After a playoff run to remember, the Philadelphia Flyers had the chance to show that this core of players was enough to contend for a Stanley Cup. Their first home game of the 2026-27 season was against the Pittsburgh Penguins, one of their most hated rivals that just so happened to be the team they eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
Sidney Crosby knows all about the rivalry between the Penguins and Flyers. In fact, he expressed his hatred for the Flyers during his playing career. With Crosby entering his 22nd year of his career, there may not be many more chances for the Flyers to defeat the longtime Penguins captain.
But before the game on Wednesday night, Crosby appears to have softened his stance on the Flyers.
Sidney Crosby appears to soften stance on Flyers entering Year 22 of NHL career
Before Wednesday night's game, Crosby spoke with TNT Sports' Eddie Olczyk and talked about the rivalry between the Penguins and Flyers. Crosby was much more reminiscent of his time with the rivalry.
"I knew the history of the game and the rivalries and I knew how long this one had been around and experienced it right away," said Crosby. "It's been that way with playoff series and different things that have happened over the years, but it's brought out the best in both teams a lot of nights, maybe the worst some times, too. But that's part of sports and that's what you love about it."
Listening to that now compared to what he said in the past about the Flyers, it has shown that Crosby has softened his stance
Back in 2012, Crosby got into a fight with former Flyer Claude Giroux during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals after the Penguins captain pushed away Jakub Voracek's glove on the ice. Crosby was asked about the incident after the game, where he declared that he hated everyone on the Flyers.
"I don't like them, because I don't like any guy on their team so," said Crosby, h/t Yahoo Sports.
It was the Battle of Pennsylvania, and given the fact that Crosby was the face of the NHL, of course you are going to root against him if you are a fan of a team in the same division as his Penguins. For Flyers fans, they have seen Crosby haunt them for quite some time. Crosby has 140 career points against the Flyers through 94 regular season games. Meanwhile his 16 playoff goals against the Flyers are the most the franchise has given up against any player.
Sidney Crosby continued to haunt Flyers in season-opening disaster
Instead of showing they now dominate the Battle of Pennsylvania, the Flyers had a home opener to forget. The Flyers watched the Penguins beat them in nearly every aspect of the game, resulting in Philadelphia securing a 7-0 loss. It was the worst possible scenario for the Flyers.
Crosby picked up one assist in the win for the Penguins. Meanwhile, the Flyers watched Crosby and 13 other skaters out of 18 record a point. It was that kind of night for Philadelphia fans. After riding high in the offseason, the paying fans at Xfinity Mobile Arena were rewarded with a one-sided blowout.
There is still plenty of time for the Flyers to turn things around. They did so last season, which helped them make the playoffs. The Flyers' next chance at revenge against Crosby and the Penguins won't be until Jan. 31.
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