By Ron Cook, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/
You knew something ridiculous was going to happen at Mellon Arena last night even before the Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers hit the ice for what was supposed to be a hockey game between Atlantic Division rivals. Stanley Cup final hero Max Talbot was a healthy scratch for the Penguins. Tough guy Eric Godard was in the lineup for the sole purpose of preventing the Flyers from taking liberties against any of the Penguins' stars.
You might have heard something over the years about how the Flyers like to do that sort of thing.
Peter Diana/Post-Gazette
Eric Godard and Riley Cote
I guess that's why I understand Penguins coach Dan Bylsma's lineup strategy. The Flyers couldn't be allowed to feel as if they could take their cheap shots without fear of reprisal. If they did, there would be a good chance a Sidney Crosby or an Evgeni Malkin would be carried out of the old building on a stretcher.
So, yeah, I understand it.
But I don't have to like it.
I think it's ridiculous, actually, that the sport allows the gratuitous violence.
It's an embarrassment to a great game.
I much would have preferred to watch Talbot play. I love the energy he brings to the Penguins. He has been struggling since his return from shoulder surgery, scoring just one goal in 12 games, being demoted to the fourth line and getting fewer minutes of ice time. But he needs to keep playing. The team is going to need him in the days ahead. And watching him try to find his game is a lot more fun than watching Godard fight.
But that's me.
The big crowd seemed to love seeing Godard wail away at Flyers enforcer Riley Cote at 5:23 of the first period, winning a close, spirited decision.
"Some people will say it's barbaric, but have you ever seen anyone sitting down in the stands during a hockey fight?" Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik asked with a grin. The fans also loved Mike Rupp's bout with the Flyers' Arron Asham six seconds earlier, which ended in a draw with little action. And they loved Craig Adams' scrap with the Flyers' Daniel Carcillo 10 seconds after the Godard-Cote fight even though Carcillo won decisively.
Nobody else seemed to miss Talbot about then.
Certainly, there didn't seem to be a lot of holiday spirit and good will toward men in the arena.
Eventually, a hockey game did break out. The Penguins won, 6-1, which had to hurt Cote more than any of Godard's punches, not to mention hurt the rest of the Flyers, who now have lost 11 of their past 14 games.
But the game wasn't what most people will remember about this night. The Penguins loved taking the two points, but they were very much like the folks headed out into the cold night to the parking lots. They wanted to talk about the three fights in 16 seconds.
"I loved the response from our team," Bylsma said. "I loved the fact that our guys hung in there and answered the bell."
Godard did what he was supposed to do. That's his job. Rupp also is a rugged character who can hold his own in any situation. But Adams isn't known as a fighter. That's why his eagerness to stand up to Carcillo and take a beating for the team was so widely appreciated by his teammates.
"I know the energy level on our bench was pretty high after his fight," Orpik said.
"Kudos to Craig for standing up and making a statement," Bylsma said. "He doesn't back down from anyone."
Peter Diana/Post-Gazette
Sidney Crosby continues to torment the Flyers.
It brought back memories of Talbot's one-sided fight with Carcillo in Game 6 of the teams' first-round playoff series last spring. It was dramatically one-sided in Carcillo's favor, yet the Penguins still will tell you that Talbot's willingness to go gave them the juice to climb out of a 3-0 hole and turn out the lights on the Flyers' season with a 5-3 win. Funny, I thought quick goals by Ruslan Fedotenko and Mark Eaton immediately after the fight were a bigger factor in the comeback.
But that's just me again.
The good news or bad news - depending on your perspective - is that the Penguins and Flyers will play again tomorrow night at the Wachovia Center. The always mature, polite Philadelphia fans figure to roll out the welcome mat for the Penguins.
Or not.
This is just a guess, but at least 90 percent of those lovable people probably would love to see Crosby carried out of their building on a stretcher. At the very least, they won't be happy unless Cote beats the heck out of Godard in a rematch.
"We know what to expect," Orpik said.
There's also still some unfinished business that the Penguins have with Flyers winger Scott Hartnell. According to Orpik, Rupp challenged Hartnell before the series of fights last night because Hartnell bit Penguins defenseman Kris Letang's finger during a scrum when the teams played in October. Only in hockey, right? Anyway, Orpik said Hartnell wanted no part of that so, somewhat reluctantly, Rupp had to settle for a piece of Asham.
The game tomorrow night should be something to see. Who knows? There might even be a little hockey.
Ron Cook can be reached at rcook@post-gazette.com. More articles by this author
First published on December 16, 2009 at 12:00 am
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