Vince Papale Interview - Retro Post Revisited

With the early weeks of the NFL's regular season underway - it's time to revisit a conversation with one its most inspiring players. Vince and his family were fully welcoming when I met with them earlier this decade...

Family matters

Millions embraced the movie "Invincible" when it was released in 2006. That feature offered a snapshot of Vincent Francis Papale and his unlikely football career with the Philadelphia Eagles.

The passion in Papale's voice was most noticeable during the afternoon I spent with the Glenolden, Pennsylvania native. Not passion about himself, but about the people who have been and are significant in his life. He began by telling me about his own children.

"I'm really blessed. My life is my family. Everything is about them," Papale said.

He and his wife Janet have been married since 1993. They have two children, Gabriella and Vincent Joseph.

Gabriella, their daughter, is 17. She is an outgoing high school junior whose combined goals are to become a broadcast journalist and a Victoria Secret model. She is a cheerleader and works as a manager for the lacrosse team. Like her mother Janet, she is also a dancer.

"Gabriella is great with children. I support what she wants to do and also think that a tremendous profession for her would be as a school teacher. She is one of fifteen students who have been chosen at her high school to go to New Orleans later this year. They will be helping to rebuild homes in the areas that were affected by Katrina."

Vincent Joseph is Papale's 14-year-old son, whose dream is to follow in his father's footsteps and play in the National Football League.

"Vinny rules the world. His favorite player is Wes Welker of the New England Patriots. He's funny and has a lot of voices and characters, like Jim Carey. He's a gentle, kind, kid who participates in a program at school called 'Peer Leadership', which is an anti-bullying initiative."

Due to budget cuts, that program had been on the chopping block. Through the Papale's efforts and the involvement of Dick Vermeil, funds have been raised that will allow the program to continue for at least the next two years.

Cinder Block City

Life wasn't like a movie when Papale was growing up with his parents and an older sister. They lived in a housing project, in the Glendale section of Philadelphia, which he referred to as 'Cinder block city.'

"They built the place on a golf course and there was a creek that ran through our backyard. That is where I hung out when I was young."

Papale's mother, Almira Sage, was one of nine in her family. She was a professional baseball player in the 1930's, but don't think "A League of their Own." She barnstormed up and down the East Coast in a women's hardball league. She was also a diver, swimmer and a dancer. His mother wanted to be an Olympian, but the Great Depression, World War II and having to work to help her family, prevented that from happening.

Vince's father, Frank Papale, went by the nickname 'Kingie' and was also one of nine. Frank's mother died when he was born. His father, Vincenzo Papale, persevered through that hardship and through the discrimination that many Italian immigrants faced in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Vincenzo was a pig farmer, a cello player, a semi-pro football, a baseball player and a runner. He participated in the Penn Relays, as his namesake grandson would also come to do many years later.

Kingie and Almira

'Kingie' met his future wife, Almira, at a football game after getting into a fight with a player from the opposing team. That player turned out to be his future brother-in-law.

Like other men in the area, he provided for his family by working at a blue collar job on the Delaware River. He called Westinghouse his workplace home for 40 years. Because of the long hours his Dad spent at his job, young Vince caught passes that were thrown by his mother in their backyard.

The blending of prevalent athletic family genes and a strong free will, naturally made competitive sports a part of Papale's life.

"I knew I was good at sports from Day 1. Every July Fourth we raced at Glenolden Park. I would win all of the races for the 8 and under, 9 and under, 10 and under. People would bet on me. I ran barefoot and was known as Seabiscuit."

But, life wasn't all fun and games. One day in 1958, as Papale was coming home from school, he saw his mother being taken away in an ambulance. She was later diagnosed with Tinnitus, which is a ringing sensation in one, or both, ears. The condition permanently influenced her health and the life of her family.

A good coach makes a difference

Papale grew in size and experience during his teenage years. The roots of his nature were also forming through a number of positive influences, as many important coaches came into his life.

"One of the reasons I give, is because people gave of themselves to me," Papale said.

A lasting relationship was formed when Papale met George Corner, who was his first male teacher at Interboro Junior High School. An imposing man, Corner was also was the school's football and basketball coach. One day Corner passed by the lunch table where Papale was eating.

"I had been saying some unpleasant things about my mom and he told me that he didn't appreciate what he had heard."

Corner relayed to him that his own mother and sister had serious health issues when he was young. He told Papale that he understood how his mother's condition could affect his home life. He also told him that he would be there if he ever needed him.

