![]() ![]() Without taking it too far, they clearly feel that something is right, and at just about the right time. And there was relief at the trade deadline.Īll of which means whatever the Flyers have had going for months is no longer a quaint story, a curiosity, a fluke. Their lines and defensive pairings are becoming comfortable. And they have seven double-figure goal-scorers, with the potential to finish the season with nine. In Steve Mason, the Flyers are at least responsible in goal. Don’t let it get around, but reliable goaltending and scoring depth can be of some assistance, too. That’s why you don’t want to mess up the chemistry with the team and just keep it the same way.’Īttitude helps. ![]() ![]() For the playoffs, you never know, but that is a good thing to have. That is very important, especially for that stretch coming up. And it has been like that the whole year. ‘We have a great atmosphere in the locker room,’ Mark Streit said. With that, they believe they can win, and not just during a telling upcoming schedule spike. Suddenly – or, not so suddenly, given that they haven’t been in the playoffs since 2012 – there is a certain spirit that can best be explained like this: It’s the opposite of what is happening in the pro basketball bunker, just down the Wells Fargo Center corridor. Days later, the Flyers were flattered if not motivated by Paul Holmgren’s decision to effectively keep them whole at the trading deadline, his only move being to move Andrej Meszaros, acquire Andrew MacDonald and add some salary flexibility. After the lengthy break for the Olympics, Kimmo Timonen brandished his bronze medal, suggesting that it proves that any success is possible. Somewhere in there – and particularly recently – talk of success, championships even, has bounced freely around their room. Since their 3-9 start, they have won 30 and lost 15 in regulation. But the trickier in-season stretches that always seem to befuddle the less confident teams no longer have to validate, expose or define the Flyers, who have added standings points in eight of their last nine. They are likely headed to the playoffs, and that will be a fresh test. The Flyers are no longer a wait-and-see curiosity. ‘I think that has been shown over the last two or three months, because I think we have played very good hockey.’ ![]() It’s called opening the eyes.’I don’t think the next couple of games will show our potential,’ the right wing said Monday, after practice in the Skate Zone. Then there is the other, the one Jake Voracek prefers. That will be one way to judge them, and how far they have come, and how they have done so after a horrible start. – The Flyers will play the Devils Tuesday, then have a home-and-home with Pittsburgh, then entertain the Chicago Blackhawks, the Stanley Cup champions. And I know it even more now.VOORHEES, N.J. I was attacked because of the color of my skin. He looked at me and saw a black boy with a weird accent - and didn’t like me because of it. I’d say it to his face today.” “He had nothing but hate in his heart back then. “His name’s Steve Downie.” “I don’t really give a crap what he thinks about the way I just described him. Now, it’s payback time as Akim goes directly at Downie in the article - saying, “I went through hell at the hands of a racist sociopath.” Blood gushing down.”Īkim says he felt forced to drop his gloves and fight Downie in an effort to save face in front of his teammates. Because he wanted nothing with the hazing, Akim says Downie “shoved his fiberglass stick through my mouth.” He’d make fun of my clothes, the way I spoke.” “He was two years older than me and a rising star, and he wielded his power over me like I was nothing - like I was subhuman.”Īliu also says Downie and other teammates tried to strip him naked on the back of the team bus with other rookies as part of a hazing ritual … but Akim refused. “First couple of practices he put Tiger Balm in my jock,” Aliu says … “Then he took my gear outside and threw it on the roof.” “And then he began to belittle me in front of my teammates, the coaches, whoever would listen to him. In an interview with the Players’ Tribune, Aliu, who is a black hockey player, revealed how he was abused and mistreated by Downie, who played in the league for nine seasons.Īliu says before he got to the NHL, Downie terrorized him while both players were members of the Windsor Spitfires in the OHL. Former NHL player Akim Aliu, who was at the centre of a controversial situation with former Calgary Flames head coach Bill Peters, has revealed some shocking information on former teammate and NHL player Steve Downie. ![]()
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