Flyers coach Peter Laviolette "stole the show" in the third installment of HBO's "24/7: Flyers-Rangers: Road to the NHL Winter Classic," according to Matt Mullin of PHILLY.com. From the "opening scene, this was Laviolette's coming out party." With a "flurry of obscenities, he bashed his team for sloppy and lazy play between periods of their game against" the Avalanche. He told his team, "I want you to go out and rip someone’s heart out of their (bleep)ing chest. And if you don’t, you’re probably not going to like your ice time." Although the Flyers went on to lose in a shootout, they "did just what their coach directed." Mullin noted the "language of the show has been much discussed, but there is no question that the team responds to the brash way in which Laviolette conducts himself in the locker room." He "doesn't seem to care that cameras are on him," and he "doesn't hold back." His "locker room vocabulary can almost exclusively be found in George Carlin's famous 'Seven Dirty Words' routine." Perhaps the "most memorable moment from this episode were the three words Laviolette had for Stars winger Steve Ott after the two bumped into each other in the tunnel between periods." Ott "took offense to Laviolette heading up the tunnel first, which is usually reserved for the home team." But Laviolette "didn't offer an apology." He said, "Go (bleep) yourself" (PHILLY.com, 12/28).
LEAVING YOU WANTING MORE: ESPN.com's Pierre LeBrun wrote the episode "didn't disappoint Wednesday night, packing a show chock full of terrific scenes, leaving you hungry for the final installment centered around Monday's Winter Classic." Some of LeBrun's favorite moments from the third episode included Rangers C Brad Richards hosting a holiday party at his place in N.Y., and Rangers RW Marion Gaborik "buying a Christmas tree at a neighborhood store and carrying it over his shoulder back home." LeBrun also noted, "I must give HBO credit for getting Laviolette on camera after that Dallas game and trying desperately to get him to talk about it. Laviolette didn't bite" (ESPN.com, 12/28). YAHOO SPORTS' Greg Wyshynski writes, "Overall, this was another strong episode, highlighted by holiday absurdity, the resolution of storylines, some nasty little moments during games and the ongoing exploration of a Cosmonaut [Flyers G Ilya Bryzgalov] and his dog." The sweater worn by Rangers D Michael Del Zotto during the team's holiday party "may be the greatest non-Bryzgalov moment" of the season (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 12/29).
