Saturday was a tough night for Philly sports.

Peter Laviolette’s debut as the new coach of the Flyers was not exactly the first impression he was hoping to leave the faithful of the Orange and Black. It was a debut that will leave a bitter taste in his mouth for some time to come. And it started immediately.

The Washington Capitals struck in the first minute of the game, as well as on five of their first 17 shots on their way to an 8-2 win. All without star Alexander Ovechkin.

The firing of coach John Stevens was supposed to be a wake up call for the reeling Flyers; a jolt to jump start a run back up the Eastern Conference standings. Instead the Flyers looked as bad as ever. Goalie Ray Emery continued to struggle, having his worst outing of the season. He allowed five goals before being replaced by backup Brian Boucher midway through the second period, giving him a 5.36 goals-against average and .814 save percentage in his last five starts. Boucher did not fair much better, allowing three goals of his own.

It was not entirely Emery’s fault, as the Capitals were gift wrapped a nine-minute power play. After receiving a high stick by the Capitals’ Matt Bradley, Dan Carcillo retaliated with a cross check and then dropped his gloves to fight. Bradley appeared to drop his glove, indicating that he wanted to fight, and Carcillo knocked him out with a right hook to the face. One punch and the fight was over.

Referee Stephane Auger gave Carcillo two minutes for cross checking, two minutes for instigating, five for fighting, a ten minute misconduct, and a game misconduct. He didn’t give Bradley any penalties. The Capitals scored three goals during the power play, effectively ending the game.

The game was the worst debut for a Flyers coach in team history, who are losers of seven of their last eight.

In Charlotte, the Sixers did not fare as poorly as their Wachovia Center roommates, but still found themselves on the wrong end of the box score. Despite leading most of the game, including a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, the Sixers lost on a Raymond Felton layup with 4.7 seconds left in the game. Andre Iguodala missed a jumper at the buzzer and the Sixers lost their ninth straight game.

It’s been a tough week in Philly, with off-the-court news dominating the excitement as the Sixers announced the signing of Allen Iverson, who expects to make his debut Monday night at the Wachovia Center against the Denver Nuggets. The firing of Stevens and subsequent hiring of Laviolette dominated much of the news on Friday. Throw in the singing of Placido Polanco by the Phillies, and there has been little discussion of the play on the court/ice.

Both the Sixers and Flyers are rapidly heading farther and farther down in the standings. The Sixers are tied for 13th in the Eastern Conference with the New York Knicks, barely ahead of the 1-18 Nets. The Flyers are last in the Atlantic Division, and are also tied for 13th in the Eastern Conference.

Both teams look to rebound Monday night. The Sixers take on the Nuggets at home in Iverson’s debut and the Flyers head across the border to face the struggling Montreal Canadiens.