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Rob Zombie is synonymous with horror films, but he’ll be tackling a story about an entirely different kind of slashing with his newest project. The filmmaker behind the Halloween reboot and The Devil’s Rejects will craft a feature film centered on the 1974 Philadelphia Flyers hockey team. The film will be titled Broad Street Bullies – the team’s nickname during an era when they won fights and Stanley Cups in equal measure. Known as “Fred’s Philistines” (in honor of head coach Fred Shero), the “colorful” cast of characters includes enforcers like Dave Schultz to goal scorers like Bobby Clarke. Those “characters” are what drew Zombie to the project, “Each character involved is more outrageous than the next...

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Hockey fans are about to get perhaps the grittiest take on their sport yet. According to Deadline, Rob Zombie (yes, I’m shocked too) will be writing, directing and producing a film titled Broad Street Bullies, which will be all about the 1970′s Philadelphia Flyers hockey team, known for their rough and tumble road to victory.

The Flyers were known for their extreme physical play during games, so much so when they played the Soviet Union’s “invincible and tough” Red Army team, the Flyers slaughtered them so badly that the “russian team left the ice in the first period, and only returned when told they would not get paid if they didn’t play.” The Flyers went on to win the game 4-1, with head coach Fred Shero declaring, “Yes we are world champions. If they had won, they would have been world champions. We beat the hell out of a machine.

Exclusive: Rob Zombie will write, direct and produce Broad Street Bullies, a film about the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team that evolved from a cellar dwelling expansion team into a team that racked up victories and penalty minutes in equal measure during the 70s. Zombie, known for his head-banging music before transitioning to genre films like House of 1000 Corpses and Halloween, is making a departure with this film, sort of, because the Flyers brutal style of play is genre-worthy and has the makings for a hockey film on the order of the 1977 sports film classic Slap Shot. The physical play of the Flyers was legendary, to the point that when they played the Soviet Union’s supposedly invincible and tough Red Army team, the Flyers roughed them up so badly that the Russian team left the ice in the first period, and only returned when told they would not get paid if they didn’t.

Fans of Bones star David Boreanaz know his love for the Philadelphia Flyers runs deep, which is something he has in common with his character Seeley Booth. But now, thanks to an essay Boreanaz penned for the 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic game program, they’ll understand why. Read our exclusive excerpt below. And tune in to watch the Flyers face the New York Rangers in the regular-season outdoor game on Jan. 2 at 1 p.m. Et on NBC.

By David Boreanaz

All it took was one game at the old Spectrum, and I bled orange and black for life.

I was...