In an attempt to completely overshadow the absolute joy that was last night’s Flyers win, Sam Carchidi decided to start conflict on the timeline, and it was almost as exhilarating to watch.

It’s no secret to anyone following this team that rumblings about Wayne Simmonds and his future (or lack-thereof) with the Flyers have been ongoing for the past year. With so little time before the trade deadline, it’s looking more and more likely that Simmonds will be dealt very soon, and people are facing this as rationally as they can, following the formula for the five stages of grief.

Of course there are going to be rumors. More notably, there are going to be people fabricating these rumors, either out of a thirst for attention or a genuine desire to stir the pot, whichever. There are always going to be fake trade rumor accounts, or guys that swear that their sister-in-law’s buddy’s brother’s kid knows a guy who knows a guy who says Simmonds is definitely being traded one-for-one for Connor McDavid. That’s inevitable.

However, it is important to take any rumor with a grain of salt. It’s important to check for those fake accounts, especially ones popping up just before the deadline, and be critical of any screenshot you might see that could be fabricated. It’s quite easy to photoshop a convincing tweet or article.

Or it isn’t, because the one that fooled Mr. Carchidi, was, uh.

Anyway.

This is a real you-gotta-see-it type thing.

EXHIBIT A.

EXHIBIT B.

EXHIBIT C.

Now, let’s just take a look at this for a second, because it’s truly breathtaking. I have a few observations to make, and all of them are good.

1. This is a screenshot of a screenshot. Excellent.
2. That is not anything remotely resembling the font Twitter uses on their mobile platform.
3. Look at the size of that font compared to the real tweet down below.
4. The fading effect on both the hashtag #TSNHockey and the display name and handle itself is the work of either a 7-year-old using his dad’s laptop or a 60-year-old man who is bored in his retirement. I’m leaning towards the latter, as the more I think about it, the more I think a 7-year-old would have far better photoshop skills.
5. Is this a Facebook page that Sam Carchidi is following posting these things? Why would Sam be fooled by this? I know there’s an easy joke there that I won’t be making.

EXHIBIT D.

You can hear this vague, contemptuous tone, just from the typed words on the screen.

JUST A TWEET I REALLY ENJOY.

“It looks real, but in this day and age, who knows?”

Who knows, indeed, Sam!

Folks, remember it is always a good thing to check your sources so you don’t accidentally start beef with Bob McKenzie over Twitter. He will call you out on it, and everyone will laugh at you. Let this be a cautionary tale gifted to us for free.