Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

“Wow,” said Wifey. “You can hear the puck hitting the boards.” She wasn’t talking about a particularly loud slap shot. She was talking about every little bump along the sides. And she was right. You could even hear the skates carving into the ice from each player. A mere 43 seconds after Keith Primeau scored, sending the hometown fans into a frenzy, Martin St. Louis sent a pass up the middle to send Vincent Lecavalier on a breakaway. Vinny scored while Robert Esche just stood there. That goal turned the Orange Crush into the Orange Hush. For the rest of the game, it sounded as if it were being played at an empty arena. The Philly Fans – self-proclaimed best fans in sport – were sitting on their hands. Primeau continued playing hard, trying to inspire his team and the fans. But that Yap-shutter effectively killed the Flyers. I haven’t heard a sporting venue go so quiet since, uh… Since Ronde Barber intercepted a pass from Donovan McNabb, wrapping up a Buccaneer Super Bowl berth in 2003. And it’s a beautiful thing.