The New Reebok Tutus

October 30, 2007

It appears that the league in an effort to put the issues with the Reebok jerseys behind them has introduced alternate uniforms for a select group of individuals.

The league mandate will allow the uniforms to be mixed within a team to allow opposing players to know which players need to be kissed before they can be checked.

Colin Campbell applauded the move, and even demonstrated how the "kiss before check" rule would be applied in a 60 minute video sent to all the teams. Mr. Campbell starred in the video along with some of his "favorite" players. I also heard that Scott Burnside made a few guest appearances in the video by checking that the tutus were fitted properly.

The Philadelphia Flyers returned the video to Mr. Campbell with the message:
FN Colin

Seriously, if the rules continue to be applied in an inconsistent manner, then I only see more problems for the league. The suspensions, penalties, etc. to the Flyers is not what I have a problem with, but rather that the assessment of them has NOT been consistent. If everybody plays under the same rules, then I am OK with it.

This inconsistency displayed by Mr. Campbell is troublesome, since he is giving the impression that he either has some bias against certain players / organizations; or he is just a FN idiot.

I am not sure why Ed Snider would have even considered him for the GM position based on his past performance as the coach of the Rangers.

Bottom line is that the league (especially Mr. Campbell) has not been consistent when they are administering suspensions.

The question that I ask myself as a Flyers' fan is "Do I want them to play soft like they played last year, or do I want them to continue to play with an edge?" The answer is a resounding "Carry on Boys". There will be no tutus in the Flyers locker room.

Reprinted from South Florida Flyers http://floridaflyers.blogspot.com/

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Dear Antero Niittymaki

October 23, 2007

We haven't forgotten you. We all know your waiting for your turn between the pipes.

Yeah, we've been sticking with Marty 'cause he's so hot he's on fire. The truth is that you know how that goes.

But I sometimes feel like some fans don't know very much about you. So, here are my favorite things about Niitty.

1. You have kick @$$ black kickers this year!
2. You can lock the net down when you're healthy and the pressure is on. (Remember your 0.41 GAA and .984 SP back with the Phantoms?)
3. You scored the first overtime goal by a goalie in North American professional hockey. (In fact, that goal for the Phantoms was a game-winning, empty net, overtime, short-handed, unassisted goal. You're almost a new Ronnie Hextall!)
4. You stepped in as the goalie for the Finnish national team during the 2006 Winter Olympics as a relatively unknown player.
5. You were the tournement MVP for the 2006 Winter Olympics.
6. You played with a torn labrum during the whole 2006-07 season. (It's a hip injury you sustained during training camp. Hip injuries are like the kiss of death for goalies!)

Last season stunk for the whole organization, but it's so over! However, you had the summer to get better and shake it off. (You did see the team psychologist in addition to the trainer, right?)

For some weirdly optimistic reason, I'm looking forward to seeing you play soon and hope that you give us the show we've seen before.

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Written by Nadine · Filed Under Hockey, NHL, Philadelphia Flyers | 1 Comment 

Notes from practice…

October 22, 2007

skatezone

I headed down to Voorhees today to check on the boys. Today was a longer practice then the last one I was at, probably because they were off yesterday and will most likely have an abbreviated skate tomorrow in advance of their roadtrip. Upshall and Eager were both skating, so perhaps they will be back soon. It was a pretty relaxed atmosphere, and everyone was having a good time while working hard. It seemed like they were really working Niitymaki pretty hard, so I was thinking he would get a start soon, but maybe not...

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Written by kristin · Filed Under Hockey, NHL, Philadelphia Flyers | 2 Comments 

Forsberg a Flyer???

October 21, 2007

The Calgary Sun has reported that former Flyer Peter Forsberg has been contacted by the Philadelphia Flyers to possibly return to the team as early as mid-November.

Currently Forsberg is recovering from his injuries last year by playing with MoDo of the Swedish Elite League.

Other teams interested in the veteran center are the Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche and the Ottawa Senators. The Stars made the impressive move of sending GM Doug Armstrong and special adviser Brett Hull to Sweden to meet with Forsberg in a face-to-face meeting.

Phillyburbs.com writes, "he (Forsberg) wants to return to Philly to make amends for last season.”

Flyers GM Paul Homegren would welcome him with arms wide open. “If Peter is going to come back and he's healthy, we would have interest,” Holmgren confirmed the other day. “And we would hope that he would have interest in coming here.”

The Flyers however only have $2.5 million in cap space left after all of their signings in the off season. Hopefully Forsberg will want to play due to the fact at how great the team has looked so far this year and not for the money.

I took the liberty to come up with some offensive line combinations if Forsberg would return....

Richards - Forsberg – Upshall
Richards - Forsberg – Lupul
Lupul - Forsberg – Kapanen
Kapanen - Forsberg - Hartnell

You decide!

