Ron Hextall is jealous of "Trees," who was his backup for those two seasons.
Hextall, now 47, was the Flyers' first choice in goal. Sadly, he will be unable to play after undergoing back surgery last summer.
But that doesn't mean he didn't think twice about accepting the invitation.
"I'm really disappointed to not be able to take part in the game," Hextall said in an interview last week while the Flyers were on the West Coast. "When I saw the rosters come out for the game, I told myself that I've got to play. But that would be thinking with my heart and not my head. I had surgery and the doctor told me to be careful for about a year.
"It was tempting. I know I could stand in there, but I wouldn't be able to do much. It's not my nature to only play halfway."
Hextall is the assistant general manager of the Los Angeles Kings, where he is a key decision-maker on Dean Lombardi's staff. He remains in close contact with Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren and senior vice president Bob Clarke, saying they speak "consistently."
Somehow, Hextall - who left the Flyers in 2006 to head west - is on a staff that includes coach Terry Murray, assistant John Stevens and Lombardi (a former Flyers scout) in addition to players like Mike Richards, Simon Gagne and Justin Williams. A few years ago, Murray said the Kings wanted to model themselves after a franchise like the Flyers.
Hextall sees it as more of a coincidence.
"Honestly, it just sort of evolved," Hextall said. "It all played out with a lot of us out here, but we wanted to bring in a bunch of quality people. They all just happened to have Flyer ties. They were the right people at the right time. And the inside info that we had for players like Mike and Simon, from our time there, certainly factored into our decision-making. We knew they were good people."
