Well the Canucks were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs last night, so I guess I'm a bit late in posting this, but I figured hockey fans might get a kick out of it.

Do you remember during the Olympics when Canucks star (and American) Ryan Kesler claimed to hate Canada (or at least Canada's Olympic Hockey Team)?

Ryan Kesler calmly spit out the words and, a few minutes later, tried to grab them back.Well, sort of.“I hate them,” said the American winger of Team Canada, the two teams meeting Sunday night in their final preliminary-round game of the Olympic hockey tournament.” (Full link HERE)

Now obviously he was amped up to be playing for his country, and it was in the spirit of competition in him that made him say it... But the question is, does he still feel the same way about Canada, the country where he makes his living, when he's playing for his team and patriotism is unimportant?

Apparently yes.

FOX News reporter Mike Dunsmore caught up with Kesler after the Canucks won Game 4 in Los Angeles, and here's a bit of what he had to say:

Now you might wonder how Kesler, who is loved in Vancouver, could get away with saying stuff like that. Surely, this would spark some sort of outrage in his team's city.

The fact of the matter is, however, that it wasn't Ryan Kesler at all. The interview was given by defenceman Kevin Bieksa.

Bieksa, who is one of my favourite players on the Canucks, is known as a bit of a prankster, and said that Dunsmore approached him thinking he was Kesler, so he just rolled with it.

When he was asked in another interview (where the reporter actually knew who he was) why he did it, this is what he had to say:

“That guys an idiot. It’s his own fault if he can’t tell the difference between an all star center and a plug defenceman” explained Kevin Bieksa. “He shouldn’t even be allowed in the room.”  Bieksa didn’t stop there, as he continued to rip on Dunsmore “He doesn’t know who Ryan Kesler is.  Ryan Kesler won a silver medal for them. I did a full 10 maybe 15 minute interview with him, I was telling how I grew up in Livonia”

My personal favourite part is when Dunsmore asks what Kesler's nickname is, and Bieksa says "Guzzler." Dunsmore repeats it, and then just goes with it.

The original article can be found HERE.

The Canucks were my team going into the playoffs, but early on I got the impression they wouldn't be going too far, and now that they're out, I'm pulling for the Blues, who have never won a cup.

Who's your team?