It's the hockey brawl so famous, it has its own Wikipedia page. In late February of 2004, Mark Recchi of the Philadelphia Flyers was cross-checked in the face by Ottawa's Martin Havlat. Bob Clarke, then GM of the Flyers, famously yelled at the officials for that incident, but the Flyers didn't have to wait too long before seeing the Senators on the ice again.
VIDEO: Flyers, Senators Combine For 126 Penalty Minutes In Flashback Of 2004 Brawl
A week later, on March 5, the team’s met in Philly, and with the Flyers up 5-2 late in the third period, tensions boiled over. When all was said and done, the teams combined for 419 penalty minutes, an NHL record that still stands. Havlat, by the way, never moved from his seat on the bench.
On Thursday night in the very same building, with the Flyers up 5-2 in the third period, Claude Giroux of the Flyers laid a vicious hit on Ottawa's Jesse Winchester, and the Senators didn't really like that too much. By the end of the game, the Flyers would add a goal and the teams would rack up 126 total penalty minutes.
It wasn’t to the same level of absurdity as the 2004 affair, but ask anybody in the arena and they’ll tell you that it certainly felt the same. Video after the jump.
Here's the initial hit and the first fight between Philadelphia's Jeff Carter and Winchester. I'm admittedly a Flyers fan, but for the Senators broadcast crew to call Giroux's hit dirty is pretty absurd, wouldn't you say?
A few minutes later, Nick Foligno challenged Giroux for the hit. You know, instead of having two guys jump him.
Shortly thereafter..
That would do it. 126 penalty minutes in total, and some nice nostalgia at the same time.
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