Unsportsmanlike conduct

When the Boston Bruins finally dispatched the Vancouver Canucks in the seventh game of a hard-fought -- even mean-spirited -- Stanley Cup final last June, the two embittered teams found it in themselves to line up at centre ice and shake hands.

It's a tradition. It's a gesture of civility that carries added meaning given the passion of what precedes it. It's a gesture of hope as much as anything else -- a promise that even as we reach into the dark part of our nature we can emerge again, tamed.

So the Canucks' Sedin twins shook hands with the NHL's most irritating nose -- Brad Marchand, who famously face-washed (face-punched?) Daniel and gave him some more when he was offered the other cheek.

The Bruins' Johnny Boychuk, who broke the Canucks' Mason Raymond's neck in Game 6, passed through the line unscathed. Similarly Vancouver's Alex Burrows and Maxim Lapierre offered the hands they dared Boston's Patrice Bergeron to bite, showing more grace in defeat than they ever did on the way there.

There was no one more generous in the handshake line than Bruins goalie Tim Thomas.

He had kind words for everyone, and what could have been an awkward moment when he crossed paths with the Canucks' Roberto Luongo -- given their jousting in the media -- was instead a precious second for brothers-in-arms who could understand what the other was going through.

That this putting aside of differences moments after two teams had -- sometimes literally -- been trying to kill each other happened even as a small but significant number of people who just couldn't keep things in perspective were running around downtown Vancouver lighting things on fire should not have been lost on anyone.

Which brings us to the tempest in the Tea Party that was set off Monday afternoon when news came out that Thomas had chosen to skip the traditional -- there's that word again -- visit by the Stanley Cup champions to the White House where they were honoured by president Barack Obama.

Whatever you think of his politics, Obama can at least claim the high ground as a legitimate sports fan: he pulls off these team visits comfortably. They seem like fun.

And while sure, they're a photo op, and this is an election year, the possibility that the Bruins were somehow props in a Democratic plot to swing votes in New England seems like the kind of thing someone who has their own gas-powered generator, a year's supply of pickled food and firmly believes the federal government has grown out of control might buy into.

The shocker from Monday was that Thomas, the roly-poly, charmingly ordinary yet extraordinary goalie just might be one of those guys.

Thomas, the late-blooming superstar from Flint, Mich., is the lone American citizen on the Bruins' Stanley Cup-winning roster, but rather than meet the president, Thomas turned away the honour like a weak slap shot from a bad angle.

Naturally this became the story out of the day. I mean Thomas disses the president? Really?

In retrospect his media guide bio where he said the person he'd like to meet most was Glenn Beck, the right-wing media pundit whose views are extreme even by Fox News standards (among other opinions, Beck believes Obama has a race-based agenda targeting whites) might have been the obvious clue no one had previously picked up on.

Later Thomas's only explanation came on his Facebook page, where he said it wasn't about politics, but judge for yourself:

"I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People. This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government. Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House.

"This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.

"This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic. TT" He then said he wouldn't be making any more public statements on the matter. He said nothing about a manifesto however, so stay tuned.

I have a few problems with Thomas' stand (which he may well have taken lying down in his five-star hotel room as Boston is in Washington to play the Capitals Tuesday night).

Among them: the White House visit wasn't bestowed on Tim Thomas, the person, or Tim Thomas the true believer. It was made available to Thomas because he was part of a team that won the Stanley Cup.

It was an important enough honour that Czech-born Tomas Kaberle , who played half-a season with the Bruins last year and now plays for the Montreal Canadiens, made the trip to join his old friends and share in the perks.

It was a big moment for the Bruins who pay Thomas US$5 million this season to stop pucks and generally uphold the image of their team. It was an important opportunity for the NHL to get a few moments in front of the mainstream U.S. media. Given that the NHLPA is in a revenue-sharing relationship with the league, those opportunities aren't as trivial as they seem.

What they didn't need was one of the league's stars stealing headlines and coming off like he's about to spend his off-season looking for black helicopters.

Because Thomas chose the moment to rant not completely coherently on Facebook instead of it being a fun day for the NHL and the Bruins it become a 'make fun' day about Tim Thomas, the unagoalie, as he was dubbed on Twitter, where he was trending while being mocked for his frightening use of capitalization, among other things.

I mean, who knew that Thomas really wears all that equipment because he's a survivalist?

This isn't to suggest that Thomas shouldn't be able to make a political statement -- and sorry Tim, when you snub the president of the United States because you don't believe in the direction of your government it's political.

And it's certainly not meant to discourage athletes in general from sharing their beliefs. Just be prepared: if they're extreme, expect people to react accordingly

To me the real problem is that Thomas couldn't rise above his beliefs and not only support his team but support the tradition of public discourse and debate which is the only logical way out of whatever issues are ailing the United States and how many other democracies these days.

There's no objection to his views here, but there is an objection to the notion that you can't show respect to the individual democratically elected to serve your fellow citizens, even if it's to vigourously agree to disagree.

The Bruins shook hands with the Canucks, after all.

Sure they scrapped like brothers the next time they met. All the old wounds remained raw.

But they honoured the spirit of the game. Tim Thomas should have too.

Michael Grange will provide insight and analysis on all the top stories in sports.