Former Philadelphia Flyers Enforcer Behn Wilson Interview | Nasty Knuckles Episode 183
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.พ. 2025
- Riley and Derek start the show by talking about their past weekends and Christmas shopping. Jumping into some hockey talk (3:29), the boys discuss the Philadelphia Flyers losing 3 straight but bouncing back against the Blue Jackets, the Tippett-Frost-Michkov line, Konecny continuing to produce, and Flyers goaltending. Going around the league they discuss Luke Richardson being fired by the Blackhawks (8:49), the New York Rangers continuing to struggle and trading their captain Jacob Trouba to the Ducks (10:48), extending goalie Igor Shesterkin, and the Colorado Avalanche swapping goaltender Alexandar Georgiev with Mackenzie Blackwood from the Sharks (16:18). Before we get to our interview we discuss the Toronto Maple Leafs (18:26), Anthony Stolarz and Auston Matthews, and Matvei Michkov signing an autograph after getting kicked out of a game (19:43).
Former NHL enforcer defenseman Behn Wilson joined us for an interview! (20:45) Big Behn tells us what he’s up to these days, and a book that was recently written about him. Jumping into his playing career Wilson talks to us about playing in juniors, being drafted by Philadelphia, and learning how to fight (30:22). We ask Behn about being such a skilled defenseman and point scorer while also being tough (39:45), and playing with Bobby Clarke, Bill Barber, and Reggie Leach (40:41). He also dives into Bobby Clarke’s leadership, playing with Mel Bridgman, Ken Linseman, and a ton more. Finishing up the interview Behn Wilson tells us about some of the toughest players he ever fought (1:01:06) and tells some legendary stories. Finishing up the show Derek and Riley answer fan submitted questions presented by Klyr Rum (1:21:11).
#NHL #hockey #podcast #Flyers #PhiladelphiaFlyers #hockeypodcast #NHLpodcast
Nasty Knuckles is an original show created by co-hosts, Riley Cote and Derek "Nasty" Settlemyre. The show will feature a mix of interviews, never before heard story-telling, hockey-talk, and maybe some pranks... The guys will bring in some of the biggest names in the hockey world all for your enjoyment! Make sure to check back every week as the guys release a new episode weekly!
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It seems like the toughest guys on the ice are some of the nicest guys off the ice. Glad to see Big Behn is doing well.
Absolutely, most Flyers fans don’t want to believe it but Tie Domi is one of the nicest players you’ll ever meet.
It's great to hear from Behn Wilson again. I've seen the videos of his fights but that's it. I feel his legend will only continue to grow now that people can see and hear him today.
Great interview! I was in college during the years Behn played for the Flyers and he was one of my favorite Flyers. Not only tough, but he could play left wing and well as defense. I was sorry to see him traded.
Thank you for letting Behn talk. He was on Chris Nilan’s show a week ago and Nilan talked about 80% of the time. I ended up turning it off because he wouldn’t give Behn a chance to talk. Good job guys!
Behn's fight against John Hilsworth has to be one of the most brutal beatdowns I've seen on video. Good to hear he's doing well and living a good life!
Oh yeah.... Wilson dropped him with that quick right --- then when Hillsworth was down on his side punched him a couple more times, snapping his head back... When he finally got up, he was dazed & confused.
Excelllllllllllllllllent !!! Behn is so articulate to boot. Lot of these old fellas are mysterious if you never heard them speak. And love to unlock the mystery !!! Thanks Behn and Boyz !!
As an old Islanders fan I was glad to see this interview. He was as good a fighter there ever was in the NHL. He won most of the time and lost a few but was so tough. He was also a talented defenseman who cleared the crease and played on the power play. The Flyers were nuts to trade him. Glad to hear about the book and can't wait to read it. Thank you both for this interview and thanks to Behn.
From Australia here.. learning about ice hockey.. your cast and interviewee's is always interesting and a learning curve for me.. keep going, mate's..
Behn was the type you hated, but deep down you wanted him on your side. Great guy! Great interview!
Behn’s fights with Willi Plett are all timers
@@thomasgallagher7092 watch the Plett vs Cochrane fight. Willi a North Star and Cochrane a Blackhawk.
and Barry Beck
Every NHL vet I've spoken to from Behn's Era say he was the most terrifying player that nobody wanted to mess with.
You haven't spoken to many former bruins or Wendell Clark then
@TedSmith-m4k Wendel was probably a rookie when Behn was retired.
