Hey, the Philadelphia Flyers made news again and didn't need a suspension to hit the front page of the sports section.
Who knew?
For once, I was hoping to write a piece not slagging the Flyers.
Finally.
Turns out upon hearing the story of a Campbellford, Ont. family jobbed by a con artist, the Flyers decided to fly 13-year-old Mitch Stevens down to Philly and give him the royal treatment.
Steve Downie, who has been on the receiving end of a few of my diatribes, called the kid. Box tickets to a Flyer game. Meet the Flyers in person. Tour of the Comcast Center. Heck, even a Zamboni ride.
It's safe to say the Flyers won back a few of their harshest critics with the gesture.
Classy move but when it comes to the NHL, no one should be caught off-guard.
Sure, baseball may reach out to the community as well, but you never know if they'll be testifying before a grand jury on the big day. And while the NFL spreads its wings wide for the underprivileged, it's a coin flip whether or not the player you are scheduled to meet is facing his sentencing day. Or playing with his dogs.
With hockey players, for whatever reason, it's something different.
Something genuine.
These are the kinds of stories that show what is right about the world of sports. Sure, sentimental as it may be in the rough and tumble world of hockey, there's just something about those pampered millionaire athletes lending a hand to those not quite as fortunate.
I'm just a sucker for that sort of stuff, I guess.
Whether it is Vincent Lecavalier or Eric Lindros, everyone's favorite whipping boy for the past 15 years or so, hockey players just seem to get it.
One story in particular touched me over the past year and showcased the caring side of NHLers was the story of three-year-old Elgin Frasor. The young fighter formed a special bond with the Ottawa Senators, particularly Mike Fisher, before losing his heartbreaking battle with cancer a few hours after the Sens clinched their first Stanley Cup final berth in franchise history last spring.
Some things, as they say, are meant to be. Others need no words.
And everyone's heartstrings need to be tugged once in a while...