"I leaned on him a lot and he took me under his wing."

Papale was 4 feet 5 inches tall and weighed only 75 pounds when he was in the seventh grade. By ninth grade, after he had grown to be 4 feet 11 inches tall and had gained another 20 pounds, he decided to try out for the football team.

"Coach Corner let me try out for the team and I made it. I also ran track and was a guard on the basketball team."

Marty Stern

His track coach, Marty Stern, became another mentor. Stern had just graduated from West Chester and like Papale was tough, despite his small stature.

"He was a little guy, who wasn't much bigger than me, but he could run like the wind. I had great speed, but he refined my style and made me feel really special."

New school - old coach

Papale initially faced a different atmosphere than he was use to when he first went to high school. The head football coach told him that he was too small to play on the team and so he didn't become a member of it. However, he did play basketball.

When he was a senior in high school an old mentor came back into his life, as coach Corner accepted a position as the head football and track coach.

"Coach Corner did the same thing that Dick Vermeil did for me years later, he broke the rules. Normally, first year seniors aren't allowed to come out for football, but I was. I wound up leading the team in receptions and touchdowns. I went on to become an honorable mention wide receiver as a 5 foot 7 inch, 160 pound player."

Papale broke his wrist shortly after Thanksgiving, 1963. Because of how bad it was shattered, he was told that he would never be able to use his hand again. But, he willed himself through to recovery.

Corner asked him to go out for track in the spring so that he could get into shape for the upcoming football season. Papale wanted to pole vault, but Corner said that he had promised his father that he wouldn't allow him to do that.

As a boy, Papale had practiced vaulting in his backyard using metal clothes line poles. Because they were so easily bent, he started using bamboo poles instead. Those poles, that were originally used in the middle of rugs, helped him vault up to 8 feet in the air before he landed on a makeshift bed of mattresses.

Papale has bamboo poles in his backyard these days as well. He will be using them to help his son practice vaulting.

The hairy eyeball

During his first track meet against Media, Papale's father unexpectedly appeared.

"I didn't know that he was going to be there. He came walking up in his Westinghouse blues and gave me the 'hairy eyeball' look, but didn't say anything."

Papale's father saw his son set the school pole vault record that day. He went on to win county, suburban and district championships. He also finished fifth in a state competition.

On Father's Day 1964, he went head-to-head against the best pole vaulters in the Tri-State area. Three of his competitors had been given scholarships to Villanova, LaSalle and St. Joe's. In dual meets he led off by winning the 440 meter relay and ran first and second in the high hurdles. He also won the long jump, the triple jump and the pole vault competitions.

Papale jumped 18 inches higher on that day than he ever had before. Four colleges offered him track scholarships before he left the field.

Onto college

By the time Papale was ready to go to college, he had grown to be 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighed 185 pounds. He was accepted into the West Chester state teacher's college. Walt Buechle was their freshman football coach and said that he would let Papale try out for the football team as a walk-on freshman.

Even though the school didn't have a football program, Papale decided to attend St. Joseph's University where he received a track scholarship. When he was a junior, he won the United States Track and Field Federation award at Madison Square Garden as a result of his14 foot 6 inch vault.

"Great coaches instill discipline, fundamentals and consistency. They are organized and fair. You know exactly where they stand," Papale said.

College coaches Rich Branton, Bob Cindico, Lou Nicastro and Kevin Quinn taught him that he could be a tough guy and a nice guy at the same time.

"My coaches were all school teachers. One of the big factors that is currently being lost in sports is the teaching element."

Freddy

After graduating from St. Joe's with a Masters degree in Marketing and Management Science, Papale accepted a job as a track coach at a familiar location, Interboro High School.

During the spring of his first year as coach, Papale called for a weekend practice session to help his track team prepare for an upcoming meet. Because it was scheduled during the Easter holiday weekend, all senior team members chose to boycott practice. Papale decided that his runners needed to face consequences for their actions. So, he suspended them from participating in the upcoming meet.

"The first dual meet we were going to have, I was going to bend and let them back in, but I didn't. We lost that meet by one point."

One of the runners who did understand the value of discipline and sacrifice was Freddy Leopold. He had practiced and was going to participate in that dual meet.

"Freddy came from 50 yards behind in the mile relay. He got to the finish line and gave it everything he had, but was a yard behind the winner. Even without the seniors participating, if we had won that event, we would have won the meet."

Papale still has a photo of him holding Leopold in his arms after the race. The young runner pictured went on to serve his country as a medic in the military. He was killed after stepping on a land mine in Vietnam.

