When the Flyers face the Capitals in the NHL playoffs, they will "wear patches on their jerseys" to honor late Chair ED SNIDER, according to Sam Carchidi of the PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER. Flyers C CLAUDE GIROUX said, "I'm pretty glad we were able to make the playoffs for him. The whole year we were playing for him, and that's not going to change for the playoffs" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 4/12). TSN.ca's Frank Seravalli wrote Thursday's playoff opener will "mark the first of 4,222 Flyers games where Snider wasn't notified of the score at least once every period for games he wasn't attending" (TSN.ca, 4/11). The INQUIRER's Carchidi writes the news of Snider's death was "met with deep sadness from those associated with the Flyers' co-founder, and they remembered him as a man who put others first." Flyers President PAUL HOLMGREN said that Snider "'first and foremost' thought of the fans, whether it was about ticket prices, parking or the weather effects." Holmgren called Snider "the face of the Flyers." Holmgren said, "He is, he was, he always will be" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 4/12).
PASSION PLAY: In Philadelphia, Bill Lyon wrote Snider, "in many ways, was the model of what you want in an owner." He was a "man of great passion." He "poured himself into his team and more than once yielded to volatility" (PHILLY.com, 4/11). Hockey HOFer WAYNE GRETZKY said, "He wore the Flyers' heart on his sleeves and just bled orange and black. He would do anything and spend any amount to try to win a Stanley Cup and bring the Stanley Cup back to Philadelphia. That's the kind of owner you want to have" ("The Mike Missanelli Show," WPEN-FM, 4/11). SPORTSNET.ca's John Shannon wrote while Snider in recent years "wasn’t the majority owner of the club, he was always perceived as the owner." Team ownership "fit him like the finely tailored suits he loved." Snider was "a visionary for Philadelphia and for the NHL" (SPORTSNET.ca, 4/11). Stan Fischler in a special to THE HOCKEY NEWS wrote Snider was "above being just special, he was inimitable." Thanks to Snider's "fervent leadership, The City of Brotherly Love emerged as one of the NHL’s most successful franchises and every move upward had Snider’s imprint, especially the special branding of 'The Broad Street Bullies' which, by the way, was no accident" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 4/11).
CABLE CALLING: In Philadelphia, Bob Fernandez notes Comcast Chair & CEO BRIAN ROBERTS "considers Snider the pioneering force for Comcast's stable of highly profitable" RSNs, including what is now CSN Philadelphia (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 4/12).