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Written by reitanoav · Filed Under Former Flyers, NHL, Off Ice, Philadelphia Flyers, Trades-Signings | 5 Comments 

What Do We Do? - 2008 RFA

October 21, 2007

Based on my count, we will have 16 RFAs on June 30, 2008. For the purposes of this post, I broke them down into 3 groups (marginal, depth, & core players).

The marginal players include Reid, Grant, and 3 of our goalie prospects (Houle, Munroe, & Beauchemin). To be perfectly honest, I wouldn't lose any sleep if any of them left, and therefore, I am not even discuss them in this post.

The depth players really represent a majority of the Phantoms' blue line, as well as the Flyers' emergency call up for injuries. Four of the six players are defensemen (Picard, Guenin, J. Timonen, & Jonsson), which at one point in time or another have been discussed occupying one of the spots on the Flyers blue line. The other two players in this group are Cote & Ruzicka.

All 6 of them are currently making around $500,000 to $600,000. The problem with the defensemen is that all of them are not going to start playing with the big club at the same time. I hate to say it, but I think we give them all qualifying offers on 2 way contracts, and I would do the same with Cote & Ruzicka. I would also listen to any trade offers for picks.

The only player that might be considered borderline is Picard, since he did show glimpses last year of being able to play with the big club. However, his fate is really tied to how well Jones continues to play. If Jones play drops off, or if he is moved, then there might be more of an opportunity for Picard.

The core group of RFAs are Carter, Richards, Coburn, Umberger, & Jones. These guys are playing night after night, and contributing meaningful minutes.

I used the following assumptions to determine what we can afford to offer them. First, the CAP not increasing next year, and remaining at the current level of $50.3 million. My calculation is currently sitting at approximately $1.5 million under the CAP. Next year, we get relief for the previous buyouts of about $1 million. However, I am presuming that it is going to take a raise in the $2 million range for Jason to re-sign, which leaves us with only $500,000 to sign our RFAs unless we dump some salary.

The first choice for a salary dump is Hatcher. He has played really well these first 6 games, but it is time to move on. We are going to have to dump his $3.5 million salary by either waiving him, or trying to move him for picks. Depending on when the move is made will determine if we can get any assets for him. We could probably get a pick, if we move him at the trading deadline, but if we wait until the off season, then I do not think we will get anything for him.

The next salary dump would be Knuble. His $2.8 million CAP hit, along with the development of RJ might make this an easy dump. We can't carry both Knuble & RJ anymore. It has to be one or the other, and I agree that we have to go down the youth path unless we can get a really good offer for RJ.

Depending on what the core group is expecting maybe we can get away with just dumping those two salaries, which would put us approximately $6.8 million under the current CAP. The only other remaining veteran salary remaining would be Sami's $1.25 million (i.e. brings us to about $8 million under CAP). Other factors may effect what we can do (i.e. Jason might sign for less than a $2 million raise, the CAP might increase by a few million, etc.), but we will have to wait and see.

So what can we do?

First of all, I do not expect any hometown discounts unless we get one from Richards, but I doubt it. As for what they are offered, in the old days the team would just throw one out there, and work out the details later. However, the way other teams are handing out Offer Sheets we would be better off getting them signed before they have a chance to receive an Offer Sheet.

All of my estimates are based on them continuing on playing like they started the year. Any change on how they are playing would effect how much I would be willing to give them.

Jones has been solid, but not spectacular. I would expect reasonable raises for Randy in the $300,000 to $500,000 range.

RJ's flexibility (i.e. either playing center or wing) should earn him a decent raise. A raise in the $1 million dollar area would not be out of line.

Coburn, Carter, & Richards should each receive a raise in the same range of between $1.3 and $2.5 million. I will use an average of $2 million each.

So in total the expected raises for the core group of players will be approximately $7.5 million, which approximates the salary dump of Hatcher, Knuble, & Sami. Hopefully, the CAP goes up a bit, Jason takes a bit less to resign, etc. The other decision we will have to make is if any of the core group of players receive an Offer Sheet. Do we Match, or do we take the picks?

That is a lot of ifs.

What are your thoughts on how we handle our 2008 RFAs?

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Offense Keeps Rolling

October 20, 2007

Saturday night was an unusual sighting for Flyers Fans.

The opponents scored a goal.

The Flyers looked slow again in the early stages of the first period until Simon Gagne netted his third tally of the season on a great setup from Daniel Briere and Braydon Coburn. Gagne would add his fourth only 48 seconds into overtime to seal the deal for the Flyers. It was also Gagne's 400 career point in the NHL.

Marty Biron’s shutout streak ended however at over 143 minutes of play as Eric Staal of the Carolina Hurricanes scored six minutes into the first period to tie the game at one. Biron again was the glue that held the Flyers together, stopping 42 of 44 shots, earning him the games first star.

