Montreal columnist's car trashed after Flyers-Canadiens game

PAT HICKEY didn't experience much Brotherly Love in Philadelphia Sunday night.

After covering the Flyers vs. Canadiens game, the Montreal Gazette columnist found his Honda Accord had been vandalized in the Wachovia Center parking lot.

One of the car's tires was slashed and his Quebec license plate was missing.

"I got out [of the Center] around 11:45 p.m.," Hickey said last night. "I was parked fairly far away. As I got close, there were cans of beer and empty soda cups all over the hood and trunk. I realized the back tire was flat, and I got a sinking feeling."

Hickey said the police officer at the scene - who he found out was a Flyers season ticketholder - was very helpful. Yesterday morning, Hickey said he went to the police station to file a report. He said he expects more paperwork when he gets back to Canada. Make that if he gets back.

"There are a couple of things that bothered me [about the incident]," Hickey said. "More than anything else is the fact that they took the [license] plate. I have to try to get back over the border. I'll have to spend a good part of a day replacing it."

Hickey, 66, could have chalked it up to typical Philly fan behavior. Instead, he took the high road.

"I've seen bad behavior in every city." he said. "We already had one riot in Montreal during the playoffs. It's unfortunate. Some people use being fans as an excuse for bad behavior."

This year, five women will attempt to qualify for the Indianapolis 500.

Janet Guthrie remembers a time when it was just . . . her.

In 1977, Guthrie became the first woman to qualify for the big race. Since then, three others have joined her, including Danica Patrick and Sarah Fisher, who - along with Milka Duno, Ana Beatriz and Simona de Silvestro - hope to drive in this year's race.

The 72-year-old Guthrie is thrilled at the number of women in the sport.

"I thought it would take two generations," she told the Associated Press by phone Sunday. "But it's only taken a little more than one."

- Tom Mahon

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