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Review of HBO's Broad Street Bullies (AMAZING!) (Eastern previews to come) |
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OK, I want to start this article off by saying I am life-long Flyers fan. So bear with me for a second, because while this is in fact a Flyers article, it is also an NHL story.
Why you ask? Well last night I was fortunate enough to be invited to the party and screening of the HBO Documentary, debuting May 4th, entitled, "Broad Street Bullies." It is the very first HBO Documentary ever done about the NHL....and it is truly a beautifully done, gripping journey through the seventies and the team that polarized hockey fans forever.
On one hand you could say "Ek is a homer. Of course he would love this" and while this is true you also must realize this is a story I know very well. I have seen it in many forms on screen. I have read about it from all angles. It should be "nothing new" to me. Been there, done that.
But I was really moved by this film. It hit me on so many levels...
*The concept of these guys being left unprotected by original six teams and being sent to Philly. *The scenes of the Flyers getting beaten to a pulp physically...
*Ed Snider saying, "We don't have to win, but we also don't have to get beaten up."...
*The team watching the Rangers in Game 7, 1974 Semis, NOT coming to the defense of a player Dave Schultz was pummeling and how the Flyers realized they would never have allowed one of their players to get beaten up....
*The oddities of Bernie Parent, who took naps with his German Shepherd and loved the smell of new shoes...
*The scenes of the parades (one of my earliest memories having attended the second parade when I was 6)
*Bobby Clarke saying he was sitting on the bench when the team was up 1-0 to the Bruins in the first Cup Game and thinking to himself "We are going to win a Cup, they will never score on Bernie."
*Hearing how hated the team was around the NHL. How Clarence Campbell loathed handing them the Cup and yet showed up in their locker room in 1976 to tell them they had to beat the Red Army team for all of Canada and the NHL.
*Realizing the Flyers finished first in the Western Conference in 1967 but were 1 game under 500.
*Hearing how the Flyers had 600 MORE penalty minutes than any other team in '73.
I know all of this may sound "ok" to read, but the way this documentary spun this tale was truly goose bump city for me. And that is saying something because I know this game from the inside....
I have seen the backstage of the NHL.
I know the magic tricks.
I rarely hear a player say a line like "We are taking one game at a time." Or a reporter asking, "How does it feel to lose this game" without throwing up in my mouth a little...
I know how they make the sausage.
There were a few things that really hit me in particular.
#1. This movie brought back my love of Bobby Clarke. As a kid, this man was the leader I looked to and made me want to be the captain of every team I ever played on. I idolized him for that. He was the man. But what slowly happened in Philly when he became GM was the sparkle left. To no fault of his own he became Bob Clarke, the GM. And whether or not you liked him as a GM, there is a whole generation of hockey fans who need to know Bobby Clarke again. This documentary will do that. When Clarke spoke about "Going out there and taking the game" or "I was taught when you play you work" or "If your opponent doesn't hate you, what kind of an opponent are you?" those lines felt more real than anything I have heard in a NHL dressing room in years.
#2. I love this game and especially the playoffs. After watching this I was so ready for the playoffs, hell I was ready to play hockey and run someone over!
Finally, I really wanted to thank Bruce 'Scoop' Cooper. He has been with the Flyers for 40 years, is in the movie, and invited me as his guest to this event. Scoop, you are the man.
I will be back with my predictions and we are doing some great podcasts today with all the bloggers whose teams are playing today that I will be posting here.
Cheers.
Note : there are major re-organization/firings in Atlanta today...more on that.
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