Friday night was the first time I’d been back at the Wells Fargo Center since watching Dunk City, aka Florida Gulf Coast, marvel its way to the Sweet 16. It was an epic two-game run; among my Greatest Witnessed-Live Sporting Events ever.
Friday night, I sat through an atrocious two-period run of hockey. After looking sharp, but goalless, for the first 15 minutes against the Capitals, the Flyers done got slaughtered to the tune of seven goals scored against with the quickness.
Steve Mason got yanked after three of ‘em for Ray Emery, who I’ll long remember had an image of Joe Frazier on his goalie mask.
There were multiple “Fire Holmgren” chants. (Deserved. Hopefully successful.)
The arena was about half full for the start of the third period. I was among the remaining Flyers fans. Twenty-three rows off the ice behind the net from which Emery darted and done did this:
Didn’t see him dart off initially. Was watching another fight on the ice. But then I saw him hauling off on Braden Holtby’s luscious flowing locks. It was old school.
It prompted me, Guinness in hand, to jump up and down and screech like a frothing-at-the-mouth trucker who got ringside seats to Wrestlemania. Never saw a goalie brawl live before. As such, this joins Dunk City on the memorable moments list.
All y’all nanny-staters poo-pooing Emery’s actions as out of line mustn’t have liked the Flyers hockey of yore, I suppose.
What I saw was a guy wilding out because his team was getting its ass destroyed on the ice. Sometimes, all you can do is fight.
Poor sportsmanship? Sure.
A punishable offense? Certainly.
Savagery? C’mon, people.
A last-gasp effort to Tase the spirit of a team rapidly sinking to the bottom of the North Atlantic? Absolutely.
So STFU with the whole holier-than-thou high-horse jockeying. Judging by the reaction today, you’d have thought Emery raped a kitten in front of death-bed orphans in Quebec City.
If you don’t like the fact that sometimes senseless hockey violence is wielded as a motivational adze, watch Say Yes To The Dress. Or the NFL. Because all y’all sure as hell will watch that brain-damaging institution without the slightest bit of irony on Sunday, won’t you?