"To this day, I still get chills when I think about him in that race."

The NFL and Hollywood

Invincible became a movie because its subject, Papale, never stopped pursuing his dreams. In the 1970s, while teaching and coaching, he also played semi-professional football and was a member of the World Football League's Philadelphia Bell.

In 1976, Eagles coach Dick Vermeil announced open tryouts for the team. At 30, Papale became the oldest rookie to ever make the roster of an NFL team. The feat was all the more remarkable because he had not played college football.

He went on to be voted Special Teams Captain by his teammates. Due to his charity work, he was named Eagles Man of the Year in 1978. By 1979, a shoulder injury ended his gridiron glory.

Business career

After retiring from the NFL, Papale worked in the mortgage banking industry and became a sports broadcaster. He also won a battle with colorectal cancer in 2001.

The Disney movie Invincible and Papale's first book, Invincible - My Journey From Fan to Team Captain were both released in 2006.

Invincible Kids

"Everyone has their invincible moment."

Today, he is a sought after speaker who has also initiated an 'Invincible Kids' program. This effort allows him to give voice to the spirit of children around the country who have overcome great odds and serve as inspirational role models.

Board of directors

Papale has recently been voted onto the Board of Directors, Charity Division, for the NFL Alumni Association.

"One of our initiatives is to help players who haven't been as fortunate as I have been."

New playbook

Consistency is one of the principals that Papale lives his life by. It is also something that he speaks about in his forthcoming book, Papale's Playbook: You Can Be Invincible In Tough Times...Analyze, Adapt and Achieve, which is due to be released later this year.

Never believe that people who achieve and maintain success do so by chance. Individuals like Vince Papale are smart and have consistently worked to have earned all that they have accomplished.

How we respond to the 'Invincible Moments' in our lives defines who we are and who we can become.

Details about Papale's life, as well as all of the positive efforts that he is involved in can be found on his website: vincepapale.com. Currently, he is also a spokesperson for stopcoloncancernow.com.

(I hold all copyrights to this article which originally appeared on Yahoo's Voices platform in 2011. Photo credit: APB)

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Let's connect on Twitter @SeanyOB, or through Facebook. 

Retro Post - Philadelphia Flyers: What If Ed Snider Hadn't Taken a Risk?

This retro feature is being re-posted due to the upcoming start of the new hockey season...

Ed Snider traveled to see a sporting event with a friend nearly 50 years ago. That New York Rangers hockey game made such a positive impression on him that he later took a business risk. In so doing, the Philadelphia Flyers were born.

Risk and reward

Rewards aren't guaranteed in business, or in life. Snider used his free will when he decided to invest in a National Hockey League expansion franchise in the late 1960s, with no guarantee of success. 

If his team would have flopped, it might have gone the way of the Cleveland Barons. A hardcore reference that has been noted for all hockey aficionado's. 

Brains and talent

As the Flyers built their 1970s reputation and won back-to-back Stanley Cups against the Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres, arenas around the League were filled to capacity along the way. Everyone wanted to see one of the world's greatest shows. 

Yes, the team hasn't won the Cup since then. But, it has gone to the last round six times since those fabled 1973-74 and 1974-75 seasons.

So, what if?

If Snider hadn't taken the risk, hockey may not have started in Philadelphia as soon as it did. Where's the evidence that any other person, who may have founded the franchise at any other point in time, would have made a go of it?

The sheer amount of media members that cover the team's home games indicate that there is more than a small, hardcore, contingent of Flyers fans in the region, as has been suggested over the years. It's likely a broader group, as evidenced by the amount of street and inline hockey programs that exploded in the 1980s and ice hockey programs that have been created at high schools across the surrounding region during the past two decades.

In other words, the base has grown since the fall of 1967.

Also, the Reading Royals wouldn't exist if it weren't for the Flyers. And that ECHL hockey team, located in a small town over an hour from Philadelphia, attracts almost four thousand fans per game.

Loyalty counts

Don't forget that Snider built the CoreStates Center in 1996 (now known as the Wells Fargo Center) with almost total private funding. All sports facilities could be built without making the public become a partner through forced, back door, taxation.

There is no sense of entitlement within the Flyers organization. They have earned their way through Snider's example. His straightforward business approach is simply this: Work hard, don't be afraid to spend money and try to win every single season.

Flyers' fans are smart and have always recognized that their team consistently tries to succeed. And with that, loyalty will continue to reign.

