Carter Hart is learning a Smashing Pumpkins song

As every Philadelphia Flyers fan knows, the world is a vampire. Getting extremely emo and in your own feelings about your favorite hockey team is a completely normal thing to do. Just trying to calm some nerves, listening to your favorite 90’s alternative rock album to envelop you in the feelings of sporting angst.

When you’re a professional NHL goaltender, apparently you feel the same and want to escape from the sport you love to distract you from anything negative that’s going on. I guess falling to an .888 save percentage and earning a 2-2-1 record on a team that wants to so desperately be a Cup contender, warrants some jam time in your garage.

A relatable professional athlete if there ever was one. After so many exhausting days—during those normal times—all you needed was to sit down in your unfinished basement and crank out some tunes. Booting up the guitar tablature website of your choice, clicking around the pop-up ads and loading some endless .txt file that is trying so hard to get it right. You just want to freakin’ jam and nothing will stop you.

Certainly after a devastating loss to the Boston Bruins, where Hart allowed 6 goals on a total of 26 shots, you need to just let your hair down, put on your best leather bracelets and fingerless gloves, to learn something new.

Personally, I love to picture the boy-faced goaltender alone in a room with just the absolute sickest set-up you can walk into Guitar Center and buy, squinting at his laptop screen and clunking away at the loudest volume. Hopefully he gets through the entire album and he can join one of Philadelphia’s cover bands.

It should be everyone’s sworn duty to try and get a Smashing Pumpkins singles power ranking from Hart, while also going through whatever song he is learning that week, throughout the whole season.