Exactly right… no one wanted to be within 10 Dr of him… intimidation at its best!
you are mostly right as he was an incredibly intimidating player.............. until he crossed paths with Dave Fotiu from the rangers and that was a come to God moment for him, believe me.
th-cam.com/video/5V-LCHDLD5I/w-d-xo.html
@@ChuckBastie Learn your hockey fighters. Behn fought a Wendel in what I believe was Clark’s rookie season. Wendel landed some bombs and gave the much bigger Wilson all he could handle.
Behn Wilson was a great choice for a guest. Can we please get Dan Kordic on the show. Would love to hear about his career as well as discussing the great Rambo John
Kordic.
These guys are so real, appeal to me for sure. Great work D and Riles
Great to to see Big Behn. One of the all time toughest.
The Wensink cut in Philly's 6-3 win at Boston in 78' was not from Behn's helmet.
What a pleasure it was listening to Behn talk about his time with the Flyers! Especially the detailed part about Clarke’s hockey sense to be available for a pass to help a rookie defenseman when being angled off on a rush!
I will definitely buy his book to hear more stories like this!!
Thank you all for bringing back memories of my youth!! ❤
Good to see him give Willi Plett his due. He summed it up strong, mean and knew how to fight. Loved the beating Plett put on Cochrane. I believe only Probert and Lyndon Byers only other two losses for Cochrane who was very tough.
I was born in 72 and these podcasts about enforcers of th80's and 90's have changrd my personal rankings pf my Hocket cards.
Grew up in Calgary and in the west of the Country we did not see all Eastern Teams equally.
Hockey cardrs were tbe only way i knew a lot of players. I imagined Mr Wilson as a border line scrub all teams have..
I so much more respect for these guys doing the hardest job in hockey back then
Just by memory i am gyeesint Mr Wilsons rookie card to be in early 80s maybe with Flyers.
His card moves from cardboard box to hard case witj Dryden ,Sakic Savard, Messier rookies.
Thanks for the show
f players.
Salt of the earth are hockey peeps! Behn my favorite player of all time!
Behn was my favorite flyer he could play and he feared no one
Excellent Job Fellas, Letting the Behn speak & allowing for
Detailed stories!
My 2 cents on Big Behn,
He put the league on Notice by destroying Babych, Hillworth & Gillies {RIP Jethro}… Even as a Rangers fan since 76, re: the Fotiu bout, Behn was a rookie out of Jrs. 19 yrs old when he entered the league in 78 , Nicky took the Decision but only because only because he refused to let Behn get that alligator bicep grip.. Nicky showed the rookie immense respect by not getting in tight … Gillies didn’t same in #2 vs Behn. ..
some of you guys make too much out of the Fotiu bout!
When you’re the top dog in a brutal era of hockey… that speaks volumes!
Looked every part of Scott Farkus & Buddy Hinton bully type yet I can’t recall a real L on his card…. Fought Shultz the a Draw, in Hammers best performance ever… traded evenly with Jonathan twice, I got him 2-0 vs Jethro ( RIP) , Bert W started strong w Behn taking over … again, that was an era of bad asses when everyone was expected to throw… the late 70’s precipitated the arms race for the Golden era of the 80’s!
Thanks to Behn and his generation!
Unfortunately the League is the enforcer now .. not the players… the game lost the element of honor when Bettman changed the game in 94 to an inferior product! Imo
Well he admitted as Gillies said that he lost the second fight. Bert Wilson did beat him, not badly but for sure an edge. I thought he lost to Schultz and was getting pounded by Curt Fraser when Fraser suddenly ran out of gas. Tiger Williams gave him all he could handle as did Plett. O Reilly beat him also.
That's what Gillies said that's all
@ So ya don’t believe Gillies?? Wish Nilan had addressed those fights.
@@mmunchie56 where did he admit he Lost Rd 2? I don`t score hockey fights son the 10 pt must system but as the guys whom ends it , takes it! Shultz fight was a dead draw... Fraser & Tiger both started strong until Wilson took over completely.... Both Fraser & Tiger threw on the seatbelt.. Don`t see how you can even remotely give Terry O a W in either bout??? Plett was his chief adversary... no doubt! Those late 70`s Atlanta teams were the only team that could match Phillys fire power... Just loaded!
Big Behn was a beast feared, glad he is okay, a really nice guy.
Behn is great. Tuff as nails. & Talented
Well done guys, excellent episode.
👌
love hearing from the ole tough guys.
I would’ve liked to hear Behns take on his second fight with Clark Gillis. He probably doesn’t like talking about win or lose cause as he says, if you drop the gloves, both players win, but I seen comments from Gillis and he talks like he won the second bout, I don’t think he did, it sure would be nice to hear what Behns thoughts were on the second fight, or his side of the story !