(I hold all copyrights to this article which originally appeared on Yahoo's platform in 2011. Photo credit: cdn1.vox-cdn.)

Inside Access: Philadelphia Flyers vs. New York Islanders

Philadelphia Flyers vs. New York Islanders

Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia

March 23, 2019

Game Time – 1 p.m.

Pregame

The Philadelphia Flyers (36-30-8, 80 points) entered the game in sixth place in the Eastern Conference's Metropolitan Division, likely needing to win all of the team's remaining eight games, while also seeing a number of other teams play below .500 prior to the end of the season in order to make the postseason. The New York Islanders (42-25-7, 91 points) were in second place in the Metro, nearly certain to clinch a playoff spot in the very near future.

The Flyers, who were in the midst of a solid two-month run, beat the Islanders in consecutive road games earlier this month, March 3 (4-1) and March 9 (5-2). Today's game is the final game of the season series, with New York winning the first contest (6-1) in Philadelphia on October 27, 2018, during the Ron Hextall and Dave Hakstol era.

Starting goalies: Flyers – Carter Hart. Islanders – Robin Lehner.

Other pregame tidbits – A Jake Voracek-Johnny Boychuk Wrestlemania redux could be in order, assuming both men are in the lineup and are open to a rematch (which proved true).

Flyers entered the game as the only National Hockey League team with identical home and road records (18-5-4).

On a personal note...

The transformation of the interior of the Wells Fargo Center is currently creating logjams at the elevators that transport stadium personnel and media medias from the lower level to the balcony. No matter, a variety of hard-working individuals, many of whom are longtime WFC employees are always a pleasure to speak to. They comprise the unseen roster that make this venue flow smoothy, which has always been true since I first was fortunate to gain a media credential in 2011-12.

First Period

Flyers killed off partial two-man disadvantaged with help from the Islanders, who were tagged with a too many men on the ice bench minor. Robert Hagg, who received the double-minor, causing the two-man disadvantage, then scored a fluky goal, his fifth of the season. The goal at 6:39, assists to Radko Gudas and Ryan Hartman.

The Islanders scored at 14:27 when Brock Nelson (his twenty-third of the season) whacked a puck that was floating in the air above Hart's shoulder into the net. Assists to Scott Mayfield and Devon Toews.

Shots – Islanders 14. Flyers – 10.

Second Period

Nick Leddy's (his fourth of the season) slap shot from a bit above the center of the faceoff circles gave the Islanders a 2-1 lead at 10:58. Assists to Mathew Barzal and Boychuk.

A rather listless effort by Philadelphia furthered the reality that Scott Gordon's team has been playing playoff-esque games for more than two months.

Shots – Islanders 29. Flyers – 15.

Third Period

Ryan Hartman's interference call, combined with Jake Voracek's unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, due to arguing his teammates infraction, gave the Islanders a two-man advantage at 2:16 into the frame. The impressive kill gave the Flyers a chance to tie the game.

An interference call against New York at 6:12 put the Flyers on the advantage for the first time in the game.

Shayne Gostisbehere (his eighth of the season) buried a slap shot from the high slot four seconds into the PP (6:16), with assists to Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier.

At 9:08 Scott Laughton was tripped by Adam Pelech, setting up another PP. No goal was scored.

Josh Bailey whipped a wrister (his fifteenth of the season) over Hart's left shoulder at 16:03, giving New York a late 3-2 lead. Nelson and Andrew Ladd.

Bailey added a rebound goal (16^th) at 17:26. Assists to Leo Komarov and Pelech. That tally sealed the game.

Excessive amount of shots allowed by the Flyers remains an issue and one that needs to be corrected if next season is to flow more smoothly and, or lead to a playoff position.

Final shot total: Islanders - 40. Flyers - 24.

Final score: Islanders 4 – Flyers – 2.

While the loss still didn't mathematically eliminate Philadelphia from the playoffs, the near-certain end of those hopes should arrive very soon.

Next up - The Flyers travel to Washington to play the Metro division-leading Capitals 43-24-8, 94 points) tomorrow. The game will be nationally televised by NBC, starting at 12:35 p.m. EST.

Postgame Quotes

I spoke with Hart after the game, post the media scrum. We discussed the efforts he's made through the years with his mental skills coach, John Stevenson.

As anyone who would speak with the 20-year-old has seen, he's a young man who's head is on straight. It is this aspect, similar to other impactful players, or achievers in any field, that provides potential and momentum for progress and sustained success.

