REPORT: Sens fans are stressing about Auston Matthews again

Friends, I regret to inform you that fans of the Ottawa Senators are at it again. Despite being 3-0-2, having their superstar captain Erik Kalrsson set to return to the lineup tonight, and not actually having a game against the Leafs until this weekend, they’re worrying about Auston Matthews.

Specifically, Sens Chirp has a screenshot from TSN featuring a whole bunch of Auston Matthews coverage. The frustration mainly seems to stem from the fact No. 34 got a “Is Matthews getting the credit he deserves?” feature today, which, to be fair, seems kind of random.

But also, who the hell cares?

I went on TSN this morning to see if the complaint was actually valid, and I saw a pretty diverse list of sports content. Hilariously enough, TSN has four different pieces of content about Sens defenceman Erik Karlsson on a ‘Video’ sidebar at the top of the site.

The news about Karlsson is dominating anything about Matthews, Marner being demoted to the fourth line, Jets forward Nik Ehlers’ hot start, Leon Draisaitl’s injury in Edmonton, and everything else, really.

Being an Oilers fan in Edmonton who also follows the Leafs (because my parents are Leafs fans and I’m a Blue Jays fan), I find it odd that people get upset over and over again about TSN’s coverage of the team. I mean, sure, fair enough, it can be overwhelming at times, but if you don’t like the type of content the outlet is producing, why on earth are you sharing it relentlessly? If you put it out there for people to click, they’re going to keep producing it.

For every Leafs fan click on a story like “Is Matthews appreciated?” out of genuine interest, there seems to be another hate click from an annoyed Sens, Oilers, or miscellaneous fan who’s so tired of the Leafs they click “Auston Matthews” on TSN explicitly to tweet about it.

National media probably isn’t your best source to get information if you’re a hardcore hockey fan because they’re catering to a massive, somewhat casual audience that tends to consume basic, white bread coverage. The reality is Toronto is the biggest Canadian city and the Maple Leafs have the biggest fanbase. That isn’t going to change. If you don’t like coverage around the team, ignore it, fill your stadium during a playoff game, and support your damn local paper.