Good news! The Philadelphia Sports Writers Association has named Shayne Gostibehere the Philadelphia Pro Athlete of the Year.
Bad news! This came on the same day he was announced as a healthy scratch.
So… the timing could have been better.
Still, let’s take this for what it is: a celebration of a young defenseman who has captured the city’s heart. And unlike, say, Canadian-based teams, that’s a bit more difficult to do when your city has more than one professional sports team.
So let’s take this moment to celebrate Gostisbehere, and all that he’s accomplished thus far.
He forced his way onto the NHL roster full time last season, ultimately scoring 17 goals and 46 points to end up fifth in team scoring, and also fifth in league-wide rookie scoring. He was the runner up for the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie of the year, and finished 17th in defensemen scoring league-wide – eighth, if you go by points per game.
And don’t forget his 15-game point streak, setting a new record for rookie defensemen.
To start this season, he has three goals and 10 points in 17 games, putting him in a tie for fourth in team scoring, as well as a tie for the Flyers’ highest-scoring defenseman.
All of that, and he brought awareness of ghost bears to all of us – and he’s still going.
So don’t forget, in the midst of this foolishness, there’s a lot to look forward to, and a lot to celebrate regarding Ghost.
