PHILADELPHIA _ At 13 minutes, 35 seconds of the second period Thursday night, the brand-new Wells Fargo sound system blasted out "I Want To Be Sedated," the Ramones song from the late '70s. Children bounced to their feet and danced, and older fans stepped back in time too.
Then play resumed and everyone returned to their normal activity.
They slumped in their seats.
Truth is, being sedated is the last thing these people need. Their minds are already numbed from what has happened with their hockey team over the first 40 games of this once-promising season, a season that has devolved so badly that the 5-3 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes _ which involved a near comeback from a four-goal hole _ instead solidified their status as the Metropolitan Division's worst team, and threatened to make them the NHL's worst by weekend's end.
The first period, in which the Hurricanes outshot the Flyers, 13-8, was notable not just for missed chances, but for made ones that didn't count. Radko Gudas bounced one off the glass into the net on a delayed offsides, Jordan Weal made a nifty move past an indifferent Petr Mrazek after Wayne Simmonds was whistled for interference.
There were a few other oohs and ahhs, but for a period that counted 21 shots, it sure sounded like exam time for much of the first 20 minutes.
It's an appropriate metaphor, at least for the home team, which entered the night with just a point separating it from St. Louis as the NHL's worst team. The Flyers haven't officially announced they are focusing beyond this season, but it was notable that rookie Oskar Lindblom was bumped up to play with Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier, dropping Travis Konecny down to the fourth line.
That gambit, like all the others, exploded like a trick cigar in the second period, as Dougie Hamilton walked in from the right point and fired a puck over the glove shoulder of Michal Neuvirth at 1:56 _ with Couturier seemingly frozen at the side of the net. It broke a string of 26 consecutive unsuccessful power plays for Carolina. It also broke a 21-game goalless streak for Hamilton.
Moments later, with Mrazek familiarly sprawled out of position, Wayne Simmonds couldn't get good wood to push a rebound past the goalie, then compounded things with a tripping penalty behind the net.
Justin Williams converted on the power play, firing a wrist shot inside the left post at 3:04 of the second period for a 2-0 Hurricanes lead.
Teuvo Teravainen's power-play goal, his ninth of the season, pushed that lead to 3-0 at 17:20 of the second period. It came after a scrum behind the Flyers net resulted in Robert Hagg's receiving an extra two minutes for roughing.
Warren Foegele pushed the Hurricanes lead to 4-0 at 5:01 of the third.
The Flyers woke up right after that, finally breaking through on their fourth power play of the night. Simmonds finished off a pretty cross-slot pass from Jake Voracek at 6:17, and 66 seconds later Sean Couturier made it 4-2 when he redirected Giroux's pass just under the crossbar.
James van Riemsdyk triggered the loudest ovation of the night when he pulled a rebound around Mrazek at 10:58 of the third to make it 4-3. It was another power-play goal, a hopeful development for a team that has struggled mightily with that all season. The Flyers are now 11 for 98 since Oct.13, and 5 for 50 in their last 20 games.
But Teravainen's second goal at 15:13 _ which trickled through Neuvirth's pads and just across the goal line _ numbed the crowd again.
"Realistically nobody wants to fail," Flyers interim coach Scott Gordon said before the game. Just two weeks ago, before the holiday break, the team appeared to be righting itself. The Flyers had won two straight games before losing a tightly played game to Columbus. They rebounded the following day with a victory over the Rangers, but they have lost the five games since.
"I think the first four games there was probably a little more consistency in everything we did," Gordon said of his start with the team. "I think we've had spurts (since) where we've been consistent. ...
"(But) situational things have come up in those games. How we backchecked. How we got into our defensive zone coverage. Where we were in our defensive zone coverage in one game. ... Those are plays that shouldn't happen. And when you're not scoring, it becomes a bigger issue."
After the second period ended, new general manager Chuck Fletcher was spotted talking on his cell phone. Maybe he was just ordering takeout _ who knows. But until his team gave a glimpse of what it could be, what it should be, in the ensuing third period, it served as the night's most hopeful sign.
