The triumphant return of the two most famous Canucks fans was so perfectly timed, it91Ƶs like they planned it down to the whistle of a penalty call.
Those bodysuit-wearing Green Men went missing from Rogers Arena eight years ago, after terrorizing opposing players who sat in the penalty box during the Vancouver team91Ƶs best years, a decade ago.
Adam 91ƵForce91Ƶ Forsythe, the larger guy in the lighter green, and Ryan 91ƵSully91Ƶ Sullivan are pals who became folk heroes among hockey fans for their sign-waving arena antics, then quietly tucked away those skintight outfits and got on with their lives.
Staff in the Canucks91Ƶ game-presentation department had pitched the idea of the Green Men returning for a game, for the nostalgia trip, and it finally happened Saturday, Feb. 24, during an overtime win over old foes from Boston.
91ƵAt the start of the season we saw the Bruins game on the calendar, and that was tempting,91Ƶ Forsythe recalled. 91ƵSo we said to them, 91ƵWe don91Ƶt want to be paid, we91Ƶve never been about that, but would you fly Sully out?91Ƶ So they (the Canucks) covered the flight and hotel, and it all fell into place.91Ƶ
The Green Men are SO back! 🟢
91Ƶ Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks)
Welcome home, !
Sullivan now lives with his young family in Saskatoon, while Forsythe and wife have their own busy lives in Surrey, where he was born and raised.
91ƵWhen we started this, we were both single and had lots of time to do whatever we wanted,91Ƶ Forsythe noted. 91ƵNow people are saying, 91ƵOh, you91Ƶre just bandwagoners,91Ƶ because of how good the Canucks are again. No, I go to games a lot, just not in the green suit. I just want to get that out there 91Ƶ I91Ƶm a hardcore Canucks fan and don91Ƶt miss games.91Ƶ
91Ƶ RELATED: .
That was an epic night! A HUGE thank you to every single fan that welcomed us back. We can91Ƶt even begin to describe the feeling.
91Ƶ Green Men (@TheGreenMen)
What a win! Canucks fans91Ƶ you were the difference makers! Let91Ƶs keep it rocking in to the playoffs!
Their Green Men reunion was so hush-hush, they only told family members about it.
91ƵWe wanted to come back the right way, in grand fashion like we did, with the lights and the Stone Cold wrestling music,91Ƶ Forsythe beamed. 91ƵWe had the Al Murdoch intro, the voice of God (announcing). We weren91Ƶt sure it would all work, but then it worked perfectly, with the Bruins taking a penalty just when we were about to enter (the lower bowl of the arena).
91ƵI never get nervous in the green suit, but my mouth went dry, the curtain opened and adrenaline took over,91Ƶ he added. 91ƵThe person holding the curtain says, 91ƵOh, I think the Bruins just took a penalty!91Ƶ You see in the video, I sprinted down the stairs to the penalty box and Sully91Ƶs high-fiving people. I can91Ƶt really see out of the suit but apparently JVR (Bruins forward James van Riemsdyk) was laughing. It was awesome.91Ƶ
Then the waffles started flying.
Wait, waffles?
91ƵFull credit to Sully, our most famous bit was the waffles back before the 2011 run (of the Canucks to the Stanley Cup Final),91Ƶ Forsythe explained. 91ƵI told him it wouldn91Ƶt work, but it did, and now it91Ƶs the GIF that comes up if you search 91ƵGreen Men91Ƶ (on the internet). The Maple Leafs were horrible in that era, and a fan in Toronto threw a waffle on the ice. To this day, nobody knows what that meant 91Ƶ maybe a form of protest because they91Ƶre losing.
91ƵAnd then a week later we went to the game against the Leafs, and we decided to buy a box of waffles at Costco and throw them, and it went off,91Ƶ Forsythe continued. 91ƵWe didn91Ƶt really even know what it meant. So then because it was our most famous bit, we had to do it again (during the Bruins game Saturday). We had all our props lined up but then 20 minutes before, we needed waffles and ran across the street to Costco and got them. We91Ƶre still waiting for that sponsorship angle, for them to hook us up with waffles.91Ƶ
Forsythe met Sullivan at broadcasting school, and the Fleetwood-raised South Surrey resident now works in media relations. On Tuesday nights he can be found hosting Green Man Trivia at Clayton Pub on 188 Street.
91ƵIt91Ƶs straight-up pencils and paper, always general questions that I come up with,91Ƶ he noted. 91ƵI don91Ƶt do theme nights, and a lot of people show up here every week, which is great.
91ƵIt wasn91Ƶt my idea to call it Green Man Trivia, and I don91Ƶt wear the green suit, no,91Ƶ Forsythe added. 91ƵIt91Ƶs fun, and the casuals who come in ask about it, and yeah, that91Ƶs me, the guy who wears the green outfit to Canucks games.91Ƶ
Not surprisingly, that green bodysuit fits a little more snug eight years later.
91ƵWe started this when we were 21, and we91Ƶre both fairly fit,91Ƶ Forsythe said. 91ƵSully is around five-five, 140 pounds, born with a six-pack. He eats a diet consisting of fast food and doesn91Ƶt gain a pound. Meanwhile, I91Ƶll have a sip of this water and gain five pounds. It91Ƶs just the way it91Ƶs always been, so standing next to him, it91Ƶs a bad look from the jump.
91ƵLast week I was in Mexico, and the whole time I91Ƶm thinking, 91ƵOK, I want to enjoy myself but I know I have to fit in this freaking suit.91Ƶ91Ƶ
Sadly, the Bruins game will probably be a one-off reunion for the Green Men, given their locations and busy lives.
91ƵIt was so fun, and totally just a nostalgia thing, yeah,91Ƶ Forsythe said with a smile. 91ƵMy wife was a collegiate softball player in the States from, like, 2011 to 2015, and she never really experienced Green Men, so that was also motivation of wanting her to see it live, not just all the videos on the internet.
91ƵIt91Ƶs funny because we go to parties and meet people and then the host would introduce me, 91ƵOh, this is one of the Green Men,91Ƶ and I91Ƶd have to explain it, and she didn91Ƶt really get it. Well, now she gets it.91Ƶ