There are times when life and sports intertwine, transcendent instances that are permanently etched in the mind like a champion's name in Lord Stanley's cup. And the funny thing is, sometimes you don't recognize the magnitude of the moment until it passes and you look back.
For me, December 8th, 1987 is one of those moments. That night, hockey history was made when Ron Hextall fired the puck into an empty net becoming the first goalie to legitimately score a goal (sorry, Billy Smith).
My father and I were nine rows off the glass that night, my sister and brother ten rows behind us. Rather than leave early to beat the traffic as my dad suggested, we stayed in our seats and celebrated like maniacs when the shot went in. On the ride home, my dad thanked me for talking him into staying. I've never left a game early since.
The Flyers' opponent on December 8th, 1987? The Boston Bruins.
Last night, I sat with my son to watch Game 7. I promised him he could watch the whole game, bedtimes be damned. The Flyers, once down 0-3 in their Eastern Conference semifinal match-up against the Bruins, fell behind by three goals in the game's first ten minutes. While picking up the pieces of my shattered remote control, I told him he may be going to bed earlier than I thought.
Nope, I'm watching the whole game, he informed me.
During the first intermission, after James van Riemsdyk had cut the deficit to two, I had the following exchange with my boy:
Me: "You think we can come back?"
Him: "Yeah, do you?"
Me: "I don't know, bud. I'm not sure."
Him: "But we were losing by three."
Me: "The game or the series?"
Him: "Both."
Me: "Good point."
Great point, actually. Most teams that fall three games back in a best-of-seven series roll over and die. Only five have come all the way back to force a seventh game. Two actually won the series, but that hadn't happened since 1975.
We stuck it out. Scott Hartnell and Danny Briere atoned for first period high-sticking penalties that resulted in power play goals by the Bruins with second period markers that evened the score.
When Simon Gagne potted the go-ahead power play goal in the third, we jumped around the living room like my old man and I did the night Hextall scored. As time expired and the comeback was complete, I picked him up and just laughed.
As I carried him up to bed, I thanked him for staying with me. We had just witnessed sports history. Hopefully he'll remember May 14th, 2010 as vividly as I remember December 8th, 1987.
I know I will.
May 15, 2010
April 5, 2010
Mr. McNabb Goes to Washington
From a historical perspective, April 5, 2010 stands out like none in recent memory. The world's best golfer is making his return to competition from a self-imposed suspension for personal indiscretions. The NBA and NHL seasons are winding to a close. Today was Opening Day for Major League Baseball. The NCAA will crown a men's basketball champion this evening.
Oh, and April 5, 2010 is the day I emerged from blogosphere hibernation.
You see, during my hiatus, I had poignant pieces crafted regarding, in no particular order, Harry Kalas, Allen Iverson, Michael Vick, Andy Reid, Chris Pronger, Mike Richards, Ray Emery, and Cole Hamels. But I never had the inspiration to put pen to paper (or in this case, fingers to keyboard). It was going to take something magnanimous to bring me out of my 13-month slumber.
The best quarterback in the history of the Philadelphia Eagles and one of my all-time favorite athletes being traded to a division rival? Yup, that fits the bill.
Let's not confuse this with the Philadelphia Eagles the NFL Franchise trading it's best and perhaps most important player. This was Philadelphia Eagles, Inc. divesting an asset that they felt was beyond its useful life. In short, this was a business decision, not a football decision.
To paraphrase Chris Rock, I'm not saying they should have traded him, but I understand.
If I've learned anything in my life, it's that all relationships run a course, and the marriage between McNabb and the Eagles was damaged beyond repair. This had to happen now, while McNabb still had value.
The writing was on the wall when they traded up to draft Kevin Kolb a few years back, insisting all along that McNabb was still the guy. They have spotted Kolb in with mixed results. McNabb was pulled for the second half against Baltimore late in 2008 but regained his job the following week and led the Eagles to the NFC Championship game. When McNabb was injured on Opening Day of the 2009 season, Kolb became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for at least 300 yards in his first two starts.
Football people will tell you that Kolb is a better prototypical fit for Andy Reid's version of the West Coast offense. It's predicated on controlling the clock with short, accurate passes. McNabb was always the square peg being jammed into the round hole. To his credit, he did more with less than any quarterback I can remember. McNabb belongs in a run-first offense where he can execute play action and throw deep balls over a collapsed secondary.
Sound like a Mike Shanahan game plan to you?
McNabb's greatest asset in Reid's offense was intelligence. He took what the defense gave him, and rarely tried to force throws. His TD-to-INT ratio speaks to that. Whether or not Kolb inherited that from his predecessor remains to be seen. After all, he has only played about two and a half meaningful NFL games. Per the Eagles brain trust, that's enough of a sample size to render McNabb expendable.
For their sake, and ours, let's hope they're right.
Oh, and April 5, 2010 is the day I emerged from blogosphere hibernation.
You see, during my hiatus, I had poignant pieces crafted regarding, in no particular order, Harry Kalas, Allen Iverson, Michael Vick, Andy Reid, Chris Pronger, Mike Richards, Ray Emery, and Cole Hamels. But I never had the inspiration to put pen to paper (or in this case, fingers to keyboard). It was going to take something magnanimous to bring me out of my 13-month slumber.
The best quarterback in the history of the Philadelphia Eagles and one of my all-time favorite athletes being traded to a division rival? Yup, that fits the bill.
Let's not confuse this with the Philadelphia Eagles the NFL Franchise trading it's best and perhaps most important player. This was Philadelphia Eagles, Inc. divesting an asset that they felt was beyond its useful life. In short, this was a business decision, not a football decision.
To paraphrase Chris Rock, I'm not saying they should have traded him, but I understand.
If I've learned anything in my life, it's that all relationships run a course, and the marriage between McNabb and the Eagles was damaged beyond repair. This had to happen now, while McNabb still had value.
The writing was on the wall when they traded up to draft Kevin Kolb a few years back, insisting all along that McNabb was still the guy. They have spotted Kolb in with mixed results. McNabb was pulled for the second half against Baltimore late in 2008 but regained his job the following week and led the Eagles to the NFC Championship game. When McNabb was injured on Opening Day of the 2009 season, Kolb became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for at least 300 yards in his first two starts.
Football people will tell you that Kolb is a better prototypical fit for Andy Reid's version of the West Coast offense. It's predicated on controlling the clock with short, accurate passes. McNabb was always the square peg being jammed into the round hole. To his credit, he did more with less than any quarterback I can remember. McNabb belongs in a run-first offense where he can execute play action and throw deep balls over a collapsed secondary.
Sound like a Mike Shanahan game plan to you?
McNabb's greatest asset in Reid's offense was intelligence. He took what the defense gave him, and rarely tried to force throws. His TD-to-INT ratio speaks to that. Whether or not Kolb inherited that from his predecessor remains to be seen. After all, he has only played about two and a half meaningful NFL games. Per the Eagles brain trust, that's enough of a sample size to render McNabb expendable.
For their sake, and ours, let's hope they're right.
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