Hungry dogs skate faster? Flyers borrow underdog mantra, mask from Eagles to start new season
The Flyers have a new victory ritual, for now. They channeled Jason Kelce and the dog mask for inspiration.
Where does anyone in Philadelphia go when they need inspiration? To Jason Kelce, of course.
The future Hall of Fame Eagles center has become a bit of a trendsetter around these parts, and perhaps no athlete in recent memory has become one with the city the way he has. From chugging beers in Sea Isle to delivering one of the city’s all-time speeches from the Art Museum steps while dressed in Mummers attire, Kelce has gone from Ohio Man to practically Ben Franklin over the last few years.
Many of the Flyers recently attended an Eagles game, and some have also tuned into the new Amazon Prime Kelce documentary. One thing that stuck out: Kelce’s legendary “hungry dogs run faster” line during his Super Bowl parade speech.
Alternate captain Scott Laughton went to Amazon to acquire some masks — you know them, the one Lane Johnson wore while trotting around Lincoln Financial Field during the 2018 playoff run — and brought a few of them to the Eagles game.
» READ MORE: Flyers show off new locker rooms among Wells Fargo Center’s latest renovations
Hockey locker rooms are full of traditions and some of them involve a ritual after winning games. So when it came time for a new post-victory celebration, the mask fit.
“I think we were looking for something, looking for a little bit of a chain but it didn’t work out,” Laughton said. “We had this in the queue.”
The Flyers needed the mask out of the gate. They won their season opener, 4-2, in Columbus on Thursday night. And Laughton had an easy pick to wear the mask first: Sean Couturier, the veteran Flyers center who played in his first game Thursday since Dec. 18, 2021, after going through two back surgeries and working his way back to the ice. He had an assist on the team’s opening goal.
“I thought he battled pretty hard,” Laughton said. “Seeing from the inside how much work he put in and how much of a mental and physical grind it was for the last couple years, it was well deserved. He played big minutes for us and won some key draws.
“Right now it worked and we’ll see what happens.”
» READ MORE: ‘Banged-up’ center Sean Couturier misses Flyers’ practice with undisclosed injury
The Flyers, of course, lost their next game, 5-2, in Ottawa. Their season continues Tuesday night with the home opener vs. Vancouver.
Victory rituals are not new in the NHL. There have been some pretty well-known versions in recent memory. The Flyers used to play the late Mac Miller’s “Knock Knock” in the locker room after wins. They then switched to “Two Times” by Ann Lee. The New York Rangers had their Broadway Hat. The Pittsburgh Penguins once had a victory shovel. The Washington Capitals used to give out a hard hat. And when the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Flyers in the 2010 Stanley Cup Final, they were passing around a boxing belt.
Laughton wasn’t ready to commit to the dog mask for the whole season. Couturier also wore a chain when he was pictured wearing the mask after the win in Columbus.
For now, though, maybe the Flyers, projected to finish near the bottom of the league, are taking the Eagles’ mantra and making it their own: Hungry dogs might skate faster, too.