Great interview with Behn thank you
I was thinking the same thing...Gillies did without doubt get the best of Behn in their 2nd fight.
@@kellygotell1179 Gillies said he caught him with an uppercut right on the chin. It’s obscured in the video though. He said before they dropped the gloves that Behn said ya didn’t have enough last time? You can see how amped up Gillies was though, guessing he didn’t seep all night. After the fight Gillies said Wilson didn’t say a word and went right to the box.
@@mmunchie56 " You want it again, do you" .... said to Jethro
If you slow the video down you can clearly see Behn land a solid punch to Clark's chin. Clark drops to the ice right after that mammoth punch.
Really solid interview. I always wondered why Wilson stepped in for Holmgren and beat Beck in MSG; my brother always figured it was because Beck had beaten Holmgren before. Didn't know about the rotator cuff injury. Interesting stuff.
Was a draw against Beck
@@michaeld.4521 they nearly had to draw Beck with chalk
@@neilm2794The chalk marks are still on the ice. So is Beck.
Beck clearly landed more punches.
Love to see ya get Plett or Curt Fraser on.
Behn Wilson was a unit in his time. In his prime, guys avoided him. He was also a very skilled hockey player who was a impactful offensive defenseman.
Blackhawk Legend.
Mark Howe and Eric Desjardins were great, but Behn Wilson was always my favorite Flyer defenseman.
Would have loved to see BW vs Nystrom and especially Larry Playfair from that era
Behn Wilson did get into a fight in the playoffs against Don Jackson 1985 semi finals in Edmonton.
Semenko in that series as well. Recall that it was a top 5 contender type matchup that Behn got the best of a nuggie fest vs the legendary WHA champ/bodyguard
@@charlesclark8568 Wilson hit him with one uppercut and Semenko quit because he knew he was out of his element. Semenko never won unless he jumped the guy. Jackson jumped Wilson after Semenko got exposed, and Wilson iced him with one punch.
The one guy who owned Behn Wilson was the toughest guy that Tim Hunter always says he faced by far. One Nick Fotiu who was not really a fighter but in 1979 was 5 and 0 against the Flyers.
He broke Jim Cunningham's orbital bone, he beat Paul Holmgren bad in Philly and right before the 1979 playoffs beat Behn Wilson bad in Philly.
In the 1979 playoffs Fotiu sat out game 1 and the Rangers lost 3-2 in overtime. Fred Shero dressed Nick the last 4 games and the Rangers outscored the Flyers 26 to 5 with no brawls. In the 6 to 0 game at the Garden in the 3rd period Fotiu came out running around and hit like 6 Flyers as as he was heading to the bench spotted Wilson and went over in front of the Flyers bench and got right in Behn's face who took it!
Then in the 1982 playoffs Fotiu did it again in the corner in the Flyers zone. Robbie McClanahan was hit late by Wilson and Fotiu came flying in and again got right in Wilson's face nose to nose and Behn calmed right down. Tommy Laidlaw and Frank Bathe were next to Nick and I asked Laidlaw and he said yeah Wilson wanted no part of Nicky! Greschner used to talk about that and Duguay on Laidlaw's podcast.
Fotiu played 11 playoff games against the Flyers in 79, 82, and 83 and the Flyers won 1 and the Rangers won 10 and the Rangers outscored the Flyers 63 to 29 with Nick Fotiu in the lineup in the playoffs with no brawls.
Nick Fotiu owned Behn Wilson!
Nick was a NY golden glove boxer so he was a fighter...he just didn't do it often but when he did he could go and was no joke.
Fotiu was a great fighter who took boxing lessons as well. He was one of the toughest guys in Hockey back then. I'm an old Islanders fan and believe me, Nick could fight. Not many players wanted to try him. That said he was a fourth line player at best and the Rangers only put him on the ice to cause havoc, which he did many times. He also protected a Rangers team that besides Beck really never had much size on the roster.
100%
Quite a fantasy world you live in. You conveniently forget the 2nd Holmgren-Fotiu fight where Holmgren dominated Fotiu, switched to lefty and dusted Fotiu into the ice with extreme prejudice. Go back and watch Jay Wells crush Fotiu onto his ass with a clean body check and when Fotiu went back at him, Wells one-punched Fotiu into the ice with a huge right hand. The simple fact is, outside of NY, Fotiu is completely irrelevant to anyone because he couldn’t play hockey and has a very thin fight card in the NHL. He coasted on reputation.
