Nick Robertson lit up a former teammate tonight, and the Penguins-Flyers rivalry woke up in a hurry.
The Pittsburgh forward caught Simon Benoit with a hard hit in Philadelphia. The two once shared a dressing room in Toronto, and that history didn't buy Benoit any mercy.
The Flyers took exception right away. Chaos followed, and players piled into an aggressive scrum that grew by the second.
Sidney Crosby was right in the thick of it. When Crosby himself wades into a Battle of Pennsylvania scrum, the temperature in the building jumps.
The verdict from fans online was simple: the Battle of Pennsylvania is so back.
In the clip, Robertson lines up Benoit and finishes the check hard, then the Flyers come flying in with bodies piling up and Crosby in the middle of it.
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Rick Tocchet's Flyers face New Jersey on a back-to-back after the chaos
The Flyers don't get much time to cool off. Rick Tocchet's group visits New Jersey tomorrow night on the second half of a back-to-back.
Dan Muse's Penguins get a breather, with Montreal visiting Pittsburgh on Saturday.
Robertson and Benoit used to be on the same side in Toronto. Now they're on opposite ends of the state's fiercest rivalry, and tonight made that crystal clear.
The rivalry needed a night like this. One hard hit did more for the Battle of Pennsylvania than any marketing campaign ever could.
Hitting a former teammate is like roasting your old roommate at his wedding. Everybody laughs until his family stands up.
Kyle Dubas and Daniel Briere will both be watching for any word from Player Safety. Nothing suggests the league has weighed in yet.
The next time these two teams meet, the first shift will tell you everything about how long hockey players hold a grudge.
Was Nick Robertson's hit on Simon Benoit a clean hockey play?
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