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Should Sharks fans boo Brian Campbell?

Brian Campbell

FILE - This April 11, 2009, file photo shows Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell skating against the Detroit Red Wings in the first period in Detroit. Campbell will miss seven to eight weeks with a broken collar bone and a fractured rib, the result of a hit from Washington Capitals’ star Alex Ovechkin. Blackhawks team doctor Michael Terry said Tuesday, March 16, 2010, that Campbell will likely avoid surgery and is expected to make a full recovery. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

AP

For a scant two months two seasons ago, Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell patrolled the San Jose Sharks blueline. His occasional spin-o-ramas and useful offensive skills were a breath of fresh air for what was then a mostly rugged D core at the Shark Tank. (Of course, the team one-upped Campbell by the next season when they acquired high-scoring defenseman Dan Boyle) Campbell wore teal for what seemed like a blink of an eye, but Sharks devotees haven’t forgotten. How does Campbell and anyone with a set of ears know that? Because those fans boo him every time he touches the puck. Cam Cole of the Vancouver Sun has more.

Brian Campbell, for gosh sakes! The carrot-topped Chicago defenceman is a sweet skater and a nice puck-handler but he isn’t anybody’s idea of a villain. But evidently the good people of San Jose have memories like elephants, because two seasons ago - for all of two months - Campbell was a late-season rental who elected not to re-sign with the Sharks when free agency season opened.

The fans ought to throw him a parade. No knock on Campbell, who had cost the Sharks a first-rounder and winger Steve Bernier to acquire from Buffalo, but his decision to sign in Chicago that summer made San Jose GM Doug Wilson go beat the bushes for another offensive defenceman, and the result was Tampa’s Dan Boyle.

And if the Shark faithful can’t figure out that’s an upgrade, they’re not as smart as they think they are, here in the most underrated hockey market in the National Hockey League.

I couldn’t agree more. While I think that both rush-leaders come at a hefty price, Boyle’s even lighter on the Sharks’ soon-to-be-troubled salary cap than his ginger counterpart. (Campbell is making about $7.1 million per year, compared to Boyle’s $6.6 million hit.) When you consider the fact that Boyle is, frankly, quite a bit superior to Campbell then what is there to complain about?

Then again, fans can often be as silly as they are sophisticated. Any goalie with a two syllable last name will receive a derisive chant, even if they’re dominating a game. (Bonus points for those moments when fans try to mock a goalie with a less chant-friendly name.) Ultimately, it’s silly to jeer Campbell, but fans earn the right to be silly geese when they buy tickets.

It won’t change the fact that it’s kind of dumb that they do it, though.