Responses to media scrum questions, postgame in the locker room and at the press conferences of Gordon and Islanders head coach Barry Trotz:

Philadelphia Flyers G Carter Hart

Carter how do you describe the second period where you were kind of under attack for most of that twenty minutes?

I don’t know, shots were just kind of coming from everywhere, so I was just trying to do my job and compete, and battle, and just trying to stop the puck.

You think a loss of energy is inevitable when the teams been trying to chase in the playoff standings for so many weeks now?

I think when you’re competitive enough and energy isn’t a factor, I think that we just need to dig down and we all have more, we all have better, and including myself. I think we just all need to dig down deeper.

Is it good to at least have another one tomorrow where you can’t dwell on this and you have to get right back at it?

Yeah for sure, to have a back-to-back here, so we just put it behind us and come out tomorrow and come out hard. Right from the get-go set a tone early in the game.

What was the 5-on-3 like sometimes that’s a minute and a half a little bit less, you had two full minutes of it.  

We did a really good job on that 5-on-3.  They didn’t really get anything generated. [To have a] full two minutes on the 5-on-3 and for them not to get really any good looks, that’s kudos to our PK there on the three man kill.

Philadelphia Flyers D Robert Hagg

You guys have been in a playoff race for so long and you have a loss at a critical time like this, is there much of a reaction or do you just kind of forget about it and go to the next game?

It sucks, that’s the feeling right now, they played better than we did the whole game. We didn’t deserve to win today, so, right now yes, I have a terrible feeling.

How much did you plead your case when you got called for the high-sticking?

It’s the second time this year, so I was kind of pissed off but there’s not much you can do. You just have to go to the box, sit there for four minutes and try to get the best out of it.

Between a call like that, and [Ryan] Hartman’s call, they probably at some point get to look at a replay, do they ever admit fault to you guys or is it just like an understood thing for the rest of the game?

He was pretty good about it, he came up before the second period and kind of apologized, so you’re getting frustrated, but when a referee comes up and admits it, you can let it go. When they don’t, I’m not going to say anything.

When you have a big call go against you, does the frustration bleed over into the on-ice play?

Maybe a little bit but you can’t focus on it, we have to play out there a game out there to play. Of course, we’re frustrated but at the same time you have to put energy on what we can do out there.

New York Islanders RW Josh Bailey

Much needed 2 points for you guys and a much needed effort tonight.

Yeah I mean pretty complete game for us I think we get some adversity there in the third obviously. When you have a 5 on 3 you want to capitalize, unfortunately we didn’t. They seemed to rally a little bit, scored a power play goal and then we just got back to work after that, our kill came up with another big kill, to seal the deal I think all in all it was a good win for us when we needed it.

Do you feel like Brock’s goal kind of got the ball rolling for you guys, an exhale to kind of get back to your game, just knowing that went in for you guys.

Of course, I think sometimes just results reap confidence, sometimes you feel like you’re doing the right things and the other team gets a bounce and things can kind of snowball for you. Tonight we got one back there with Brock and then we really found our game after that. Like I said in the third a little bit of adversity, but you’re gonna get that this time of year.

Were you looking for a spot on your first goal or were you just kinda getting it on net and hoping for the best?

I was just trying to go shoot it hard and high short side. The angle wasn’t great and sometimes you just need a little bit of luck to get those in the back of the net.

Brock’s goal that took the weight off everyone’s back, it’s been three games since he got one that kind of broke the ice for you guys a little bit.

Yeah I think so. Like I touched on before, it’s not like we didn’t deserve to score goals the last couple games, I think there were certain areas that needed to be better, but sometimes it’s just a break here and there that can make a difference and kind of open things up for you. In that instance we were going to the net hard and a shot and he banged one in and sometimes that’s all it takes.

Flyers C Sean Couturier

[Inaudible]

Yeah, I thought we were playing good. It was tight out there. Then all of a sudden, we kind of turned some pucks over. We tried doing an extra play or something. They’re a pretty good team, that’s what they kind of stride on. They came hard at us.

How surprised were you guys by some of the calls? 

I don’t know. It is frustrating, it’s tough. At the same time, PK did a good job, gained momentum off those kills. Yeah, it’d be nice to get a few calls on our side.

What’s the mindset there?

Yeah, but at the same time there’s always overtime. I mean, you don’t want to force things. I thought down one goal, we made a good push, tied the game. Then let an unfortunate goal. But, we pushed hard after that and sometime you have to press and it costs you. It is what it is.

