The Thousand-Yard Stare

The losses mount and the race is on.

Last night's 3-1 defeat at the hands of Florida at the BankAtlantic Center makes it 10 consecutive losses, an ongoing franchise record.

Only one primary source of information on the team even brings up a lone bright spot - yet another return of Peter Forsberg to the lineup - and that was the usually fawning Tim Panaccio in the Inquirer. Equating Foppa's return during the latest loss which continues the worst losing streak in the Flyers' 40 year history is equating the brightness of a lone shaft of light in the middle of a thunderstorm, if that shaft of light is the glow of a missile heading right in our direction. Add to that Niittymaki's removal before the third period in favor of Robert Esche, due to that pesky torn hip labrum, and that shaft of light is about to hit ground zero any second.

The Flyers have lost two games in one season in South Florida for the first time since the Panthers joined the NHL in 1993. They are two games away from equalling the franchise record for consecutive games without a win (12 games, set in 1998-99 when the team suffered an 0-8-4 stretch from mid-February to mid-March) and face seven more road games split between 2006 and 2007 before returning home. Tonight, a long string of frustration against the Tampa Bay Lightning is expected to continue, as the Bolts have won five in a row at home over Philly, and carry a 10-game winning streak overall against the Flyers dating back to October 2003.

The chances that even this rag-tag bunch of worn-out veterans and kids who have that deer-in-the-headlights look about them, coached by a man who looks overmatched if he played against a 12-year-old in a game of checkers, will win a game on this road trip are actually pretty good. Parity, for once, has its advantages. At this point, intrepid fans who tire of debate might actually make some money laying down wagers on which game it will be (My guess is January 2nd at the Islanders, avoiding a new franchise record for games without a win).

And yes, I am advocating gambling on this web page. It's the least I can do to help fans who sunk thousands of dollars into the team, get something green and precious back. Whether it's done of the team's misfortune is of no concern to me.

And when that win comes, however it comes, at least one beat writer and perhaps all five men who provide entertainment through radio and TV broadcasts may (be forced to) treat it akin the discovery of fire, McKenna's Gold, or the cure for cancer. I won't be fooled, and I know there are thousands more who have woken up to the reality that the Flyers are little more than background noise this season. The streak-breaking win will probably be the only big thing that will turn your attention away from lively dinner-table conversation, paying bills, or other nighttime activities. After that, who knows? Before you know it, April rolls around, the Phillies begin again, and you won't care that the Flyers were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs by the first week of February.

From this point until the end of the season, it's best if you greet any kind words about the Flyers either in print or spoken in any forum, with a generous thousand-yard stare. It'll be the identifying mark of a truly savvy Flyers fan, if only for the remainder of the schedule -- the dumb-struck look of someone who cannot possibly utter any sound in praise, yet somehow smart enough to reserve any energy for something worthwhile.