Ron Hextall is the favorite hockey player of quote a few of us, but what about Charles Barkley? The Philadelphia 76ers legend, now one of the most entertaining folks in sports media, Barkley made hockey news this week by saying that the NHL playoffs are blowing the NBA playoffs out of the water in the excitement department.
We’ll agree, of course. After those comments, Barkley was invited to talk on NHL Network, and he made a fun revelation in that interview: Hextall is also his favorite player, and he found his love of hockey while he played in Philadelphia during the mid-late 1980s and 1990s.
I started following hockey in ‘84 when I … I had never been to a hockey game, and Eric Lindros and Ron Hextall. Ron Hextall’s my favorite hockey player, so I’ve been a hockey fan since 1984 or ‘85 when I got to Philadelphia. And I’m not just saying this because I’m on the show, but the Stanley Cup Playoffs — they are the best thing in sports.
I like guys who will fight. I don’t like players who are passive. When I played, I used to get mad at guys who don’t get mad. And when I was in Philadelphia for eight years, I went to a lot of Flyers games and Ron Hextall — you know he wanted to win, and that’s all I can ask out of any of my players. The fans know that guy wants to win. That’s why he’s my favorite hockey player.
You can catch the full interview below. It’s pretty solid.
