Habs Fans All Star Prank An Embarrassment

by Robert L on Nov 14, 2008 8:35 AM EST Comment 18 comments

For once I have to agree with the Habs haters out there, and this dumb prank just gives them fuel to spread their wrath.

Just a few days in the 2009 All Star game, six Canadiens players are leading all six starting positions for this year's game. At first the notion of it is kind of fun, as all of Price, Koivu, Tanguay, Kovalev, Markov and Komisarek are players deserving of being in the mix this season while enjoying fairly good starts in 2008-09. The fact that Habs fans would vote often was to be no big surprise.

While everyone recognizes the passion of Canadiens fans, and would have expected them to show up en masse to vote their faves in, it has come to light that certain fans have created "auto voters" that run automatically by voting for a player on a per minute basis 24/7. Fans can literally washthe dishes, make babies, and snore while voting.

Call it what it is - cheating, and term some Habs fans for how this nonsense makes them look - pompous and arrogant, but where something like this really gnaws at me is that it paints all Canadiens fans with one brush. And I don't like the colour of the paint!

It also taints the organization for no reason, and quite rightly perhaps, the NHL, who in all their shrewdness, can never seem to get this All Star game voting thing right for once.

I won't link to this "auto voter", show a scan of it, or spread the word on it further, because it is simply despicable.

I would have liked to cast a vote for Saku, Kovalev, Tanguay and Markov, who I hope to see play in the game, but I now will not. If they were to legitinately get in, along with Komisarek and Price, it would all be good.

As it looks now, the Canadiens will have six starters in the game, and the feeling from the Habs fans, to fans of hockey everywhere, and perhaps even to the players themselves, is that a particular slanted mechanism was used for getting them all in.

Trust me, if this scheme works, it will be an embarrassment to everyone involved.

In a season where the Canadiens should be greatly celebrated by their fans, and the fans of the game hockey everywhere, a devious ploy like this just stains the club from top to bottom.

Somewhere, some twit without much of a life devised this crock, and now all Habs fans will pay for it. Nice move to undue all those seasons of class and dignity by the team.

If you personally have employed this auto vote gadget, please cease to now. The perception of yourself as a fan should be more important to you than getting our guys into some meaningless game anyway.

Do the right thing.

The All Star game is for all fans especially. Not just fans of two teams like any regular game, and not just for Habs fans.

I call for the NHL to cancel this vote, and redo the process, with some kind of blockers in place. The sooner, the better!

Let fairness rule!

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Bang On - this is truly sad.....
I've been a dyed in the wool Habs fan for over 50 years now and this is a major embarrassment to say the very least.
The league has to step up to the plate now and fix this mess.
I'm ashamed of this ugly scheme to rig the ballot box......

by beliveau1 on Nov 14, 2008 8:59 AM EST reply actions

An auto voter program? Seriously? Oy... I knew that page had some problems but that's rather unacceptable. Frankly I've been voting Koivu/Kovalchuk/Semin/Ovechkin ('cause he's crazy fun to watch) a couple of times per night. Seriously, people who use the auto program suck....

by Number31 on Nov 14, 2008 9:04 AM EST reply actions

I am in complete agreement. This is not cool at all. The NHL is stupid for allowing multiple votes and the people employing voting 'bots should be ashamed.

by davidspeller on Nov 14, 2008 9:13 AM EST reply actions

Time to take the voting away from the fans - it really doesn't develop new interest in the game. In reality, it only detracts from what could be a showcase for new viewers to watch. It's a blemish against our centennial celebrations.

by 24 Cups on Nov 14, 2008 9:28 AM EST reply actions

How can they use auto-vote software, I had to sign up with an email account and what not, would that not limit the voting for the account and or IP address?

by Nick on Nov 14, 2008 9:58 AM EST reply actions

First off I just want to say that I am not using the "auto-voter" nor do I plan on using it. I did however come across a link to the code, but not on how to use it. After looking at the code all you would have to do is swap the Canadiens player ids with the player ids of the players you feel deserve to be in the game. Anyone can use the code to vote for anyone they want.

Personally I think that the all-stars should be voted in by the players and coaches of the league. They are the ones that have the best idea as to who deserves to play in the ASG.

The only way to make the online fan voting process more legit is to limit the voting to 1 ballot per email address with the caveat that each ballot needs to be verified with a confirmation email sent to the voters email account. The number of votes would be limited to the number of email addresses you have. This would still allow fans to vote more that once. I don't think there would be too many people out there that would take the time required to create ridiculous amounts of email accounts in order to stuff the "ballot box".

by Hal on Nov 14, 2008 10:46 AM EST reply actions

I've been voting the normal way and will keep voting till January.

I don't think we need any kind of auto vote bull to show how passionate we are.

Having all 6 Habs on the starting roster would for one make an all star game that we all will remember and maybe get the NHL to get this thing right.

