Login

Turd Ferguson · 02-25-2014, 08:17 PM

SHL Player Murdered
[Image: Jeff+Carter+2014+Coors+Light+NHL+Stadium...H95Rsl.jpg]

Bauer playing for the Texas Renegades during Season 16.

Many things have happened in the SHLâ€™s long history, and a lot of controversy has occurred â€“ however, it is doubtful that there has been anything as turbulent and newsworthy as this. Texas Renegades forward Christian Bauer, at the age of 25 years old, was found dead in his Dallas, Texas home. The Dallas police department has yet to identify the killer, but a typed note was found at what is believed to be the crime scene. The note, clearly written from the perspective of a Renegades fan, criticizes Bauerâ€™s work ethic and skill on the ice, going so far as to call the fourth-year winger an â€œabsolute joke who needs to get his act together.â€ However, against the grain of most well-known celebrity deaths, a disturbing amount of fans seem to not even care about the playerâ€™s death.

Christian Bauer was being considered one of the leagueâ€™s top prospects in his early career â€“ so much so that he was selected first overall in the Season 13 SHL Draft â€“ however, his performance seemed to have peaked before his SHL career even began. After an average season with the Minnesota Chiefs, the young forward was dealt to the West Kendall Platoon. In order to fill the teamâ€™s positional gap, Bauer played defenseman for the Platoon, but was only able to produce mediocre numbers. He was quickly moved back to forward for the next season, but it seemed like his talent was quickly decaying as he seemed to be performing worse every season.

After another season below expectations came one of the most controversial parts of the young playerâ€™s career. Following only his third season in the league, Bauer announced in an interview that he was going to test the free agent market. This was his first year of eligibility for unrestricted free agency, and it certainly seemed as if he was dying for a change of scenery, despite there being, according to all sources close to the player, no reason to leave. This quickly inspired a feeling of betrayal from seemingly everyone in the organization and especially those who considered themselves fans of the Platoon. What soon followed was a widely criticized trade â€“ the free agency rights to Bauer and the recently drafted Alexandre Daigle were traded to the Texas Renegades in exchange for winger Jordan McArthur.

However, despite Bauer being considered a huge pickup for Texas and a major addition to the first line, he once again was unable to meet the high expectations set for him, scoring a measly 33 points in 50 games, and despite being considered by many to be the SHLâ€™s power forward of the future, only notched 19 hits. It was soon leaked to media outlets that Bauer often spent considerable amounts of time drinking and partying, and was nearly invisible at practice. Just in case that wasnâ€™t enough, he consistently came off as rude, egotistical, and lazy in interviews, and quickly became one of the most hated players in the SHL and a player that even his teamâ€™s fans couldnâ€™t get behind.

So now we find ourselves at the present day â€“ a player once considered a future superstar falls from grace due to a lack of work ethic, and is hated by fans and players alike. While some of the events leading up to Bauerâ€™s murder may render him a dislikable person, some have been able to put things in perspective. â€œItâ€™s honestly shocking to see a reaction like this [to Bauerâ€™s murder] from some people,â€ said one Renegades fan who wished to remain anonymous. â€œWhile I certainly canâ€™t say I was a fan of his while he was alive, such a sudden death makes me really have to rethink things. Being forced into a situation with so much pressure on you could certainly cause you to crack.â€

Furthermore, it seems to be that the persona that Bauer sent out to the media and even to his teammates was not a true representation of himself. â€œChristian was without a doubt different than the way people seemed to think of him,â€ describes Bauerâ€™s agent Turd Ferguson. â€œHe came into the SHL a very young and well-adjusted player, but it seemed as if all the attention got to him. For as long as Iâ€™ve known him, Christian has never been good with criticism, so as soon as that first critique came, it seemed to open the floodgates. He just reached his limit, and he just became numb. He didnâ€™t care, and it was really sad to see. I like to think he could have changed, but I guess weâ€™ll never know at this point.â€

Turd Ferguson · 02-25-2014, 08:17 PM

This came out as considerably more morbid than I intended it to be (although it's as if an article about someone being murdered wouldn't be morbid).
Oh well.