Over the past five seasons, the Vancouver Canucks have had a pair of secret weapons in terms of intimidating the opposition. The Green Men, individually known as Force (Adam Forsyth) and Sully (Ryan Sullivan), took it upon themselves to terrorize NHL’ers in the penalty box with hilarious antics ranging from tossing waffles in the air to constructing cardboard cutouts of players’ wives.
Occupying seats in section 118 of Rogers Arena (row 1, seat 13 and row 2, seat 13), the Green Men first appeared during the 2009-10 season, when the stadium was known as General Motors Place. The more games they went to, the more recognizable they became in the city of Vancouver.
1-on-1 with the Vancouver Green Men
However, after the amount of games they attended decreased in recent years, the duo revealed that they would be retiring after the 2014-2015 season. Although their days donning spandex at the Rogers Arena have come to an end, Forsyth and Sullivan’s creativity and originality has inspired fans across the NHL to put together their own acts of distraction for visiting teams.
I had the opportunity to chat with the Green Men about their most treasured moments, the future of the Canucks and their upcoming cameo in EA Sports NHL 16.
Cristiano Simonetta: For people that don’t know, you two got the idea to wear a pair of green spandex suits after seeing a similar idea come to life in the television show “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” but did you ever expect to get as much as attention as you did looking back at how much you were able to accomplish at the same time?
The Green Men: When we attended our first game it was supposed to be a one time thing. We weren’t even sure if we would be allowed in the building. By the end of the night, we were taking photos with fans, security and cops. The next day, we were flooded with media requests and we realized we might have accidentally spawned a new type of fandom. To go to a game thinking we would have a few laughs and then six years later have dozens of memories that will last a life time is pretty awesome!
CS: We’ve all seen the tear-jerking press conference in which you announced your retirement, but what particularly lead to the decision to hang up the spandex despite the amount of fandom you guys have received over the years?
TGM: It was a tough call to retire. Even we can acknowledge how goofy it is that two idiots in green suits have a retirement press conference, but that’s our style: the weirder, the better! We wore the suits for nearly five seasons and exhausted pretty much every original idea we could think of to distract the players sitting in the sin bin. We experienced things that the majority of people will never get to do, because we donned spandex. The insanity of that isn’t lost on us, but all good things must come to an end. There is the old saying, “leaving the people wanting more,” and I think we did, cementing our place in hockey’s pop culture for years to come.
CS: Who was your favorite NHL player to mess with?
TGM: We have had everybody in the penalty box, from future Hall of Famers such as Teemu Selanne, to rookies playing their first game who looked absolutely terrified. Drew Doughty has been in the box a handful of times, and after never cracking a grin, we finally got him interacting with us. Duncan Keith has never been a fan of us and has had a few choice words for us over the years. Our personal favorite was Mike Komisarek. He was playing for the Leafs and we were taunting him about the fact the US lost to Canada in the 2010 Olympic final. He turned to us and said “I love you guys, I watch all your videos on YouTube.” He’s a beauty!
CS: Was there ever an issue with an opposing team or even the league regarding your distracting tactics?
TGM: The infamous handstand event was our biggest run in with the league. In the 2011 playoffs, Nashville Predators General Manager David Poile complained to the league that we shouldn’t be allowed in the building. The NHL decided from that point on we were no longer allowed to touch the glass or do handstands. It was at the point we switched our shtick from physical comedy to more prop based material. The Canucks won that series in six games, so we got the last laugh.
CS: In EA Sports NHL 16, the Green Men are seated by the opposing team’s penalty box in Rogers Arena. How cool of a moment was that to be involved with the Electronic Arts franchise and be featured in one of their games?
TGM: It was a goal of ours to make it in to the video game. We had been pestering EA Sports for years to try and sneak us in to the game. I can’t wait to see how the game looks. We both grew up playing the game, so to be in it is beyond our wildest dreams. The guys down at EA Sports were so cool and had us down to the studio so we could get scanned in to the game. It’s been a really cool experience.
CS: The Canucks were eliminated in the first round of the postseason by the Calgary Flames last season, but what do you think they can do in 2015-2016 with Willie Desjardins behind the bench for a second year?
TGM: The Canucks could be in big trouble next season. It seems every team in the Pacific Division has been steadily improving, while Vancouver has stayed stationary. We would have no problem if the team decided to rebuild, but it appears they are set on trying to fix their issues on the fly, which didn’t work for Toronto and Calgary over the last ten years. Hopefully the Jim Benning brain-trust knows what they are doing and have a clear vision of what they are trying to accomplish, because right now it appears to be foggy at best.
CS: I think the one question that all of your fans want to know the answer to is if the Canucks are in the Stanley Cup Final in the future, will the men in green come out of retirement?
TGM: Never say never. I guess we will have to wait to see when the team gets back to the Final. It might be weird if in 15 years, these two 40-year-old dads try to squeeze in to the suit one last time!
I’d like to thank the Green Men for taking the time to answer my questions. You can like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.
