw.

Whatever happens, I just get the feeling time is nothing more than empty space for the Parti Quebecois until the next outrage pushes their agenda onto Canada's papers and TV screens.