[jg2977]

Philadelphia Flyers: 2nd Conference Finals berth
1996 2005

Mike (laser-focused, fired up):
“Alright, good afternoon everybody, Mike and the Mad Dog! Flyers, Rangers, Game Seven, Madison Square Garden — and DOGGIE, the Flyers have DONE IT. They go into the Garden, they knock out the dynasty, they win it 8–5, they take the series 4 games to 3. And lemme tell ya right now — the Rangers’ run, seven straight conference finals, five straight Cup Finals, three straight Cups — it is OVER. The Flyers advance to just their second-ever Eastern Conference Finals, Dog. Couturier — MVP of the series, batted over .500, 10 RBIs, 13 runs scored. The guy absolutely destroyed the Rangers.”

Mad Dog (high-pitched, going nuts):
“MIKEY, YOU HIT IT ON THE HEAD! This is the END of an era! The Rangers — without the three Grubins, without Sattler — they just didn’t have the horses! They fall apart late, bullpen collapses, Flyers hit FOUR home runs in this ballgame! Couturier with two, Yohemas with one, Barry with one, Seki with the dagger in the seventh, the three-run bomb that finished ‘em off! And the Rangers, you can’t win when Rice goes 0-for-5 in the biggest game of the year, you just can’t do it! Flyers bullpen came up HUGE, Rivera, Kosaka, Jasso slam the door — SERIES OVER! Flyers and Islanders in the Conference Final, Mikey, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!”

Rocky (gravelly, heartfelt):
“Yo, I gotta tell ya, this one hit me right here, ya know? All those years, the Rangers fightin’, goin’ the distance, winnin’ the big ones — but sometimes, the punches add up, eh. You lose your best guys, you get tired, and then some new fighter steps in the ring hungry. That’s the Flyers. Couturier, Yohemas, Barry, Seki — these guys came in like underdogs, swingin’ with everything they got. And now they’re movin’ on, they got belief, they got heart. Rangers? They’ll always be champs in their own way, but every dynasty’s gotta fall sometime. Flyers earned this one.”

Mike (firm, sharp):
“And Rocky’s dead on, Dog. This is what sports is all about — the rise, the fall, the heartbreak, the joy. The Flyers go from never-historic to HISTORY. Game Seven on the road, they get it done.”

Mad Dog (screeching):
“THE DYNASTY IS DEAD, MIKEY! THE DYNASTY IS DEAD!”

Rocky (quiet, with heart):
“Yo, but remember… it ain’t about how hard you get hit, it’s about how you keep movin’ forward. Flyers kept movin’ forward, now they’re fightin’ for somethin’ bigger. Flyers versus Islanders, Eastern Conference Finals, coming up!”