As the Philadelphia Flyers take on the New York Rangers in their opening season game at the Wachovia Center tonight, they will have a special guest perform the ceremonial puck drop - Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Palin's appearance, however, has drawn criticism from the "City of Brotherly Love" and just how receptive fans will be to her appearance tonight remains to be seen.

In an online poll by the Philadelphia Inquirer, which received responses from 8,323 individuals, 63.8% said they did not like the idea of Palin appearing, while just 36.2% supported it.

The self-described "Hockey Mom" met with team owner Ed Snider last month during a trip to Philadelphia and accepted his invitation to appear at the game, which also ties into a team promotion to find the "Ultimate Hockey Mom." Hockey moms and players submitted posters "showing their hockey mom pride" throughout the last month to the Flyers' web site.

Some have labeled Palin's appearance as politically motivated since Snider is a big GOP backer. According to the Inquirer, Snider has donated $25,000 to the campaign of Republican John McCain and the Republican National Commitee.

A spokesman for the team said that the appearance was in no way "a political event."

"The Flyers had a contest to find the ultimate hockey mom in the region and we thought it would be great to have the governor present because she's a hockey mom," said the spokesman.

NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said that the league did not see any conflicts of interest or concerns surrounding Palin's appearance:

"We do not view the Flyers' invitation to Governor Palin to be politically motivated. Governor Palin is a supporter of the sport, which she has proclaimed publicly. As a public figure who has a very public connection with hockey, her recent associations with the Flyers and other NHL franchises is not surprising and, in our view, not inappropriate. Partipication of national politicians in team ceremonies in professional sports is far from unprecedented in our sport and occurs routinely in other sports, as well," said Daly in a statement.

The Flyers, Rangers, and Sarah Palin take to the ice tonight at 7:00pm ET.