Angry, drunken revelers ran wild Wednesday night after the Vancouver Canucks' 4-0 loss to Boston in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals, setting cars and garbage cans ablaze, smashing windows, showering giant TV screens with beer bottles and dancing atop overturned vehicles.
People watch a car burn following Game 7 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals on Wednesday in Vancouver.VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Angry, drunken revelers ran wild Wednesday night after the Vancouver Canucks' 4-0 loss to Boston in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals, setting cars and garbage cans ablaze, smashing windows, showering giant TV screens with beer bottles and dancing atop overturned vehicles.
"It's terrible," Canucks captain Henrik Sedin said, shaking his head. "This city and province has a lot to be proud of, the team we have and the guys we have in here. It's too bad."
NBA star Steve Nash, from Vancouver and the brother-in-law of Canucks forward Manny Malhotra, sent a Twitter message imploring the fans to stop the violence. "We're a great city and have a lot of class. Our team is great and our championship will come. Soon," Nash wrote.
There were no immediate indications of injuries, although images were shown on television of at least one woman mopping blood from her forehead.
"You don't ever hope for a situation like this," Vancouver police Const. Jana McGuinness said. "You celebrate the good times and you prepare for the bad times and that's exactly what we've done. Unfortunately, the tables have turned tonight. ... We will have to sit down and evaluate exactly what happened here. It's going to be a black mark for a very, very long time."
Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson praised the police and firefighters and asked people to stay away from the central downtown area.
"It is extremely disappointing to see the situation in downtown Vancouver turn violent after tonight's Stanley Cup game," Robertson said. "Vancouver is a world-class city and it is embarrassing and shameful to see the type of violence and disorder we've seen tonight.
"The vast majority of people who were in the downtown tonight were there to enjoy the game in a peaceful and respectful manner. It is unfortunate that a small number of people intent on criminal activity have turned pockets of the downtown into areas involving destruction of property and confrontations with police."
Tear gas mingled with the stench of acrid smoke and stale beer as riot police, truncheons drawn, moved in to quell the violence, pushing crowds away from the burning cars.
Later, police cars also were set on fire. At one point, police were using flash-bangs — grenades that are designed to distract and disorient, rather than injure — to try to break up the mob, said Chad McMillan, 31, a Vancouver resident and Canucks fan.
"This isn't what the Canucks are about," McMillan said. "This isn't what their fans are about. This isn't what this city is about."
Flames leaped from at least two flipped vehicles in the middle of trash-strewn streets, filling the downtown core with heavy black smoke in the moments immediately following the game.
"I heard a loud noise and turned and there was a car being stomped on by a bunch of guys," 18-year-old witness Brandon Sinclair said about the first few moments of violence.
"A bunch of guys started rocking it, then they flipped it over and five minutes later it was on fire and then they flipped another one. It was just out of control."
Bright orange flames were seen shooting nearly 10 yards into the air as bystanders tossed firecrackers.
Television images showed a large fire burning inside a parking garage, but it wasn't clear what was ablaze.
A small group of rioters appeared to be at the heart of the action reminiscent of a similar scene that erupted in the city in 1994 following the Canucks' Game 7 loss to the New York Rangers.
Flames erupted an exploding car, prompting bystanders to duck down in alarm. Fans who were trying simply to get out of the danger zone found their visibility reduced by the thick black smoke.
About an hour after the game ended, some bold troublemakers started hurling garbage and bottles at police officers, who deflected the debris with riot shields. Protesters who rushed the police line were quickly subdued with blows from a truncheon.
Some protesters held what looked like pipes or hockey sticks over their heads as they jeered at officers. Newspaper boxes were wrenched off the sidewalk and hurled through store windows. Portable toilets were tipped as the stifling black smoke spread through the city's core.
Some seemed to revel in the rampage, recording the vandalism on cell phones and video cameras. A few congratulated those who tried to attack police, and others erupted with cheers every time something was damaged. Fans set fire to a stuffed bear decorated to symbolize the Bruins, while others sang a drunken tune as they danced on an overturned vehicle.
At least two young men covered in soot reported being roughed up by the police, but they weren't arrested. Rivers of poured-out alcohol, broken glass and trash made navigating the streets treacherous.
Fans wandered amid the chaos, some with bandanas or T-shirts pulled over their faces — either to hide their faces from police and TV cameras or to guard against the smoke, or both.