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When it was announced that Teemu Selanne would be a healthy scratch for game four, lots of fans were upset. But one fan closer to the situation seemed to get more attention for voicing his displeasure.
As you've probably seen by now, here is the (since deleted) tweet that Eemil Selanne, Teemu's 18 year old son, sent out in reaction to the news:
After the tweet got a ton of hockey media attention, Eemil deleted the tweet and told people to relax and stated it was simply a joke (foregoing the time-honored "I was hacked!" excuse):
Alright guys, it was just a joke. You guys can all calm down now. Have some humor. Sorry to those who felt offended.
— Eemil Selanne (@EemilSelanne) April 24, 2014
Of course, that excuse doesn't hold up upon further scrutiny, but I'll get to that in a moment.
Prior to this tweet becoming a situation, I had no idea Eemil even had a Twitter account because I'm not the type of guy to stalk players' families. But when I took a look, I found out the account was relatively new (late October-ish), and didn't have many tweets (less than 150). Most of his timeline was rewtweets.
But I started to notice a running theme about Eemil's retweets. Below are some key RTs (and normal tweets) that paint a picture that perhaps his comments about Boudreau weren't "just a joke."
Selected Eemil Tweets and Retweets...
Selänne played 17.13 vs CAN and was one of the best on ice. In #NHLDucks he gets 11-13 minutes. BB, use your smartest player more. #NHL
— Pekka Jalonen (@PekkaJalonen) February 16, 2014
Honestly, what are you doing? pic.twitter.com/R2vAa2high
— Eemil Selanne (@EemilSelanne) March 4, 2014
@EemilSelanne seriously Teemu needs more ice time!!!!! #NHLDucks
— DucksNPucks® (@DucksNPucks93) March 8, 2014
@EemilSelanne they should play him more i don't get it why the don't. Teemu would make miracles on the ice
— bizzle (@nooorauhl) March 8, 2014
@EemilSelanne Wake up BRUCE BOUDREAU!!! #NHLDucks #8 #MVP pic.twitter.com/6jRpKsYYxK
— Jukka Utriainen (@J_Utriainen) March 8, 2014
@EemilSelanne you'd think by now that they would realize that when Teemu's on the ice he makes things happen
— Dani (@danioliver87) March 8, 2014
— tatustin (@tatuhiltunen) March 8, 2014
@EemilSelanne people don't know what they had until its gone...Respect the Great #8 before its too late!
— Michele (@mrswans) March 8, 2014
@BuckyHermit i bet he would get more TOI in Winnepeg! @EemilSelanne
— Michele (@mrswans) March 9, 2014
@EemilSelanne it's ridiculous that they aren't playing your dad more!! What a waste of good talent, leaving him on the bench!
— Dawn #Cup4Koivu (@LadyTennisBall) March 9, 2014
Wow some goaltending huh? #wheresviktor?
— Eemil Selanne (@EemilSelanne) March 13, 2014
@hayski08 @mrswans @EemilSelanne More Teemu = Less Problems. Basic math.
— Vicky #Cup4Saku (@PrincessDuck) March 13, 2014
@mrswans @PrincessDuck @EemilSelanne Why not try playing Teemu with Getz and Pears, I know it's 2 RW's but what could it hurt?
— Hayes Skiles (@hayski08) March 13, 2014
I wonder if they've ever thought about building some chemistry within lines instead of having different line-mates every game.
— Eemil Selanne (@EemilSelanne) March 13, 2014
@EemilSelanne makes me wonder how much better our record would be if they played your dad more this season. He looked awesome.
— Dawn #Cup4Koivu (@LadyTennisBall) March 15, 2014
Yikes, okay...
Clearly Eemil has some issues with how Boudreau has managed Teemu this season (as well as some other franchise decisions). This is understandable coming from Eemil, this is his dad we're talking about here.
But from a non-familial perspective, it's hard to argue much with with Boudreau's decisions, given how much success it brought Anaheim throughout the regular season (and the type of season Teemu has been having). Eemil complains about the record of a coach who just delivered the best regular season Anaheim has ever seen. It doesn't add up.
I feel for the kid, and I love Teemu just as much as the next guy, but I can't say the Ducks would have been better off taking more ice time away from the younger players this season. It's a bummer, but it worked out.
Gameday
7:30 PM on NBCS, TSN, RDS, PT Honda Center, Anaheim, California
@
Anaheim Ducks
Series tied 2-2
Prediction
At the time of this writing, we still hadn't learned if Ryan Getzlaf is back in for Game 5, we know Stephane Robidas is out forever after being murdered by Ryan Garbutt, Matt Beleskey isn't likely to be back, and things look pretty damn bleak. Life is rough, folks.
I predict Eemil's going to be pretty bummed out.
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