NHLer responds to criticism of his captain “That’s bull----!”

The Flyers have struggled this season, but don't think for one second that it's had an impact on their loyalty to one another. Flyers captain Claude Giroux's captaincy was recently called into question in an article by Randy Milelr of NJ.com, and it clearly caught the attention of Wayne Simmonds who on Thursday responded with vitriol.

“That’s bull----,” said Simmonds speaking toFrank Seravalli of Philly Daily News. “It has nothing to do with team leadership or how good of a captain he is. He goes out there every single shift and plays his heart out. For (that writer) to even speculate that ‘G’ is not a good leader is a joke. It’s embarrassing.” 

It was an admirable defense from Simmonds who has been one of the Flyers very best players over the past two seasons, and it was a reaffirmation that despite their struggles the Flyers are in it together. For his part Giroux, who rarely offers much to the media, took the time to respond to the criticism as well.

“This team is one of the most important things in my life,” Giroux said. “I take it to heart. It means a lot to me how this team plays, how this team goes. I care a lot for these players. We always try to do our best for the team. I come to the rink every day and I’m happy to be around this team. I get up in the morning and I’m pretty excited to come to the rink.”

It seems like Randy Miller may have reached a little too far on this one.