It's not what Theo said, it's the way he said it.
If you read the comment, it's less about Gaudreau and Theo and more about hockey now vs. hockey then. Theo formulates it in a way that relates directly to himself because that's what he knows. Does he have an ego? Yeah. Does he have a chip on his shoulder? Absolutely.
The thing about Theo that has always shocked me and, quite frankly, saddened me is how quickly people are willing to cut his throat. This is a man who was sexually abused and physically abused as a child. Who came from absolutely nothing. He got out alive and turned to drugs and alcohol to deal with those demons and what do people say? They tell him to go snort another line, that hockey is probably easier if you're high, they mock his addiction. It's absolutely disgusting and embarrassing as a Flames fan to see others do that. He turned to drugs and alcohol because as a way to deal with his past, and he almost ended up shooting himself because of those, and you mock him?
Theo is Theo. He is one of, if not the best player this franchise has ever seen. Does he have an ego? Yeah, he does, because he earned that ego. Does he have a chip on his shoulder? Yeah, he does, because his work on the ice is constantly discredited because of who he was, who he is, and the struggles he's had.
Like him or not, that's fine. He's one of the absolute kindest people I've ever had the opportunity to spend time with. When you ask him his opinion, he gives it as is. He doesn't sugar coat it or soften it, he just gives it as is, and gives it when someone ASKS him for it. But please, if you don't like him, save the shots at his addiction for somewhere else. It's embarrassing.
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