Am I dreaming or do the good folks who own, manage, coach, play for or follow NHL teams somehow miss the once-hated Philadelphia Flyers?
You know, the take-no-prisoners Broad Street Bullies who once drove the managing editor of Sports Illustrated magazine to proclaim: “They’re ruining my sport!’’ – along with generations of tough guys to follow?
Yup.
Let’s face it, the Flyers really haven’t been all that relevant for the past decade or so.
There was that Cinderella carriage ride to within one win of the Eastern Conference finals in 2020 but much of that season comes with several asterisks due to the pandemic.
Other than that, it’s been hit or miss; just four trips to the playoffs in 10 years.
Back in the day, the Flyers would go on the road and fill buildings across the North American continent just to give fans someone to scream at and taunt with profanity-laced signs.
But what good is it when the orange-white-black crew simply can’t compete, get blown out by 9-0 scores at Madison Square Garden and don’t seem all that upset with their sorry state?
That’s one of the main reasons John Tortorella was brought in as the new head coach. He’s here not only to change the “culture’’ (overused word) but to restore pride. He’s got a little bit of Pat Quinn in him, with a touch of Mike Keenan and maybe even a page out of the Craig Berube playbook.
In other words, character building.
That’s been on display throughout Tortorella’s first training camp. He might work them to the bone but you can be sure he taps just about everyone on the butt with his stick when the 90 minutes of skating drills, corner battles and line rushes have come to an end.
Don’t think the rest of the NHL isn’t paying attention. Tortorella has won a Stanley Cup with Tampa and taken a few other teams on playoff runs.
In Thursday night’s season-opening 5-2 win over Jersey, Nic Deslauriers got the crowd into it right off the bat by delivering some hard hits and the energy started climbing.
It’s the kind of atmosphere that used to keep the old Spectrum jumping.
Funny thing is, if this sort of vibe continues, it just might bring back some of that old “let’s have fun and hate the Flyers’’ feeling while the local fans get stirred up as well.
Prior to the game, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman held a press briefing and the very first question put forth to him was whether he thought the Flyers could somehow find their way back to contention.
He responded by saying the Flyers have an ownership which is committed to winning and spends up to the salary cap every year.
“This has always been a terrific franchise with great fan support,’’ Bettman said. “This is a team under Torts, they play hard. I’m not worried about this franchise.’’
Then, after the Flyers won, Bettman was spotted in the hallway leading to the locker room approaching Tortorella with a smile and a handshake.
This behavior might have been perceived as a bit phoney considering the two men have had their differences over the years, particularly when the commish made the coach’s wallet a little lighter.
“Gary and I are very good friends because all he does is take my money,’’ said Tortorella, drawing laughter from the assembled media.
“I think the league has done a good job. Every game is a tight game and that’s what they wanted to happen. Let’s face it, this is an important market.’’
By all accounts, at least the Flyers are headed in the right direction.
“I think if we just continue and try to grow – I’m not sure, do we fall off the rails occasionally? I’m not sure how it goes,’’ he said. “But if we can get this place back to where it’s supposed to be, what I remember most about it: It’s good for the league.
“So it’s a very important market and I’m sure Gary feels that way.’’
