PHILADELPHIA – Super Bowl-bound Eagles coach Doug Pederson was on hand at the Wells Fargo Center on Thursday night to drop the ceremonial first puck at the Flyers-Tampa Bay game.
Pederson received a lot of cheering and for good reason. He’s brought the Eagles to the big game for only the third time in the 52-year history of the event.
Before the game, an admiring Flyers coaching staff gave Pederson an autographed team jersey.
Coach Dave Hakstol was asked if he gets excited watching the Eagles play.
“Well I mean the city rallying around the team, the performance of their entire group, from their players all the way through their staff – the preparation level, the consistency, regardless of the challenge ahead of them, has been impressive,’’ Hakstol said. “That’s a helluva team.’’
Hakstol said he doesn’t necessarily watch how the Eagles are constructed but rather how they handle adversity (i.e., the Carson Wentz injury).
“Not the specifics of how the team is constructed. . .because it’s such a different sport,’’ he said. “I follow all the teams in the city, watch what they do and how they rise to the challenges. I think when you look at the way the Eagles have gone through this season, that’s been one of the most important things: No matter what the challenge is in front of them, they’ve put together a plan, gone out and executed and they’ve been successful.’’
The Eagles play the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.
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