Here’s a news report of a stabbing that happened after a busload of Philadelphia Flyers fans returned home from a road trip to see their team play the New Jersey Devils. And you’re not going to believe this, but a fight broke out. Between Flyers fans and Flyers fans.
It is unclear why some of the occupants of the fan bus expected trouble upon their return, but according to police, when [an] off-duty cop showed up at the bus’ final destination, at the Arena Bowling Alley on Roosevelt Boulevard near Rhawn Street, he saw a group of 10 to 15 men waiting for it to arrive.
When the bus pulled up shortly after midnight, three to four of the men who were waiting attempted to board the bus, police said.
The off-duty officer got out of his vehicle and, as he did so, the men trying to get on the bus instead ran towards him and began kicking and punching the officer, Northeast Detectives said.
After verbally identifying himself as a police officer, the off-duty cop grabbed a hold of one of the men and held him against his car while the others continued to beat the officer, police said.
Meanwhile, the cop’s brother and the other fans got off the bus and engaged in a verbal dispute with the opposing group, according to police.
During the course of the argument, the cop’s 28-year-old brother was stabbed once in the chest and once in the back by a man in a Flyers’ jersey, Northeast Detectives said.
There were two stabbings in all. Neither man stabbed was identified in the original Inquirer report. It was a crazy, bizarre way to end a bus trip. At least, to me it was. It’s just another walk in the park for Philly Sports Fan. via, via.
ASYLUM POLL: What city has the most dangerous sports fans?
It’s bad enough that New Jersey Devils goalie Martin Brodeur is getting his ass handed to him in his divorce prodeedings. Now he’s getting caught trying to sneak out of work early. Granted, it was all of two tenths of a second early, but in These Trying Economic Times, one really needs to stay focused on finishing out the day. Straight outta Compton:
Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Dennis Seidenberg… returned to the lineup on Tuesday night and played a role in the first and fourth goals — the latter was scored by Jussi Jokinen with 0.2 seconds left in regulation — as the Hurricanes evened the best-of-7 series at two games apiece with a wild 4-3 victory at the RBC Center.
“I felt it right away … it hit my skate and then I saw it in the net,” Jokinen said. “I didn’t hear the buzzer so I was comfortable with the goal, but I was a little nervous with the replay. I looked at our coaches and players and asked them if they thought it was a good goal, and everybody said they didn’t know.”
Replays concluded that the puck did in fact find the net before the horn sounded. Seidenberg said afterwards he wasn’t aware how much time was left when he let it rip.
Elsewhere, the Columbus Blue Jackets are still playing the submissive against their division “rival” Detriot; the Red Wings took a 3-0 lead in their series last night. It’s not much of a rivalry when one team is perenially beaten down, is it? Vancouver actually won their series last night and eliminated St. Louis from the playoffs, unless Simon, Randy, Paula and that new girl all vote to bring them back. And Pittsburgh and AnaheimSan Jose won, and the hockey world championships are getting started shortly, but there will be no posts on that unless someone gets a DUI running over a construction worker. Hey, we know where our bread gets buttered.
On Wednesday night, the Maple Leafs’ Niklas Hagman scored the decisive goal in a shootout with the Devils, and it’s easily the coolest thing I’ve ever seen in a hockey game. Well, the coolest thing that doesn’t involve people punching each other, or Plexiglass shattering, or a skate cutting open someone’s neck.
Hagman scored by using his skates to spray ice shavings in Martin Brodeur’s face as he flicked a backhand home, a maneuver so simple and effective (and dastardly) that I can’t believe I haven’t seen it done before. Although, to be fair, I only watch about 40 seconds of hockey per week. This could be happening every five minutes in every game and I wouldn’t know.
Yesterday, ESPN hockey analyst/unironic mullet-wearer Barry Melrose trashed the Devils' new arena, and added a couple digs at Newark while he was it. Surprisingly for an ESPN analyst, it turns out his opinions were completely unfounded. A key selection from the brutal takedown at FanHaus:
Melrose said that the area around the arena is "awful," that "the inside and the outside where it's built is pretty humorous" and warned those who dare see a game to not "go outside if you have a wallet or anything else." … [Melrose later] revealed he had not actually visited the arena yet, basing his comments on "footage aired by Canadian broadcaster TSN before the Devils' first game at the new arena last Saturday."
In all fairness, Newark is way less dangerous than it used to be. I'll even probably end up there when rising rents push me out of New York City. But that's just the way I roll: always keeping it real. Why, as recently as the 1970s, my neighborhood in Brooklyn was pretty dangerous after dark. Now, just 30 years later, I walk around the streets in brazen defiance of the wealthy white women pushing around massive strollers. And you can bet that as soon as Newark has enough coffee shops and stylish boutiques, I'll take my mad street cred that way. Fa real.
Emmy Rossum sang the National Anthem at the New Jersey Devils' game the other night, which is pretty important news because she's hot and just turned 21 last month. Apparently she brought along her evil stepmother and her friend Some Dark-haired Chick, and judging by the photos it looks like having seats right behind the bench is a total–
Whoa. Hold on a second. When did hockey start?
On March 2nd, Maple Leaf Tomas Kaberle got a concussion on late hit from the Devils' Cam Janssen, which earned Janssen a three-day suspension.
Last night the teams played again for the first time since the dirty hit, and Janssen was immediately called out by Leaves (I refuse to write "Leafs" — stupid Canadia) enforcer Wade Belak. Belak got revenge for Kaberle by… um… holding onto Janssen's sweater and skating around in a circle for 90 seconds before falling to his knees. Take that, Janssen!
The good news for the Leaves is that in hockey revenge, it's the thought that counts. Also, for those who care, Toronto won the game 2-1.
