Flyers Classes in Playoffs: Tribute to Ed Snider Takes Nasty Turn
While I am biased towards the other team involved in the Wild Card 2 versus the 1 seed playoff series, Monday night in Philly was bad. The first night back at Wells Fargo Arena since Flyers former owner Ed Snider’s passing was supposed to be a tribute and celebration of a great man’s life, but instead, the Philly faithful decided to tarnish Mr. Snider’s memory, and show a distinct classlessness.
The Washington Capitals came into the third game of the series up 2-0, after a shaky win, and a more dominant one. The President’s Cup winning team looked even shakier after Michael Raffl scored for the Flyers 57 seconds into the first period. The early goal must have been a wake-up call for the Caps, as they tied the game on a power-play goal from Marcus Johansson around the 6 minute mark. The Caps never looked back after that point, netting five more goals, 4 on the power play, and a nasty snipe from Alex Ovechkin that beat Steve Mason on his glove side. Thus the tirade of angry fans, and angrier spirits began.
The real disrespect came before the puck even dropped, with fans screaming profanity, directed towards the Caps, as well as the Flyer’s cross-state rivals the Pittsburgh Penguins. The PA announcer at the Wells Fargo Arena asked fans to remain silent in a moment of respect for Ed Snider, but was followed with crows of, “F--K the Caps!” “F--K the Penguins!”. This continued throughout the game with numerous fans heckling the Caps around their bench, posing for pictures flipping off Head Coach Barry Trotz, the coaching staff, and players as they returned to the bench. As the Flyer’s themselves began to unravel in the game, giving up goals to Ovechkin in the second period, and Evgeny Kuznetzov early in the third, fans began another tirade of profanity and overall disrespect for the game. Plastic cups and aluminum bottles of beer began to rain down on the ice, as well as the complementary bracelets fans were given before the game, littering the ice, and causing a stoppage in play. The PA announcer begged the fans to stop throwing items on the ice, but to no avail. They continued to rain trash onto the ice, with a bracelet striking Caps defenseman, Dimtry Orlov in the face, as he was receiving medical attention after being boarded head first by Flyers winger Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, a hit that landed the French international a suspension. As the bracelets, beer, and other trash continued to be thrown onto the ice, the Flyers received a bench minor, forcing the PA announcer to state. “You’ve really done it know!” The Caps then proceeded to score three more power play goals, one by Ovechkin, one by John Carlson, and one more from Jay Beagle to seal the victory, and put the Caps ups 3-0 on the series.
I have never been a fan of any team from Philadelphia, despite having numerous friends and family members live for Philly sports. One of the biggest reasons I have never enjoyed them, has been because of the fans. When the Yankees and Phillies played in the 2009 World Series, my father and I drove to Philly to see the Yanks try and win the series. We sat down, and were greeted with boos, profane language, and overall poor sportsmanship. Fan bases reflect the team, just as much as the team reflects the fan base. The fans of both teams in Pennsylvania are blue collar people. Hard working, industrious people, and the teams they support tend to be the same way. But now it seems the fans in Philly enjoy the persona of the bad guy. Through some hard times in recent years, Flyers fans have been content to know, we may not win every game, but we are gonna hit your players, and hit them hard, with no thought of consequence. They are fine with being considered dirty, unprofessional, and bullish. Their reputation precedes them, and that night was no different, continuing to stain a once great franchise. My uncle, a lifelong Flyers fan, wrote that he felt the need to apologize for the actions of the fans and players and the disrespect they showed not only to the game of hockey, but the Ed Snider as well. Hockey may be a brutal sport, but it should never be dirty and players and fans should have respect for their opponents, not matter who they are. If Flyers fans want this reputation to continue, the league will suffer for it, and we may see the end of an incredible era for hockey.
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