@@neilm2794 First of all Fotiu and Holmgren fought 4 times with Fotiu winning badly in 3 and in the last one in 1983 Holmgren got in tight smart and wouldn't fight and at the end Fotiu tried to get loose and fired a vicious left and just missed Holmgren's jaw and Holmgren smartly fell on top of Nick.
If you want to hang your hat on a hugfest by Holmgren be my guest!
Fotiu beat Holmgren at the Garden in March of 1977 and they had a big fight in the Spectrum in the preseason of 1977 and it continued in the runway. John Ferguson spoke of it saying your saw the sparks off their skates as the blades hit the concrete floor.
Fotiu also got a double minor as a Whaler hitting Holmgren with one shot and they jumped in to save Holmgren's ass in 1980.
By the looks of his fists and forearms I'm sure he can still knock someone out with ease.
Fotiu nailed behn wilson ...
Pretty over blown. Bert Wilson did beat him as did Schultz, Plett, Gillies couple others. Behn lost very few but these homers who say only Fotiu beat him are just wrong.
Speedshift57. Couldn’t agree more, these guys let their guests talk. I gave up on Nilans show. 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
Awesome Intro..............Yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaa
Behn is a good guy and I should know cuz I went to school with him and Mark Kirton (Sigh, God Bless you Mark and Keep Fighting) in North East Toronto from Grade 7 to Grade 11 I think...I knew both of them well and the School Names were John Buchan Senior Public School and Stephen Leacock Collegiate Institute...Behn was a terrific athlete but he was also one of the highest scoring students in Grades, a really good student then he left to play Hockey for the Kingston Canadians I believe...but it was fun playing hockey with both of them in Gym Class not knowing that they were gonna be NHL guys in ten years... Larry C
They should have asked him when Paul Baxter suckered punched him, and then he rearranged his face…
Behn Wilson was one of the toughest players of all-time. I have the great video of him on my channel getting suckered by Baxter and then squaring off with him in a wild brawl.
Baxter was a dirty player and I'm glad Behn got up and tried to maul him. That's coming from an old Islander fan. I hated the guys that sucker punched players. Fight man to man, face to face and it's over. Wilson played in an era with Gillies, Plett, Fotiu, Jonathan, O'reilly, Nystrom, Williams, Semenko, Secord and many others who would square off like men and when it was done it was done.
@ yeah that was a cheap shot for sure.
Liked how he called Baxter a weak #### w/o actually saying it.
Hockey is a great game
Behn DID fight in the playoffs vs. Edmonton at the Chicago Stadium. He was tied up during a multi-player skirmish up against the glass with Dave Semenko. Dave couldn't throw a single punch but Ben threw about 15 shots to the back of Semenko's head. The next game Semenko was a healthy scratch. th-cam.com/video/KKsB51aXI7U/w-d-xo.html
Semenko reportedly had a bad shoulder. I didn't have much respect for him though. He would beat up the non fighter types but always jump guys who could fight. More of a bully.
Umm its Behn BTW
Willi Plett = Paraguay
Lets talk about how much he lost wendall clark nick fotiu wensink jonathon oreilly
Bingo I gave Knuckles crap for not asking hey Behn what was the story with ole Pie Face Nicky Fotiu. When Knuckles interviewed Jay Miller they discussed a summer league in the Boston area and Knuckles goes former Bruins scout Joe Lyons had a team and the first time we played he got pushed around. The next time we played he brings in Nicky and Jay remember Jay and Miller goes yeah Nicky intimidated everybody he still intimidates me Nick Fotiu was tough but a nice guy!
Fotiu when asked say's I wasn't a fighter and didn't like to fight saying I'd love to play today. John Ferguson hated Rod Gilbert and wanted Nick to beat Rocky up and Fotiu told him to f*ck off and threw his stick at Fergie.
My late cousin is in Fergie book on 5 pages and Fergie called him his best NY Pal and quit in anger when Fergie was fired in 1978 being there since 1965.
There is a youtube clip at the garden in the 1974 playoffs where Schultz tried to fight Gilbert and Francis put out Ron Harris and Schultz went into his caveman act. My cousin was 6 foot 5 and huge and from Hells Kitchen and was standing at center ice over the glass telling Schultz to get the fu*k out!
Wilson's right punch almost knocked Clarks head off!!!! LMAO!! It was a draw at best!
Every player lost a fight back then because their were so many fighters/tough guys in the league. He won the majority of his fights and did not back down. I hated him back in the day because I was an Islanders fan but I respected him. He was a very good player who could mix it up with the toughest guys in the league. The Flyers were nuts to trade him away.
I can't watch the nba anymore either