If it seems like you’ve been seeing a lot of a Flyers player wearing a glitzy robe lately, there’s a good reason.
The Flyers have won eight of their last 10 games and every time they post a W, a player-voted, “unsung’’ star of the game gets to wear the infamous Ric “Nature Boy’’ Flair robe.
This ritual has been around since the start of the season but now it’s getting a lot of play, partly because of the team’s recent success and partly because some semi-stars – such as Travis Konecny, Jordan Weal, Robert Hagg and Ivan Provorov — appear to be earning the honor of late.
The robe was designed by team equipment manager Derek Settlemyer and his daughter, sort of a tribute to former WWE wrestler Flair.
The robe ceremony creates a lot of laughter and helps keep the locker room loose.
Back in October, captain Claude Giroux presented the robe to Wayne Simmonds for scoring a hat trick in the opening game.
From there, it got passed along to a new player after each victory.
Right now, the Flyers are seven games over .500 for the first time since Dec. 28, 2016, so the robe is getting a lot of use.
It all started back in the fall when the Flyers saw an ESPN 30-for-30 documentary on Flair. Like all pro wrestlers, Flair was a bit over the top. The rest is history.
The Flyers have done this sort of thing on occasion in the past.
Perhaps the most notable involved people from Bucks County. Former coach Craig Berube, who lives in Bucks County, was attending a Memorial Day parade in Doylestown when he noticed a number of people wearing Colby Umbrell T-shirts.
He inquired about this and learned they honored U.S. Army Lt. Colby Umbrell, who died on May 3, 2007 during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Berube became friends with the family and a hat was donated to the team, which the star of the game wore after each victory.
Previously, the Flyers had used a work boot as their token, symbolizing a workmanlike effort.
“It’s not always the guy that goes out, say you win 2-1 and a guy has two goals,” forward Dale Weise said. “It’s kind of the unsung hero and stuff like that. That’s good just for building team chemistry and keeping guys close.”
Flair, who attended last year’s annual Wing Bowl at the Wells Fargo Center, might be back again this year (Feb. 2).
Don’t be surprised if someone arranges a photo-op with him and one of the Flyers players. After all, the robe is starting to feel like a good luck charm.
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