Flyers to retire Howe's number; Bob gets surprising start
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Flyers Report: Broad Street Bull
Flyers to retire Howe's number; Bob gets surprising start
Sam Carchidi, Inquirer Staff Writer
WINNIPEG, Manitoba _ The Flyers will retire defenseman Mark Howe's No. 2 in ceremonies before their March 6 game against visiting Detroit, a club source said on Saturday.
Howe, 56, who spent 10 years with the Flyers, went into hockey's Hall of Fame on Monday in Toronto.
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The Flyers' 6-4 loss in Winnipeg Saturday was just their second road defeat of the season. They are 6-2-1 on the road.
The cozy MTS Centre, which seats just over 15,000, is one of the league's loudest buildings.
"It was like a playoff atmosphere," defenseman Chris Pronger said.
But the Flyers, with their defense continually getting beat out front, played loosely in the first half of the opening period and fell into a quick 3-0 hole.
Despite the loss, the Flyers remained No. 1 in the tightly contested Eastern Conference.
Goalie Sergei Bobrovsky was the surprise starter Saturday. Perhaps coach Peter Laviolette didn't want Ilya Bryzgalov to hear the boos from Winnipeg's fans, who are irate about comments he made about their city last season.
Bobrovsky started for the second time in the last three games. He was the starter in the Flyers' 9-8 loss to Winnipeg last month. Bryzgalov allowed four goals in relief.
Here are the lines the Flyers used for much of Saturday's game:
* Giroux centering Harry Z and Hartnell.
* Briere centering JVR and Simmonds.
* Talbot centering Voracek and Read.
* Couturier centering Shelley and Rinaldo.
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Follow Sam Carchidi on Twitter @BroadStBull.
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I never understood why teams wait until a player gets to the HOF before they retire his number. If Howe was one of the best players in NHL history, doesn't that mean he was one of the best players in Flyers' history first?— AvoidSundanceVacations- Winning a cup should be mandatory in retiring a #....sorry mark— philly thug
- So an entire career worth of accomplishments counts less than the fact the Flyers (racked by injuries) lost a hard-fought Game 7 of the 1987 Cup Finals to Edmonton at the height of its dynasty? The Flyers wouldn't have made it anywhere near that close if not for Howe, but the fact they lost one game makes him not worthy of having his jersey retired. Sorry, but that's a really faulty argument. By the same logic, Ray Bourque shouldn't have his number retired in Boston since he never won a Cup there. — Tony Dee
- He was no ray bourque...he was good, but more like desjardins good in my opinion..don't really care that much to be honest..lol— philly thug
- Sorry Philly Thug, I'm with Tony Dee on this one. Desjardin was a very good D but Howe was better.— Sheriff Bart
