If you haven’t figured out my schtick yet, well I’m sorry, I thought it was pretty obvious. Basically, you should read my work and in your mind’s eye be able to hear me saying, no, YELLING what I’ve written. And while I’m not winning any Newbery Medals or something similar with this approach, it gets the point across while providing a necessary delineation between the prose of myself, Kev, Tyles, and the always intriguing Mr. Lancaster. So, why the introspection? Because I’m going to try something a bit different for this one, I swear I’ll only YELL-WRITE at the end okay??
I figured it out. I figured out why I have been feeling so anxious about each Flyers game thus far, and why I’ve lamented this roller coaster ride of a start to the season. It’s because the hope has returned. In the most recent few seasons, I have accepted that this team is bad and that they are simply not going to be able to compete with the upper echelon of the league so, I’d go to the games, have my 4 tallboy beers (give or take) and accept the outcome regardless of what it was, go home and wake up the next morning with fond memories of an evening out. That’s no longer the case, now I desperately want to see this team improve, and even if they don’t win, I’m left distraught if they look outclassed, or at the very least if Comrade Calder himself Matvei doesn’t register at least one point in the effort.
I have been without hope for so long now that it took me a quarter of the way through this season to remember what the pains of having hope felt like. This team has its first generational piece since my childhood (shoutout to 88, he is the reason many my age even got into hockey in the first place). We are immediately being rewarded almost nightly with ice vision that gives easy scoring opportunities to talent that hasn’t seen them since juniors or college (looking at you Frost), or highlight-reel goals like the one above. We have hope. We have our franchise player, but now the problems start because it’s the hope that kills you.
Matvei needs better around him to truly develop and turn into the next Ovechkin/Crosby/McDavid level player that I, and I’m hoping you, think he is. So it’s time to reshape this roster. Danny Briere gave us hope, now he has to give us reasons to keep it with us. All that being said, I am thankful to once again have hope, and I hope I’ll start to see more of you down at the barn rekindling that flame of hope for yourselves too. Happy Thanksgiving. Dallas Sucks.
Has your hope returned for the Flyers? Let us know in the comments below! Have a Happy Thanksgiving! Share what your thankful for with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok.
