Data suggests most Americans are cheering for Canadiens in Stanley Cup Final
Despite the "Canada versus USA" narrative in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final between the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning, data shows that many Americans are actually rooting for the Habs.
Information released Wednesday by online betting site BetOnline.ag showed that a large majority of states in the north and in the west are rooting for the Montreal team. The findings were based on aggregated Twitter data that looked at geotags and hashtags.
Move over, Dallas Cowboys, there's a new "America's Team" in the house.
Are you on the @CanadiensMTL bandwagon? 🇨🇦
According to Twitter data from @betonline_ag, a lot of Americans sure are 👀 pic.twitter.com/3EE1VLk7nX— Hockey Night in Canada (@hockeynight) June 30, 2021
On top of having encouragement from fans south of the border, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has voiced his support for Montreal, even making a friendly wager with United States President Joe Biden over the result of the series.
The Government of Canada’s Twitter account also jumped on board to wish the Habs good luck, which rubbed many Canadians the wrong way.
Good luck to Canada’s team, the @CanadiensMTL as they enter the final 4 of the @NHL playoffs tonight and proudly represent us in the hunt for the #StanleyCup. All of Canada is behind you! 👏 #GoHabsGo
📸jyclal/IG pic.twitter.com/gFWvy84yKS— Canada (@Canada) June 14, 2021
The last time a Canadian team made it to the finals was a decade ago in 2011, when the Vancouver Canucks fell to the Boston Bruins. When looking at the last time a Canadian team actually won the Stanley Cup, that would be in 1993 – when the Habs themselves defeated the Los Angeles Kings with a 4-1 series win.
The Habs fell to the Lightning 5-1 in Game 1, giving Tampa Bay the 1-0 series lead. But the two teams play again Wednesday night, when Montreal will have a chance to tie things up and give their fans in both countries reason to celebrate.
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