As Vancouver prepares for the final game of the Stanley Cup playoffs Wednesday night, it happens in the shadow of events that occurred the last time the city hosted the final.
It 'been 17 years, but the images of the uprising Stanley Cup 1994 still haunt the city, where thousands of people went on a rampage after the Canucks' loss to the New York Rangers. Drunken fans disappointed destroyed the windows, threw bricks and looted shops in the center.
Cars were overturned and the police made 150 arrests within hours. In addition 200 people were injured, and what was widely known as the capital relaxed culture of the West has left a legacy of restrictive regulation in order to avoid repeating embarrassing.
But Vancouver police say a lot has changed since then, although they are ready, they are not anticipating any violence when the Canucks host the Boston Bruins on Wednesday.
"Basically ... things went pretty well," Const. Lindsey Houghton said Tuesday.
Vancouver has worked hard to shed her post-riot reputation for being a "No-Fun City", starting with the 2010 Olympics, which saw hundreds of people gather in the city center.
Played really confirmed that the police tactics in pursuit of the best people, and allows you to interact for a celebration of 'environment, "says Houghton.
"People really respond well to it."
This approach remains the playoffs to Vancouver, where the city has created more places to live where the streets were closed to traffic so fans can watch the game on large outdoor screens. Crowds ranging from about 100,000 last Friday that 45,000 so far on Monday night and they were polite, Houghton said.
"There were no major incidents and hope that tomorrow night," he said.
"It's going to be exciting. People are at the limit of our offices and officials are having fun. Let's go to the Olympics, we got a lot of high-age children and posing for many pictures and this is no different for us."
The department did not release details on the number of officers on the street, but Houghton said other police forces in Metro Vancouver has been to help with other agents in the street, and police transit, and there will be a visible presence on Wednesday.
BC government has ordered liquor stores downtown closed at 4:00 for Game 6, and can do it again for Game 7 - a tactic first used during the Winter Games.
Most fans of the old and the games do not even remember 1994, Houghton says.
"It's the past. It was 17 years ago and people focus on this year 2011, and everyone expects a good result tomorrow night."