Claude Giroux Is The Hero Philadelphia Needs (Video)

Apr 13, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Flyers center Claude Giroux (28) smiles from the ice against the Carolina Hurricanes during the first period at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Not the one Philadelphia deserves.

I know that’s not how the quote goes in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, but after the way the Philadelphia Flyers beat writers and some fans just couldn’t stop dragging Giroux through the mud after the playoffs and the Ottawa incident, it seemed fitting, no?

Since his arrival as a regular player for the Philadelphia Flyers in 08-09 he’s been almost a point per game player (0.91 PPG). As for the playoffs? Claude has ONLY averaged 1.07 PPG. /sarcasm

You cannot make an argument that he hasn’t been the best player for the Flyers since Eric Lindros dressed in the Orange and Black without immediately being pointed at and laughed at.

Sam Carchidi, Tim Panaccio, and Angelo Cataldi, these buffoons constantly chastise and blame Claude for the failings of the Philadelphia Flyers in the playoffs. They are apparently unaware G has led the Flyers in points in four of their last five playoff appearances. Oh, and he also happens to hold the Flyers’ franchise record for most points scored in a single playoff game with six against the hated Pittsburgh Penguins.

To use a quote once again from Nolan’s Batman masterpiece:

"You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain. – Harvey Dent"

That quote succinctly describes what Claude Giroux has seemingly turned into these last couple of years. A villain.

When hasn’t the Philadelphia Flyers beat writers exacted their annoying and lazy brand of sports journalism (and I use that term loosely) every time the team is playing poorly and they need a scapegoat?

Need some examples of the kind of trolling the Flyers beat writers are capable of? Prepare your butts for terrible spelling mistakes and assertions that Claude Giroux is not a great player.

This was the portion of the season in which Sam Carchidi wasn’t happy that Claude Giroux didn’t talk to him so he whined about on Twitter.

And as you can see, even though every internet browser has built-in spell check people continue to ignore it.

Spelling Effort?

0/10

Would not read again.

For some reason it’s hard for people to contemplate why a player may not want to talk to the media after a loss or they are struggling. What kind of soundbite are you expecting from Claude? A 1000-word dissertation on how the team needs to work on carry the puck in to enter the zone?

You watched the game Sam, come to your own conclusion as to why Claude might be too frustrated to talk to you.

The Philadelphia Flyers entered Game 3 against the New York Rangers tied 1-1. But all Tim could think about is why Claude Giroux had not recorded a shot during that two game stretch.

Forget about the fact that Rangers were throwing players like Ryan McDonagh and Marc Staal at him and that he placed second in game one and game two in QoC (quality of competition).

But you know, let’s just assume his lack of shots is because he’s just not trying hard enough.

Tim did exactly what most beat reporters do, and that’s use something intangible to explain the reason why a player isn’t living up to their standards. Because why try to use statistics when you can make vague generalizations? It’s so much easier.

All bitching and moaning on my part is coming a bit late, especially on the heels of the mess Claude made for himself in Ottawa. And while I admit it was a dumb thing he did, that matter in which that incident was covered by this city’s media was so over the top.

No charges ended up being filed but for some reason, guys like Tim Panaccio began banging the drum for the Philadelphia Flyers organization to do something about their out of control captain of butt massaging.

"A conversation with Giroux needs to occur and the Flyers owe it to their fanbase to make a public statement saying such has occurred, so everyone moves on.-A thing Tim Pannacio actually wrote."

Claude Giroux doesn’t owe me anything. Don’t speak on my behalf or any of the Flyers fans. You’re a troll.

Claude Giroux, is a brilliant hockey player for this team. He has seemingly carried this team on his back in wake of Paul Holmgren systematically attempting to destroy it by his insane free agent signings and rather superhuman ability of being unable to draft a first or second line defenseman.

No player is above criticism, but the amount Claude Giroux has had to handle in his career here in Philadelphia has been unjust and unfair. We can’t have a Stanley Cup or bust mentality any longer. Those kind of expectations lead to this unnecessary sniping of superstar players like Claude.

The Flyers started their 2013/14 season with 24 other players. Maybe it’s time we, the fans, and the Flyers beat writers start looking elsewhere when we begin to question why the team is not playing well.

And before you exit out of this article, I thought you might enjoy a palate cleanser after having to read those tweets, so here you go.

Claude Giroux does the best pigeon imitation in the NHL.

As always, please send all your hate mail to bear.canney@gmail.com and your angry tweets to @BcanneyBSB.