Even in some of these games when you’ve been winning, you guys have been spending a lot of time in the defensive zone, not as much time in the attack. What’s been going on, why is that a problem?

I don’t know, maybe just trying a little too much on the perimeter. Not bringing pucks to the net. At the same time, when you’re killing penalties it’s tough to get some shots, to get some offense going. That’s always tough. I think if maybe we learn more discipline, get a few calls on our side, or none of those penalties. The Haager one, the four-minute where it’s not even his stick. Maybe it’s a tighter game earlier and we gain momentum. But, it is what it is and we have to move on.

Flyers RW Ryan Hartman

Was there any explanation to you on why they called that call the way they did?

The only thing he said during the penalty is, I’m not going to let you run the goalie. It is what it is.

You have a game like this, there’s a little too much time spent trying to get out of your own zone.

Yeah, we didn’t really sustain too much pressure. There isn’t a lot of one and dones. There’s some points where we kept to the outside, where they’re kind of in the perimeter. There’s a few times where we let them inside and it cost us a little bit. We need to look at that and do a better job tomorrow.

Philadelphia Flyers D Shayne Gostisbehere

What were they able to do the last two periods that you weren’t that really changed the way game went?

They were cycling pretty good. They were grinding us down. We were chasing a lot. It felt like they had two point shots. We were just battling. It just kept rimming around and going to their open guys. I think they grinded us down a bit and broke us down defensively.

Was it different than what you’d seen in the previously two games up in New York? Were they playing any differently?

Yeah, they were playing with purpose this time it felt like. Obviously when you get beat bad in your own building twice like that, they are going to come out flying. They did tonight. 

Ghost, when you spend that much time in your own zone, a lot of it was kept to the outside but eventually something will work its way inside the back of the net?

Yeah, for sure. They were pretty relentless. We spent most our time in the D-zone. You’re going to get tired. You’re going to break down. Hartsy can only make so many saves. We kind of let him down on that aspect.

When you have losses this time of the year, how do you keep them from being debilitating after a game?

Just got to keep going. Take it game by game. We have another game tomorrow at 12:30. It’s just the next game. ​

New York Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz

Barry, that was a kind of strange start to the game with all the different looks and then the flukey goal. Did you really like the response from your guys?

Yeah. I think it was one of those games where there was a little bit of some strange things happening, you have a little adversity. I won’t say you’re doubting yourself a little bit, you lost two games and the first one’s the way it went in, you’re going, “what else is going to happen?” But our response was resilient, we stayed with it. Obviously, we got a response goal later in the period and then we had some momentum swings. I thought the second period we played outstanding. We were on top of them, we were checking, we were managing the puck really well. We got a couple power plays and weren’t able to score on a five-on-three and they got all the momentum there. I like their response, the next couple shifts we sort of have to battle through that. They score on a power play and then you take another penalty and you got to kill that off. That was a huge kill. Once we killed that off, I felt pretty certain we were going to get points, I didn’t know if we were going to get one or two. But the real big couple shifts by Bails [Josh Bailer] and that was huge. Great response at the end, six-on-five for them. We did a real good job.

Not to dwell on the negative, but the five-on-three, is it our guys just, kind of the same when you don’t score on five-on-five, does it just get in your head a little bit?

Yeah, it’s just like anything it gets in the back of your head. You try to get too fine. You know, at home, it’s not different when someone’s booing you, you’re going, “okay yeah, I got to make a great play.” You don’t. You just play. Guys are double clutching it and trying to be too fine. The windows of opportunity are very short on the power play and if you’re double clutching it, that window closes and then, all of a sudden you got nothing and now you’re trying to force things. It’s frustrating. We just got to get a little more confident on it and get a day to practice it again and re-tool it a little bit and see if we can get some success with it. You know, we just got to stay with it. We had some opportunities.

You were pretty harsh on some of your guys from the other night, but you didn’t make any changes upfront. Did you feel like you owed it to this group to see what they can do?

Yeah, I thought about it. It was actually quite difficult. We talked about it as a coaching staff, there’s some guys I wasn’t really happy with and there’s some guys that are tremendously working hard. They’re waiting to get in the lineup. I felt it was important to go back with the group that you sort of challenge a little bit. I only made one change and that was Johnny [Boychuk]. I liked the response. I liked the response about stepping up to the plate here and getting it done. That says a lot about the group. It says a lot about our character and hopefully it’ll give us some confidence. Obviously, we’re going to play a desperate team tomorrow in Arizona, see if we can have a little more mojo and go after them the same way as we did tonight and go from there.