I'm not for the auto vote bull cause we don't need it but I'm all for electing the Habs player if we use the means given to us by the NHL.

by Eddy on Nov 14, 2008 10:59 AM EST reply actions

To nick:

RE:How can they use auto-vote software, I had to sign up with an email account and what not, would that not limit the voting for the account and or IP address?

Each vote is attributed to the email address you are logged in as. Once you are logged in the NHL allows you to vote as often as you wish. If you run the program after you are logged in you can vote as often as you like.

by Hal on Nov 14, 2008 10:59 AM EST reply actions

I've been voting regularly (50+ times a day) and will continue to do so, however the auto-voting bot is useless (and pretty stupid).

In the voting rules posted on nhl.com (which you have to agree to in order to register), it clearly states that any form of auto-voting and technologically enhanced results will be discarded. The NHL did it last year with the vote for Rory Fitzpatrick campaign (which was even worse than this current mess) by disallowing over 100 000 votes that were entered via a bot.
They will not hesitate to do it again. However they will wait until the very last day to cancel JUST the amount of votes required to ensure no Habs player (or maybe 1) is on the starting lineup - leaving no time for the fans to react.
So people, quit using these bots! You are actually HINDERING the Habs's chances of having players on the starting lineup by providing the league with a reason to erase our votes!
Don't think they will be blind to this scam, it's already all over the hockey blogs and the NHL is quite aware of it.

by James on Nov 14, 2008 12:13 PM EST reply actions

I think you are just looking for something to blog about and you chose this. The auto voters people have get detected by the NHL almost the same day and those accounts are shut down. Even if someone is using one its a 15 year old script that has just been re-written. People have been doing this for ever so what does it matter if they're habs fans or redsox fans? Its always going to happen and you guys complaining about it wont change anything. I as a Habs fan do not make a big deal over everything, I shut up and watch the games.
http://habsonlinetv.blogspot.com/

by Boris420 on Nov 14, 2008 2:20 PM EST reply actions

Let me just add to my comment that I went on a few other teams forums and they too have the exact same script just modified. Want a link for proof? MSG me.

by Boris420 on Nov 14, 2008 2:25 PM EST reply actions

"I think you are just looking for something to blog about and you chose this."

Give me a break Boris. After all of two plus years of writting on this site, I doubt if I am stuck for subject manner.

I wrote this late yesterday afternon before heading off to work, and posted it first thing when arriving home today because of how it made me feel, not because I need to scramble for posts.

by Robert L on Nov 14, 2008 3:21 PM EST reply actions

What was wrong with utilizing the one account one vote one IP? That way we would of avoided even the possibility of all this nonsense.

I say kuddos to fans that found this loop hole and shame on the NHL for being so fool hardy.

by Anonymous on Nov 14, 2008 6:15 PM EST reply actions

it you've visited the site lately you'll notice something like this:

This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

there they have random letters you have to type into a box to make sure its not a bot or w/e. much liek what they have on this site when you sign up for an account, so its seems they are dealing with the problem. like they said they would in the rules and regulations, and they said the would deal the votes that were added in by bots. soo you knwo what it sucks that habs fans would do that , i am a habs fan and i think its stupid because i believe we would have had the same results regardless, since the habs have such a large fan base, so you knwo what it happened, but im sure that it was not only habs fans using the bots other fans were probably doing so for there teams as well, everyones is just complaining because they are in the lead, if it was other peoepl ahead by that much you would find ways to complaining about them, i believe the nhl site creaters will do they job and fix them problem becaus ei do this its embarassing and stupid, but when the habs end up winning the votes and anyways peoepl will just try and find different reason why they shouldnt have won or how peoepl cheated, get over and vote more for your players.

by bx2 on Nov 14, 2008 10:54 PM EST reply actions

"painting all habs fans with one brush"
anyone heard of the dreyfus affair?
signed,
jew4jah (habs fan for life)

by Anonymous on Nov 15, 2008 9:51 AM EST reply actions

I agree.
People are still ignorantly insulting all habs fans because of the rioting last year (which was or wasnt caused by actual hockey fans)... Now we have to live with this.

by Mr.Hazard on Nov 15, 2008 10:25 AM EST reply actions

Although I vote almost 10 times a day...I take the time to do..but to think that people would be using such automated systems is just sad...pathetic. Even with them not using these, I'm sure the Canadiens would have led. But, at the moment, yesterday, I saw that they put a security thing where you have to type the characters in the picture in the picture. So, hopefully all of this can be stopped. And also all the players dropped by a little. Specially the Habs around 20 000 down. But it still doesn't make a difference!

by Harani on Nov 15, 2008 10:43 AM EST reply actions

Say what you want but only in Montreal do we make a big deal over such stupidity. Anything hockey related will be a big write here regardless how stupid it is.

A script!?!? Something so simple and cheesy thats been going on forever and your surprised! And to think that the solution would be to blame someone is even more stupid, the solution was easy as cake and they fixed it within what? 3, 4 minutes?

Now to the people saying they are ashamed of being habs fans because of this, Im ashamed to have you cheer this great team on by my side.

by Boris420 on Nov 15, 2008 3:58 PM EST reply actions