PHILADELPHIA — Luke Glendening woke up on March 6 unsettled, like many NHL players. It was Deadline Day. But this was different. Glendening wasn’t a trade candidate - his career was pending on waivers.
And Glendening wasn’t in control of anything: destination, whether a team would even place a claim, or it turns out, even his phone.
His 3-year-old daughter commandeered his phone, so Glendening was relegated to updates on his smart watch as the clock wound down to the 2 o’clock waiver deadline, the last possible day for a claim to still be eligible for the postseason.
“I was taking care of the kids, I was all over the place,” Glendening said. “It was chaos.”
The news dropped on X. His watch blew up. Glendening was indeed claimed, by … the Philadelphia Flyers? Huh?
“I was like ‘What? Why?’,” Glendening said. “In the moment, I said: ‘This doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.’”
Odds indicated the Flyers had a 3.8 percent shot to make the Stanley Cup playoffs that day. Philadelphia wasn’t exactly what Glendening had envisioned when he took then-Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald up on his offer to give the waiver wire a whirl.
But Glendening’s agent, Shawn Hunwick of The Team, sent him a GIF via text message of Ted Lasso pointing to the BELIEVE sign.
“I thought what the heck, let’s see what happens here,” Glendening said. “It’s been a dream come true.”
The Flyers are one win away from advancing to the second round for just the second time in Glendening’s career, with Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins pushed to the brink of elimination. Glendening isn’t just along for the ride. He’s playing a pivotal role.
Philadelphia has been electrified by rookie Porter Martone and the re-emergence of Tyson Foerster, but Glendening - the undrafted underdog in the city that loves an underdog story - has transformed the Flyers’ fourth line into a trusted weapon for coach Rick Tocchet.
“Really underrated move by [GM] Danny [Briere] getting him,” Tocchet said Wednesday night. “I don’t think people realize, you pick up a guy off waivers [for] like nothing, and all of a sudden this guy has been a big cog. That fourth line has really given us an identity these playoffs, but even before that.”
It’s been a wild ride - and not just this season, which started on a tryout agreement in New Jersey. He parlayed that into a league minimum contract on the first day of the regular season. He was a healthy scratch. And then the Devils acquired Nick Bjugstad, who pushed him out of the lineup.
“There were some dark days. I mean, I played defense as an extra guy one game in Jersey,” Glendening said, laughing.
Even after 916 games, Glendening said there wasn’t a small part of him that hesitated when Fitzgerald did him a solid and offered a lifeline on waivers. The easy thing would have been to say no to waivers, play out the string with the Devils and call it a career.
“Before I said yes, I had spoken to my wife, just to make sure she was ok,” Glendening said. “Who knows where we could end up? When you’re on waivers, you could land anywhere. But she said let’s give it a shot.”
Glendening doesn’t understand what easy means.
Five years ago, Detroit GM Steve Yzerman hinted Glendening should retire when he was pushed out of the lineup by 21-year-old first-round pick Joe Veleno. Five years later, Veleno is on his third team and a healthy scratch in these playoffs for the Montréal Canadiens. Glendening played almost 15 minutes in Game 3. He has a goal in the series, kills key penalties and appeared to graze Nick Seeler’s point shot while causing havoc in front of Stuart Skinner.
Glendening is a freak athlete. The East Grand Rapids, Mich., native never played junior hockey but was a three-sport star at The Hotchkiss School. When Max Pacioretty turned pro and opened up a spot for him to walk on at Michigan, it was the first season in his life he focused on solely hockey.
Legendary Michigan coach Red Berenson told Glendening: “If you have anywhere else to play, go there. Because I only have a spot for you for one year.”
By senior year, he was sharing a scholarship with his now agent, Hunwick. His teammates at Michigan are perplexed that nearly two decades later, Glendening is the only one still playing. He’s long outlasted Pacioretty and two-time Stanley Cup winner Carl Hagelin from Michigan. Among 1989-born players, he’s 17th in NHL games played, more than P.K. Subban and Logan Couture.
Hockey has given but also taken. His teeth are so mangled that when he smiles a certain way, Glendening's tongue looks like it’s in jail. He’s battled significant concussions. His scarred and creased skin is the face of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
“My whole hockey story is crazy,” Glendening said. “I never thought I would be here.”
Definitely not in Philadelphia. Turns out, the Flyers had a very specific need to replace Rodrigo Abols. They wanted a right-shot forward who could kill penalties and provide center depth. Glendening checked all three boxes. And then some.
“He just does everything the right way,” Tocchet said. “Never complains.”
The fourth line with Glendening, Sean Couturier and Garnet Hathaway has become Tocchet’s third line as the playoffs have proven a sizable adjustment for Matvei Michkov and Denver Barkey. Don’t let the scars fool you.
The real reason Glendening has survived 13 NHL seasons is not his speed, grit or toughness. Behind those scars and gap-toothed grin is a Mensa-level Hockey IQ who is an extension of the coaching staff on the ice.
“'A lot of players that play hard aren’t necessarily really smart players,” Chicago Blackhawks coach Jeff Blashill said Thursday, who won a Calder Cup with Glendening in 2013 and coached him for six seasons with the Red Wings.
“Glen' is hard and smart. I think in the playoffs when you can find guys that can play and sacrifice to the physicality needed but yet make smart decisions in what is the chaos of hockey, they become super important in winning the tight, tight checking games.”
The playoffs weren't in view on Deadline Day. When Glendening took the Jersey Turnpike south on March 6, leaving behind his wife and two young kids to live in a hotel, he had more questions than answers. Can I impact this team? Has the game passed me by? Is this it for my career?
Briere made one promise: “You’ll get a good look.”
Glendening laughed. “What do you mean a good look? I'm 36. But he’s a man of his word. I wanted a chance. They’ve given me a role, it’s been beyond my wildest expectation.”
Back in Michigan, Glendening’s parents picked up early on what the rest of the NHL is now learning. They’ve traded out a lot of jerseys over the last handful of years, from Dallas to Tampa Bay to New Jersey.
“They said they’ve never watched a team that’s been easier to cheer for,” Glendening said. “There’s a likability. There is a belief in this room that we can do things. Guys working for each other. No egos.”
Philly does love an underdog story, after all. Fans still run the Rocky steps daily. Glendening has a standing offer to join the front office of one of his former teams whenever he’s decided his playing days are over. In perhaps the most unlikely twist of all, Glendening might have played himself into one more contract and a shot at 1,000 games.
“I’m just so thankful and focused on whatever this ends up being,” Glendening said. “I don’t know that I’m ever going to want to stop. I just don’t have that in me. I’m going to have be told that I’m done.”