The Philadelphia Flyers clinched a playoff berth Saturday with a 3-1 win over the rival Pittsburgh Penguins, and all players had one man on their mind - team owner Ed Snider, who hadn't been able to attend games this season due to illness.
Related: Flyers clinch final East playoff berth, eliminate Bruins
"It's unfortunate Mr. Snider couldn't be here with us today," forward Wayne Simmonds said, according to Sam Carchidi of Philly.com. "Obviously this organization owes everything to Mr. Snider. If it wasn't for Mr. Snider, not one person in this dressing room would be here, so we played our hearts out.
"We owe him a lot, and we still owe him."
The Flyers visited Snider at his California mansion during a west-coast road trip in late December. At the time, the team was middling with a 15-15-7 record. Since then, they've gone 25-12-7, and set up a first-round playoff date with the Washington Capitals.
"It's special to play for Mr. Snider," added Ryan White. "I've only been here a short time, but to have an owner like that, I get goose bumps just talking about it. He's the face of the franchise, and we're going to keep on doing it for him, for sure."
Prior to the game, anthem singer Lauren Hart sang "God Bless America" along with a video of the legendary Kate Smith, but this time, while FaceTiming Snider - who blew kisses to Hart in return.
Lauren Hart FaceTiming Ed Snider. #FlyersTalk pic.twitter.com/L3aWauIWmA
— Nick M Broadcast (@SportsDirectTV) April 9, 2016
"That's awesome," goalie Steve Mason said, unaware Hart was FaceTiming the owner. "He's the face of this franchise. Even though he hasn't been around, he hasn't been forgotten, that's for sure. We just want to make him proud as we go on here. We know he's watching, so that's all the motivation we need."
