The series against the Caps had been difficult. And when it ended, the coach stepped up and began speaking and actually had his voice crack and came near tears - such was the emotion, the relief at getting through.
Nineteen years ago, the coach was Paul Holmgren, now the Flyers' general manager. Last night, there was John Stevens.
This time, the voice was firm, though. The leaping, joyous emotion Stevens showed on the bench after Joffrey Lupul won it, won Game 7 in overtime, was back wherever Stevens stores such things. If you could read the relief on his face, hear it in his voice, it wasn't obvious.
Stevens was just himself - the coach of a team that rose from the depths last season and learned something, learned how to win.
"I'm just happy," Stevens said. "You just love to see a group have some success . . .
"You keep talking about success, and getting to where you want to go. To win a series, it's great to see the excitement in the players and the whole organization, especially after last year."
Last year. Last place. Worst in the National Hockey League. It seems like a long time ago. That isn't to say that this is a world-beating team, or anything like it. But there is a heartbeat. At this point in the development of a team, in the renewal of a franchise, it is all that you can possibly ask.
They won it with fortitude and with good fortune. They gave up two-goal leads like Christmas favors in this series, and they gave up a three-games-to-one advantage in this series, and they got outplayed for long stretches of Game 7 in this series, and they still won this series.
You can pick it apart at your leisure - but the result stands. This group has won something. This group has now done the prerequisite. There is now a foundation. This bunch, in its first go-round, will not be saddled with a collapse.
