It Wouldn't Be March 5 Without Revisiting Biggest Brawl In NHL History

When I tore off the latest page of my Far Side desk calendar, the date "March 5" really stuck out to me.

Why?

It wasn't a holiday, it wasn't trash day, it wasn't my anniversary (I think), so then why did it jump out?

Then it dawned on me: it is the date of the biggest brawl in NHL history.

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Let's go back in time to 2004…. 

*Everything gets all wavy, and harp music plays*

President George W. Bush's reelection campaign was well underway, MySpace was still popular, and Shrek 2 graced movie screens across the nation.

On March 5, that year, the Ottawa Senators traveled down to the City of Brotherly Love for a game at what was then called the Wachovia Center against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Looking back, this one was destined to pop off in a big way. 

The previous meeting between the two teams on Feb. 26 saw Ottawa's Martin Havlát swing his stick at Flyers forward Mark Recchi's head.

So, the recent animosity, coupled with lineups that included some big-time enforcers like Donald Brashear for the Flyers and Rob Ray for the Senators, was always going to lead to some fireworks.

And it was less of a fireworks display, more of an explosion at a fireworks factory.

Brashear and Ray got things started with just under 2 minutes left in regulation, and the Flyers up 5-2.

What's wild is that the game didn't have too many penalties before the Brashear-Ray bout. There were some players who took minors for roughing, but nothing too crazy.

Of course, after the two big-time enforcers went at it, others followed.

And I mean everyone.

Even guys not known for throwing punches were getting in on it. Jason Spezza, Mike Fisher, and Wade Redden all got in on it for Ottawa, as did Zdeno Chara.

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Meanwhile, Flyers like Danny Markov, Branko Radivojevič, Michal Handzuš (ZEUUUUUUUUSSS!!!!), Mark Recchi, John LeClair, and Patrick Sharp got their hands dirty.

And of course, we even got some rough stuff courtesy of Ottawa goalie Patrick Lalime (and his phenomenal Marvin the Martian lid) and Flyers goalie Robert "Chico" Esche (stellar nickname if you know the backstory).

In all, there were a record 419 penalty minutes total, while the Flyers earned a single-game record for their combined 213 PIMs.

It was also a record for the most penalty minutes in a single period.

So, if you've got nothing to do tonight (and let's face it, you don't), pour yourself a beverage of your choosing and throw this game on for old time's sake.

Trust me. You won't be disappointed.