The Flyers hosted a Dollar Dog Night days after the Phillies canceled theirs. Here’s how it went.
“We figured we’d take advantage of potentially the last Philadelphia Dollar Dog Night of all time,” one fan said.
Just under a week after the Phillies unceremoniously ended Dollar Dog Night after 27 years, the Flyers hosted a Dollar Dog Night of their own.
The promotion had been on the calendar since the beginning of the season, but it was fortuitous timing. Fans piled into the Wells Fargo Center ready to eat some dollar hot dogs, some even in hot dog costumes.
“We figured we’d take advantage of potentially the last Philadelphia Dollar Dog Night of all time,” said Cole Harper, who came to the game with his friends in hot dog hats. “It’s been a special part of our past growing up, so we wanted to make the most of it.”
» READ MORE: The Phillies got rid of Dollar Dog Nights. Most fans were distraught — but not everyone thinks it’s a bad idea.
To be clear, there’s no information suggesting Monday was the last Flyers Dollar Dog Night, but Harper and his friends were celebrating like it was. (The Inquirer reached out to the Flyers on Monday night regarding their future Dollar Dog plans. Their response on Wednesday did not mention any changes to plans for the future, but rather focused on the success of their 15-year partnership with Dietz & Watson and the enjoyment fans get from specialty events like this.)
The group estimated they’d been to three to five Dollar Dog Nights each in the past. Miles Macaleer estimated their individual Dollar Dog total over the years at “shamefully, I would say about 50″ each. The group bought the hot dog hats ahead of Flyers Dollar Dog Night to celebrate after the Phillies announced its end. They already have tickets for one of the Phillies’ Buy One, Get One nights — their replacement promotion — and plan to break them out again.
The group was at the Dollar Dog Night that, according to the Phillies, played a major role in the night getting discontinued. John Weber, the Phillies senior vice president of ticket operations and projects, told The Inquirer that “the unfortunate incidents last year of the throwing of the hot dogs” motivated the change.
» READ MORE: In memory of Dollar Dog Night, a beloved tradition that met a sudden end at 27
“I was just like, ‘Why are we throwing these delicious hot dogs on the field? I want to eat them?’” Brad Allan said of the night. “A few people ruin it for the rest of us.”
Some fans didn’t buy that unruly behavior was the real reason the event had gotten canceled.
“Dollar Dog Nights, a tale as old as time,” one fan, Adam Bell, said. “It’s a night that I think on a calendar most people would know to point out, and losing that over — I hope it’s not over a couple of dollars and cents. Because it’s a special night. People like it.”
» READ MORE: Phillies Dollar Dog Nights: The good, the bad, and the ‘Pukemon’
Bell said he had attended Dollar Dog Night before and did not see any of the bad behavior in person, only on social media after the fact.
The Flyers have taken a backseat to the Phillies the last few years as the Phillies have made two deep playoff runs, while the Flyers are in the midst of a rebuild. But with the Flyers back on the upswing and still hosting Dollar Dog Night, is it time for their moment in the sun?
“This is a sign that the city needs to embrace the Flyers again and disregard the Phillies, because the Phillies got rid of Dollar Dog Night and the Flyers didn’t,” said Flyers season ticket holder Michael Viscusi. “So who really cares about the city? The Flyers or the Phillies?”
» READ MORE: Petition to reinstate Phillies’ Dollar Dog Night has fans citing a ‘God given right for encased meat’