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The Flyers are granting fans’ wishes, and fans are not disappointing with their requests

Wishes range from getting Gritty to officiate a wedding to a quart of tequila.

The Flyers have asked fans to send them their biggest wishes.
The Flyers have asked fans to send them their biggest wishes.Read moreTOM GRALISH / Staff Photographer
    by Stephanie Farr
    Updated 
    Published 

It’s almost like the Flyers have never met their own fans. Or anyone from Philadelphia.

What other explanation could there be behind the team’s brave shout-out to fans on Twitter on Tuesday that read: “Where you at, what do you want? We’ll make it happen."

As it turns out, the Flyers offered to grant fans’ wishes Tuesday in honor of Flyers Day, part of a weeklong celebration to mark the second half of the team’s season. According to the Flyers website, Flyers Day is a “day of surprises and delights.”

Isn’t every day in Philadelphia?

While the team’s site doesn’t say how many fans’ wishes will be granted, it does read that those wishes can include “tickets, swag, or even lunch."

But this is Philly, where, when you ask them, people will tell you what they really want, whether it’s within the guidelines or not.

And so, Philly — and Flyers fans around the world — got extra creative with their requests. From the sentimental to the sublimely silly, here are some of the wishes Flyers fans are asking the team to fulfill.

Tonsil hockey

Philadelphia is a city of romance, said nobody ever.

Taking your significant other to a sporting event in Philadelphia is the romantic equivalent of a gondola ride in Venice. Just replace the roses and wine with a $15 Yuengling pounder and crab fries and you’re good to go.

So it’s no surprise several fans took the opportunity to ask the Flyers to help them or their loved ones celebrate engagements and anniversaries.

Getting Gritty with it

Speaking of Gritty, he was spotted out in the wilds of Philadelphia for the first time Tuesday since news broke last week that police were investigating a report from a Flyers fan who claimed Gritty punched his 13-year-old son in the back during a photo op in November.

While Philadelphia police said they had no update in the investigation Tuesday, Gritty was seen throwing a very nonviolent peace sign while posing with SEPTA police officers at Suburban Station.

Experiences with Gritty were among the top fan wish requests from the Flyers team. Few fans seemed deterred by the allegations against the furry orange mascot. In fact, the allegations seemed to endear him to fans even more.

One woman offered to join Gritty’s Secret Service of Men in Black-like guards. We support this wish, as it’s high-time Gritty diversified his security efforts.

Another offered to back Gritty should the allegations against him result in a criminal case.

Some fans requested direct assaults from Gritty.

Others asked that Gritty wreak havoc not only against them but everyone they work with — and around. Including children.

And one Collegeville pizza shop asked him to be their “Pizzaioli of the Day.”

We’re not sure what a pizzaioli is, but given the looks on the faces of the other local sports celebs who have done it before, we’re not sure they do either.

Also, don’t let Gritty anywhere near an oven. Everyone knows that.

We’re rooting for you

While Philadelphia may not be known for romance, it does have a lot of heart. The following requests were among some of the most touching that we hope the Flyers consider fulfilling.

We’re not crying, you’re crying!

From the mundane to the monumental

Some Flyers fans had surprisingly simple requests.

Others, however, seemed not to grasp the boundaries of time and space — or TSA restrictions — with their extravagant requests.

It’s getting quite silly

If there’s one team in Philly that has embraced the silly like no other, it’s the Flyers.

Exhibit Nos. 1-135: Gritty.

So it would only stand to reason that some Flyers fans would have silly requests, too. But just because these wishes are silly doesn’t mean we don’t want to see them happen.

Let’s get on that team capybara, Flyers.

Cup of wishes

Many Flyers fans said they wished for nothing more than a Stanley Cup win from the team — which hasn’t happened in 45 years. Others said they’d even be happy with a playoff run, which the team hasn’t had since 2010.

And, since this is Philly, of course there was that guy.

Shouldn’t you be....

Nothing will get in the way of a Flyers fan on a mission to get a wish in, not even a silly little thing like work.

Delco dreams

Finally, here are a few wishes that could have only come from the Florida of Southeast Pennsylvania — Delaware County.

To be fair, it’s always good for people from Delco to check if they’re eligible for pretty much anything. Delco is somewhere in the fine print of most waivers.

Gritty, granter of wishes

By the end of the business day Tuesday, the Flyers began to share on Twitter what fan wishes they had granted.

Some people just got coffee, while others got the Flyers tickets and jerseys they’d asked for.

A few lucky folks got a visit from Gritty at their jobs — and probably a subsequent note in their personnel files.

One little boy — who’s now assured to be the most popular kid in his class up through graduation — got a visit from Gritty as school let out, and one office got a visit from former Flyers player Bob Kelly.

And remember Kevin S., whose brother used his Flyers tickets on Gritty Chia Pet night but failed to bring him back said Gritty Chia Pet?

Well, he got his wish too — and more.

Meanwhile, I’m still waiting over here waiting like Godot for Gritty to fulfill my wish.