Likely farewell game a ‘special night’ for Giroux

Claude Giroux’s 1,000th game as a Flyer, which looks like his last game as a Flyer, was far from his best game as a Flyer.

The Captain was a minus-1 with just two shots and one penalty in what otherwise became a dramatic, 5-4 victory over the Nashville Predators. Joel Farabee scored with 1:19 left to complete a comeback for the home team.

What made it special, however, were the fans, teammates and blasts from Giroux’s past dropping by the Wells Fargo Center to honor him Thursday night.

“Tonight was one of the most special nights I ever had,” Giroux said. “I wish I had played a little bit better.”

First and foremost, Hockey Hall of Famer Bob Clarke, who took Giroux off the board with the 22nd pick in the 2006 draft, shared the dais with G and a ceremonial silver stick. The 72-year-old Clarke is the only guy to play more games with the Flyers than Giroux.

Eric Lindros, the most recent Flyers and Hockey Hall of Fame inductee, banged the drum pre-game to get Giroux, the players and the crowd fired up for the Predators. There were video tributes from former teammates Simon Gagne, Wayne Simmonds, Jake Voracek and Danny Briere, among others. And a video shoutout from longtime Flyers player and executive Paul Holmgren.

Terry Crisp was in the building, for crying out loud.

Giroux seemed to enjoy the pre-game revelry with his wife, Ryanne, his boys Gavin and Palmer and grandfather.

The Flyers enjoyed it as well for they hit the ice pre-game wearing Giroux 28 jerseys, wore No. 28 patches in the game and erupted for a 3-1 lead.

You know the rest. The Flyers blew the lead late in the game, as they’ve done so very often this awful season. And they didn’t get a break when a goal by Derick Brassard was overturned on a replay challenge of a high stick at 13:28 of the third. But Kevin Hayes knotted the game at 4-4 with 4:15 left off a rebound.

That set the stage for Farabee’s winner … ironic in that he might be the most visible budding star that could be projected as a next-generation Giroux here.

Giroux is likely to waive his no-move clause and be traded, with the Florida Panthers and Colorado Avalanche as leading contenders for his rental services down the stretch. The Flyers would be foolish to put him in harms way Saturday in Ottawa or Sunday at WFC when the New York Islanders stop by. Giroux might not even make the trip to his home area with the club. The NHL trade deadline looms Monday afternoon.

The emotion was not lost on Giroux’s teammates.

“If he does get moved,” Hayes said, “I think I’ll have a new team I’ll be rooting for.”

Whatever happens, Giroux will have the ceremony and the memories. Giroux and Clarke, for example, share a bond that has strengthened through the years.

“He’s obviously Mr. Flyer and I mean since Day 1 for me, he’s the one that drafted me, the one that said my name and since then, any position he’s been in with the Flyers, he’s always been a great friend and he’s always been there to support me and help me,” Giroux said. “He’s been through it. He’s helped me a lot in my career.”

Between periods, Clarke told NBCSports Philadelphia how extraordinary it was to play 1,000 games in the orange and black.

“To stay on the same team, particularly in today’s game with that many games is special,” Clarke said. “You’ve got to be awfully good. The teams Claude played on weren’t always good, but he was good. … When you’re good on a bad team, that’s special.”

Giroux is nothing if not special. The memory he will always cherish is that on one of his roughest nights on the ice, the teammates he’s helped carry so often helped him go out a winner.