Flyers fans still bullish on their Bullies
Hockey Betting Lines
05/28/2010 -
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -In an era when hockey games may as well have been held inside the squared circle, the Broad Street Bullies spilled enough blood to fill a decade's worth of Stanley Cups.
They embraced their moniker as the most despised team in the NHL, crushed their rivals to a pulp, and rubbed salt in their busted-open wounds by winning a pair of titles.
More than that, the Bullies pounded their way into the hearts of Philadelphia Flyers fans.
It's a love affair spanning more than 35 years that kicked off with those 1974 and 1975 Stanley Cup winners that so captured the spirit of gritty Philly, more than 2 million fans packed city streets for each of their championship parades.
Long past their pugilist primes, the former champs are ready to make room in the rafters for another championship banner. No one outside the organization wants the Flyers to defeat - oh, let's say, beat - the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup finals more than the players who still sport the scars, carry the aches and wear the rings of their glory days.
``My freaking shoulders are getting tired. It's time to pass the torch around,'' Hall of Fame goalie Bernie Parent said. ``It's been a long time, but it's the right time.''
The Bullies' style intimidated opponents, enraged visiting fans and, more than anything, meant the Stanley Cup stayed in Philadelphia.
Lord Stanley's Cup hasn't called Philadelphia home since the brawlers left town. The Flyers have lost their past five appearances in the Stanley Cup finals - a trend they'll try to reverse starting with Game 1 on Saturday in Chicago.
The Broad Street Bullies are enjoying a renaissance throughout the city. They're in demand thanks to the Flyers' run to the finals - Bob ``the Hound'' Kelly, Dave ``the Hammer'' Schultz and Joe Watson rallied the fans Thursday at Geno's Steaks - and the Flyers were celebrated in the HBO documentary ``Broad Street Bullies'' that is airing now. It's the first NHL documentary aired by the premium cable network.
``We're riding a crest, just like the boys are,'' Parent said.
And they're setting the record straight.
Yes, they loved to fight. But the Flyers from that era were more than a bunch of thuggish brawlers who some accused of cheapening the game. They boasted Hall of Famers such as Parent and Bobby Clarke, and won 50 and 51 games in their championship seasons - numbers not achieved simply by throwing punches and camping out in the penalty box.
This year's Flyers won a shootout in the last game of the season to clinch the seventh seed.
``We might have pushed a little bit to the extreme,'' Kelly said, laughing. ``People look at our fighting, but we had talent. We had good talent.''
The nickname was coined by a writer and a headline in the Philadelphia Bulletin and it soon became their calling card. Broad Street is a major arterial street in Philadelphia and runs past the soon-to-be demolished Spectrum.
It took three hours for the 1974 parade motorcade to travel a few miles down Broad from the Spectrum to City Hall.
The Flyers won their first Stanley Cup in 1974, only six years after Ed Snider founded the expansion team. They beat the Bruins 1-0 in Game 6 on a goal by Rick MacLeish at the Spectrum. Parent won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
In '75, the Flyers went back-to-back. They defeated the Buffalo Sabres 2-0 in Game 6 to clinch a second straight championship. Parent became the first player in NHL history to win the Conn Smythe in consecutive seasons.
On the flight home from Buffalo, the Flyers plopped the Stanley Cup in the middle of the aisle. For close to 90 minutes, the Flyers couldn't take their eyes off the ultimate prize.
``We were able to just sit back, look at the Stanley Cup and just savor it,'' said Parent, who phoned in from his boat, smoking a cigar. ``It was just a special time.''
While the brutal rough-and-tumble style faded, the nickname has had an on-and-off relationship with the franchise. Every fight, every suspension involving the orange-and-black conjures up the old Bullies image. Flattened by rule changes, the days of the sadistic enforcer have mostly gone the way of the dinosaur.
``You're not really allowed to do any of that nowadays. That doesn't go over too well,'' Flyers star Jeff Carter said. ``We got guys who are going to stand up there and not take anything from anybody as well. We're going to stand up for ourselves and if it comes to blows, it does.''
Sure enough, the Flyers led the league with 402 penalty minutes this season. If that sounds like a lot, consider this. Schultz, who often wrapped his hands in tape for protection, set an NHL record in the 1974-75 season with 472 penalty minutes. The Flyers put stitches on faces that looked as if they came right off a baseball.
``A lot of people look at it, particularly if they're not a Flyers fan, a little negative,'' Schultz said. ``Sometimes, I'm almost tired of hearing some of these people cry. Like we were thugs? Yeah, right. I was 6-1, 195. I guess it was the scowl on my face.''
Schultz said the Flyers had the support of their coach, Fred Shero. Shero holds every major team coaching record, including years coached (seven), wins (308), winning percentage (.642), and playoff wins (48).
``Some coaches would have said, 'Whoa, guys. Let's tone this down. We're getting a bad reputation,''' Schultz said. ``He never said that for one second.''
For all he did on the bench, Shero's best remembered for his motivational sentence on Philadelphia's blackboard before Game 6 of the 1974 Stanley Cup series:
``Win together today, and we walk together forever.''
It's a phrase that resonates more than any punch.
The Flyers have walked together, seemingly forever. Most of them still live in the Philadelphia area and are always planning some sort of dinner, function, or lacing up the skates for charity hockey games. They could have stopped in one downtown eatery on Thursday and had a taste of the Broad Street Bully sandwich - marinated chicken, barbecue sauce, cheddar cheese and sweet potato on black Russian bread.
No matter where they walk, Broad Street Bullies is a name they wear with pride.
``It embodies that's we're a tight-knit group; a group that sacrificed for each other,'' Kelly said.
Schultz knows the true definition of the Broad Street Bullies.
``We were a phenomenal team. Two Stanley Cups and we didn't take anything from anyone,'' he said.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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Football Betting Lines
The 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite.
Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense.
Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively.
A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey.
Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season.
Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back.
Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick.
And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker.
For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below.
2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win
Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1
Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1
Donald Brown (IND) 5/1
Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1
Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1
Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1
Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1
Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1
Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1
Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1
Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1
Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1
Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1
Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1
Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1
Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1
Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1
LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1
Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2
Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1
Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1
Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1
Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1
Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1
Jason Smith (STL) 40/1
Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1
Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1
Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1
Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2
Pat White (MIA) 30/1
Field (Any Other Player) 9/1
To visit this sports betting site go to BettingExpress.com for all your football betting lines needs.
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Teams that should be in: Stanford
Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds | |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do: Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney. Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson. Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable. Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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