You’ve probably already noticed by now, but Philadelphia Flyers fans are upset at their hockey team at the moment. They lost ten straight games before last night’s 4-3 edging over the Vegas Golden Knights, and fans are frustrated.
In recent weeks, we’ve seen calls for the coaches to be fired, which some were on Monday morning. We’ve seen fans clamoring for Comcast to sell the franchise, which probably won’t happen. But we’ve seen a new trend that has somehow united this fanbase via social media to protest the Flyers’ ineptitude over the last month, or in some cases over the last decade.
Fans have resorted to changing their profile pictures on Twitter to a random Flyers fan with a paper bag over their head as a symbol of being fed up with this team. It’s even started some hashtags, such as #BroadStreetBag or #BagItToBroad, a play on the Flyers’ “Bring It To Broad” slogan for this year.
Even the replies on the Flyers’ tweet about their game preview yesterday was filled with plenty of brown paper sadness.
Even the face apparently behind the bag, Kyle O’Byrne, is on board with the movement.
O’Byrne first wore the bag on November 2nd, 2013 when the Flyers played the New Jersey Devils, after the previous night they were smacked in the infamous 7-0 loss to Washington that saw the late Ray Emery take Braden Holtby to the woodshed in a full-fledged line brawl.
Of course, the Flyers would beat the Devils 1-0 behind an easy 14-save shutout from Emery that night at Prudential Center, with the original Bagman in attendance no less.
After the Flyers’ long-waited victory last night, even they got in on the fun in their postgame tweet with some clever wordplay.
This has been a trying time for Philadelphia Flyers fans. The frustration has been building for a long time and people just want to see a fun and competitive hockey team again. But hey, since they joined together and put their bags on, the Flyers are 1-0, and if they can win again tonight, maybe the “Baghead Era” and the Flyers can keep things up and trending in the right direction.