Johnny said that his focus tonight was on the two points rather than any sort of- were you talking?

Yeah absolutely. There was no talking about the [Jakub] Voracek thing. As I said, those two will figure it out down the road, but Johnny is one of those ultimate team guys. He knows how important what we’re trying to do is, he knows how important this game was. There was no ‘me’ in his thought process, it was all about ‘we’. That’s why he’s one of those guys, you talk about glue guys in a room, he’s one of those guys. That’s what he does. I’ve been keeping him out a little bit here because of our depth, but also trying to get us ready for the next level so everybody’s ready, because you never know when guys go down. You talk about the right response, that was the right response.

Is this the kind of game that kind of underlines how important special teams are, especially this time of year before the momentum of the game?

Yeah, special teams all year are important. To me, special teams are about timeliness, not necessarily your percentages. You kill that penalty when it was needed, he did. You know, when you’ve got a chance to go ahead, did we score on the power play? It could make a difference. And we weren’t able to do that. On one half, we got kind of the right time, but tomorrow we got a new opportunity. Arizona, we might need a big power play goal and they come through. Tonight, it was just the PK’s turn. ​

Philadelphia Flyers RW Claude Giroux

As frustrating as this game is, is there also a sense that you’re running out of time?

Yeah, I mean it’s a game that we have to win, we know that. You know when we tied it up there, I thought we were in control and it wasn’t the case.

How exhausting is it when you guys have to constantly have 3^rd periods like the first half of that one? A lot of times this season you guys have kind of struggled in 2^nd periods and had to make a big push, whether it’s in the 3^rd period or coming back late in the season to try to get in playoff conversation, it seems like it’s got to be pretty taxing.

Yeah, we put ourselves in a bad situation and I mean usually we always respond, always come out hard and find a way and couldn’t find a way tonight.

When stuff happens like the high sticking call on Haag that wasn’t Haag or the penalty called on Ryan Hartman, how do you feel that affected the play on the ice of the team?

You know, refs are trying their best and when there’s 4 minutes and it wasn’t your stick, its definitely frustrating, this time of the year, position we are in, we’re not the only team that it happens to, but it’s definitely very, very frustrating. Try to keep our composure, yeah, it’s, just frustrating.

Philadelphia Flyers RW Jake Voracek

How exhausting does it get, quite a few times second periods have kind of done you in and you have to come out strong in the 3^rd just to give yourself a chance. How tiring is it?

I would say for about 40 games, the second periods were our best in the game. Especially today, we were god awful, oh my god in the second. I don’t think we had a shot in the first ten minutes. They just, when they get zone time, they do a great job cycling us and keep the puck away from their net. I don’t think we were moving well enough in the second period to give ourselves a chance to create something.

Were they doing something different in that second and third period than they did the last games up in the island?

We just didn’t move. If you don’t move, you’re chasing always. Even when you have the puck, you don’t have the space to make the play, time to make the play, so you got to get rid of it and then you’re chasing again. So, that’s what happened.

How surprised were you Boychuk plays, they start him and the 4^th line, and you weren’t out there to face him on the first shift, but there were times out there, I don’t know if there were any words exchanged. I mean they tried to run you 3 times in the island, so maybe that was the end of it, did you guys expect more?

I expected something was going to happen. It didn’t. I’m not going to say I was unhappy about that. But like I said, he played a great game. It was in the third that we tied it. We got a little bit of momentum off that penalty kill, plus that power play after. Like I said, we just blew it.

When you have a whole bunch of calls that don’t go your way, it can be hard sometimes to refocus and get back, looked like you guys had killed those penalties, and it actually, particularly after the 2 minute 5 on 3, got some momentum.

Yeah, you know when you have to kill 2 5 on 3’s in a game- the first one with a high stick of their own player, the second with the interference on Hartsy that I don’t think anyone saw. Obviously, it’s frustrating. On the other hand, I got to keep my cool a little bit, but I think at that moment in this type of season, 2-1 game, already a PK, I think you got to have a little bit better feel for that situation no matter what is being said. Like I said, it surprised me to be honest.

Islanders G Robin Lehner

*Something about 2 points*

Oh it was nice, I thought it was a big team win today. I think we played really well. Just as it’s been in this last little stretch, they get ridiculously lucky goals to start the game. You know what, after two periods it should have probably been five, six, one. We had two poles, two knobs, just not bouncing in for us. It was huge by Bails there in the end to score that goal. It was a good game.

Can you see a change in the team in front of you playing a little looser after getting that first one?

