NHLWinter Classic: Broadway vs. Broad St.

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With the 2012 edition of the NHL Winter Classic fast approaching, I'll be blogging periodically about the event, the two teams involved as well as their separate (yet equally rabid) fan bases that will fill Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pa. on Jan. 2.

In this post, let's take a look at the history between the Rangers and Flyers.

Rangers vs. Flyers: Tale of the tape

Regular season: The two teams have met a total of 262 times, with the Flyers (114-111-37) holding the advantage with three more wins over the Rangers.

Post-season: Philadelphia holds a 6-4 advantage in playoff series against New York.

Stanley Cups: Rangers - 4 (since 1926), Flyers - 2 (since 1967)

(Stats courtesy hockey-reference.com)

Recent history (or how these teams learned to dislike each other): The Flyers started their improbable run to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final in Game 82 of the season, against the Rangers.  A shootout win in the final game of the year pushed the Flyers into a playoff spot while ending the hopes of the NYR ... as you can see in this fan-shot video from the game itself:



This game put the rivalry in the record books for being the first do-or-die shootout between two teams for a playoff spot in NHL history*.

(*The Toronto Maple Leafs were ousted from a possible playoff berth thanks to a shootout, yet it was in one they did not participate. The New Jersey Devils lost a Game 82 shootout to the New York Islanders in 2007, granting the Isles the No. 8 seed in the East and relegating the Maple Leafs to No. 9).

Even more recent history: Saturday marked the first regular season meeting between the Atlantic Division rivals and the game saw its share of fights.

Before the game, the MSG Network cameras caught up with the Flyers' Danny Briere to ask him about the upcoming Winter Classic tilt. Briere talked about how the rivalry itself will make the game an event as the two teams "hated" one another.

Almost to put an exclamation mark on that statement, Briere later cross-checked Rangers defenceman Michael Del Zotto in the mouth. 'Nuff said.

Ultimately, Henrik Lundqvist backstopped the Blueshirts to a 2-0 shutout win over a depleted Flyers squad that was missing Jaromir Jagr (groin), James van Riemsdyk (upper body), Andreas Lilja (high ankle sprain) and Chris Pronger (knee).

The team got more bad news on Monday, announcing that their captain Pronger will be out for at least the next month following surgery on his injured knee.

Bright lights shine on Rangers, Flyers

Also increasing the excitement around the outdoor game is the HBO documentary 24/7: Road to the Winter Classic.

The preview for this year's edition aired on Friday, whetting the hockey world's appetite with the 12 minute clip:



The most 'controversial' soundbyte coming from the clip is from former Rangers tough guy and current Flyers pugilist Jody Shelley, who said Rangers' centre Brandon Dubinsky plays like a "weasel."

During the Rangers unveiling of their Winter Classic jersey on Monday, the New York Daily News caught up with Dubinsky for his reaction and he retorted that Shelley "is a terrible hockey player."

Touche.

Check back next week for more on the lead up to the Winter Classic.

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