This is probably not what Ed Snider had in mind.
On a night when the Flyers chose to honor the legacy of their founder and chairman, their fans added another ugly chapter to their national reputation.
As part of the pre-game ceremonies honoring the man who brought the National Hockey League to Philadelphia, the Flyers gave out wrist bands that would actually light up. It created a beautiful moment in a darkened Wells Fargo Center. The ceremony paying homage to Snider was pure class. Then the game started. With the Flyers getting waxed in the third period, fans of the orange and black added another black and blue mark on the image of Philly fans by tossing the bracelets out on the ice.
There is no excuse for this kind of behavior.
Yes, it likely will be played again and again on ESPN and every other national outlet.
And it's all richly deserved.
Even Flyers longtime public address announced Lou Nolan was moved to admonish fans, urging them to "show some class. This is Philly," before the Flyers eventually were slapped with a two-minute minor penalty for delay of the game because of the actions of their fans.
That's the problem. This is Philly, at least a small portion of it.
Is it unfair that 20,000 fans are tarnished by the actions of maybe 50-75 who tossed wrist bands on the ice? Absolutely. It doesn't change the fact that it happened. And once again Philly fans are being vilified nationally. This time - for those who took part in these ridiculous actions - it is well-deserved.
Nolan was right. We're better than that. At least most of us.
Unfortunately, that's not going to stop that minority of fans from dominating the view of Philly fans as beer-fueled visigoths.
The game actually started on a bright note. Perhaps inspired by the ceremony honoring Snider, the Flyers jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a goal by Michael Raffl just 57 seconds into the game.
That's about the end of the highlights for the Flyers.
What followed - especially in the third period - was a collection of lowlights that will be burned into the memory for a long time.
The Flyers were getting smoked and the expected bad penalty and brawl ensued.
Fans showed their displeasure at the penalties called by tossing the wristbands on the ice.
In the process, they sullied the memory of a great man.
Ed Snider was every bit as tough as the fans who love his team. But he would have simply been embarrassed by what happened in the Wells Fargo Center last night.
Bottom line? The Flyers, who dedicated their push for the playoffs and post-season run to their owner, are one game away from being eliminated.
Eliminating the latest stain on Philly fans will take a lot longer.
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