No I think we just got to get back to playing, getting. A little bit of stretch like this everyone kind of tightened up a little bit, tried to do a little bit too much and kind of lose the fun out of the game a little bit. I think today we just had the mindset go play our game, have fun again, enjoy the game, not to grip the sticks too hard or anything. I think we came out and played good hockey. Again, they got a lucky bounce to get the first goal. It didn’t affect us like it has most of the season. Then we just kept going at them. Even after their big kill against us, I think they had a couple of shifts, but we calmed it down and we played good again.

This team hasn’t lost three in a row since *inaudible* what does that say about you guys that after you get to two games you guys stop?

Yeah, it’s big. Especially at this time of year. I mean, we have gotten away from our game a little bit. This is a big win for us, just to get back and enjoy the game again and get back as a group.

New York Islanders D Johnny Boychuk

Johnny, just describe the emotion, the excitement after a win like that, how desperately your team needed it?

Both teams were desperate I mean in the third period when they killed off that 5 on 3, they got a huge lift from their crowd and I mean, they were really loud and we held them off, it was 2-2 and Bails got that really nice goal and sealed it off with another one, so it was just a good team effort and we just gotta continue to do that tomorrow and going forward.

It seemed what they did off of the 5 on 3 kill, is it also motivation when your team has a penalty kill, knowing that this really can be a momentum swing, we can take control?

When we get a 5 on 3 we have to bury it obviously, and they had some momentum and good thing Bails got that nice goal, but we gotta learn from that and next time we get one we need to capitalize on it.

How important was it for you guys to get the scoring going early in this game, knowing with how the last couple games have been like for the team and when Brock scored the feeling on the bench knowing that alright, we got one?

You know especially after their first goal, it was a lucky bounce for them and we just stuck with it and got the next one and just gotta continue to move forward and just do the things that make us a good hockey team. They’re a desperate hockey team and the home crowd was involved and they were loud tonight and you just gotta learn from it because coming into playoffs it’s gonna be the same way and every place is going to be loud and you just gotta stay calm and capitalize on chances.

Given the circumstances and what happened the last time you were in the lineup the last time you played the Flyers, what was that balance like today, staying focused, picking up the two points and not letting the emotion of things getting in the way?

You have to. It’s a tough sport and you don’t want to go out of your way, but you gotta do what’s right for the team, tonight was for the two points and that’s all that matters and we just gotta play hard and smart.

  

Philadelphia Flyers Head Coach Scott Gordon 

What message do you tell these guys any loss at this time of year from seeming like a funeral?

“The bottom line is we have to play. Coming off a loss tonight, going into Washington isn’t a perfect situation, but that’s the card we’re dealt with and we have got to play.” 

What happened in that second period, it seemed like you guys barely had the puck?

“I think we were just slow to close on people. They did a lot of perimeter play, just moving the puck from corner to behind the net, to up top. We were slow to go up to the points and recover to the middle. Twice they get shots, one they score the goal on that our weak side our winger wasn’t even close to having any coverage and just easy looks for them. It’s one thing to be stuck in your zone, it’s another thing to be stuck in your zone and two instances we weren’t on the same page.” 

How much do you sense an exhaustion level from this team? It’s certainly not an effort thing because there always seems to be a push in the third period, with all of the games and every loss that happens at this time of year it seems like there is another wind taking out of them? 

“We’ve been going here since the middle of January playing at a pretty high level and obviously we’re working up a lot of shots lately. I think there’s an element of fatigue that is there. With that being said, you can’t complicate yourself. The first period I thought we were playing particularly well. Particularly coming out of the penalty kill, I don’t know the first maybe eight minutes of that period we start to turn the puck over to the wrong situations. So I don’t think we built any momentum after we scored the goal. You’re playing into the other team’s hands when you are going to turn those pucks over, especially when there are other options.” 

Is it a mental fatigue also you think?

“I’m sure it’s weighing on the players, knowing how time is winding down here, seven games left. Obviously, we aren’t in a position, never mind a losing streak, but to lose more than a game. That’s where we’re at right now.” 

Jake said he expected there to be some kind of extracurricular activity after Boychuk comes back. When you see that they start him and that fourth line, does that mean anything to you?

“No, Leddy and Boychuk pretty much start every period of every game. They’ve started every game that we’ve played against them.” 

When Carter is bombarded with 80 plus shots over the last two games, another quick turnaround tomorrow, does that play at all into your decision?

“I haven’t thought about it yet. I’m sure it will.” 

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