Nick Foligno hoping to meet Nick Sirianni after Halloween antics: ‘We’ll do the Spiderman thing’

EDMONTON, Alberta — Shortly after the Eagles hired Nick Sirianni as coach in January 2021, Nick Foligno remembers then-Flyers coach John Tortorella being the first to point out their resemblance.

Hundreds if not thousands of people have pointed it out since. Sirianni is Foligno’s doppelganger. And the two have decided to fully lean into the joke.

Foligno dressed up as Sirianni for the Blackhawks’ Halloween party last weekend, wearing a brown wig, an Eagles visor and a headset. Then he was shocked to see a photo circulating on social media Friday showing Sirianni walking Philadelphia sidewalks wearing a No. 17 Hawks jersey on Halloween.

“I had a good laugh,” Foligno said. “He was a great sport about it. I give him credit, especially in the Philly sports market, to rip a Chicago Blackhawks [jersey]. But I think it shows his personality. He gained a lot of points in my eyes just for the fun of it.”

They didn’t coordinate these outfits, and they’ve never actually met. But Foligno would love to make that happen someday.

“We’ll do the Spider-Man thing where we just point at each other,” he said. “Especially when they won the Super Bowl, everybody was like, ‘Dude, how did you win the Super Bowl and get back for your game last night?’ It’s funny how that became a thing.”

Defensive role

Foligno enters the Hawks’ game Saturday against the Oilers still searching for his first goal of the season, although he does have four assists in his first eight games. He’s averaging 14:45 of ice time, largely on the fourth line.

“I’m probably more in a defensive role than I’ve been, but I can still find ways to be a contributor,” he said.

He continues to be impressed by the adaptability of this young Hawks team, which certainly makes mistakes — like opening themselves up too much on the road Thursday in Winnipeg — but doesn’t get flustered by them.

“It seems like we learn these lessons quickly,” he said. “I give these guys a ton of credit: They care a lot, they want to be better and they want to win. I’ve been really encouraged by how we refocus after something goes wrong. Whereas before we would kind of spiral, we start to catch ourselves.”