Give Flyers fans this much. They are a fiercely loyal, forgiving bunch.

When they love you, you can do no wrong. And the feelings don’t fade over time. They stay in your corner. That’s why Bob Clarke, Bernie Parent and Dave Schultz continue to be beloved icons in this town.
Winning a couple of Stanley Cups doesn’t hurt either.

Last night Flyers fans again showed they will not abandon one of their own.

In the third period, an image appeared on the jumbotron that sparked a standing ovation from the Wachovia Center faithful. The image was that of longtime Flyers favorite Rick Tocchet.

Last night Tocchet was behind the bench. Not the Flyers’ bench. Tocchet is the coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was made the interim coach after the team sacked Barry Melrose after a disappointing start.

That’s not even the most startling aspect of the ovation. Tocchet, you might recall, entered a guilty plea for his role in a gambling ring. It was ballyhooed as Operation Slapshot when it was first announced, but it turned out to be a pretty small-time betting operation.

That didn’t stop Tocchet from being charged in connection with the betting ring. He entered a plea, making him a convicted felon. It’s believed he likely is the only such con currently coaching a major sports team.

There has always been something about hockey players that separated them from most sports superstars. Maybe it was the fact that so many of them came from small towns in Canada and appeared at times a bit overwhelmed when they arrived in the big NHL cities. They for the most part seemed much more down to earth, approachable, even neighborly. In short, they seemed like one of us.

In this town, players who don the orange and white are rarely abandoned by the faithful.

Rick Tocchet does not shy away from talking about his problems. He met them head-on. He admitted his mistakes. He entered a plea in the case.
And he paid a fairly steep price – banned from the game he loved for a couple of years.

Now he’s back, as a head coach no less. You can argue the merits of that all you want, what kind of message that sends. And whether or not he merits a standing ovation. It seems to me it sends exactly the right message.

Tocchet paid for his transgressions. Now he’s getting on with his life.
A big part of the life was spent in orange and black. The faithful have not forgotten.

I have just one question. I don’t know when, but at some time in the future I would hope that Eric Lindros will return to the Wachovia Center. Lindros, the concussion king and one-time league MVP, caused a massive fissure in the Flyers’ organization when he questioned the care he received from their training staff and then engaged in a bitter war of words with icon and then-GM Bob Clarke.

Fans seemed split between their loyalties for the Flyers and their support for the team’s troubled star.

I’d like to see the team at some point retire Lindros’ No. 88 jersey, just to see what kind of reaction he will get.