The Flyers also found themselves in another rare position. Trailing 2-1 and entering the third period loosing for the first time this season. Mike Richards answered 1:32 seconds into the final frame as he continued his hot streak with a 'PECO power play' goal. For Richards it was his third straight game with a goal as he passes Briere for the team lead with five.

Following Richards' goal the Flyers outshot the Hurricanes 12-9 in the period. This was a vast improvement over the first two periods, as they got outshot 33-17. The Flyers held off the Hurricanes to force their first overtime of the season.

It only took one shot and 48 seconds for Derian Hatcher and Daniel Briere to find Gagne alone in front of the net. Almost the same spot he scored from in the first period. The play was under review after the teams left the ice due to the puck bouncing off Gagne's skate before he slapped it in. Brier had two assists on the night for his fourth multi-point game of the year. He leads the team with 11 points.

Interesting Note: After the Flyers had one of the worst defenses last year and were always being criticized for being too slow, they answered tonight by assisting on every Flyer goal. Braydon Coburn showed his talent in the first as he went around half of the Hurricanes team to set up the game's first goal. Kimmo Timonen made a great pass at the point on the power play to allow Richards to score his fifth of the year. And the veteran Derian Hatcher made one of his best plays all season with the game winning assist, finding Gagne wide open in overtime. The Flyers are already averaging four goals a game, imagine if the defensemen start to contribute, one can only hope.

Good luck to the Eagles tomorrow!

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Written by reitanoav · Filed Under Game Day, NHL, Philadelphia Flyers | Leave a Comment 

Marty to the Rescue

October 19, 2007

Who would have thought that the Philadelphia Flyers goalie problem would be cured from the shadows of Dominik Hasek. For the last two games, Flyers goalie Martin Biron has baffled opponents by making highlight real saves. Over the span he has stopped 82 Shots and has not allowed a goal in over 137 minutes of play.

The Flyers, who are off to a much better start then last year find themselves 5-1 and on top of the Atlantic Division. They are also off to a perfect 3-0 start at home, much better than last year when they had a dismal record of 10-24-7. Beating the Devils on Thursday night also snapped an eight game losing streak to their division foe dating back to March 21, 2006.

Although Biron has been getting most of the credit, the offense has been on fire averaging 4.1 goals a game. This night was no different than past games. After a slow 1st period start, which seemed like the Wachovia Center ice was made of jello, the Flyers found their skating legs early in the second. Mike Richards scored on a bullet snap shot high to Martin Brodeur’s right side opening up the scoring.

Former Flyer’s goalie John Vanbiesbrouck, who was broadcasting the game on HDNet stated, “I believe whoever scores first, will open this game up.” He was right.

Less than 5 minutes latter Sami Kapanen scored on a knuckle puck that fooled Brodeur. The shot look like it came straight from Disney’s Mighty Ducks movie as it changed direction in mid flight to give the Flyers a 2-0 lead. Kapanen is off to one of his best starts in his career scoring goals in each of his last 3 games.

Who would have also thought after signing Daniel Briere to an 8 year $52 million contract, that Mike Richards would be only trailing him by 1 point? Briere with 9 points (4 G, 5 A) leads the team ahead of Richards 8 points (4,4) and newly acquired Joffrey Lupul is in third with 7 (2,5). Last year in a season that barely saw any production other then the top line, the Flyers are scoring at ease, and its coming with from the second, third and forth lines….a good feeling for any Flyers Fan.

Most fans might not notice the hard work of newly acquired Scott Hartnell. On Kapanens play Hartnell picked the Devils right winger allowing the puck to be taken by Kapanen down the ice for the goal. Other times when the Flyers are not skating hard, Hartnell is flying around at 110%, fore- checking and causing turnovers. Flyers Fans watch out….he will be a great player this year.

Interesting Note: The Flyers who had a horrible +/- rating last year only find 2 of their players in the negative. Who you may ask….Simon Gagne (-1) and Mike Knuble (-2). Defensemen Randy Jones leads the team (+8).

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Written by reitanoav · Filed Under Game Day, Off Ice, Philadelphia Flyers | Leave a Comment 

Flyers 2007 Home Opener Video

October 17, 2007

[youtube BKzuWpQLt-w]

Written by Mike · Filed Under Hockey, NHL, Philadelphia Flyers, Video | Leave a Comment 

I’m done.

October 9, 2007

I am not going to go into detail, but the NHL has pissed me off again, this time enough for me not to care anymore. So I am walking away from the NHL and selling the site.

Any Flyer fan interested in taking over please checkout the auction.
Email me at mike@flyersfancentral.com if you have any questions.

Changes are coming....

Mike

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Captain Smith

October 2, 2007

The Philadelphia Flyers announced that they have named Jason Smith the 16th captain in team history, according to club General Manager Paul Holmgren. In addition, Simon Gagne and Mike Richards have been named alternate captains.

"Jason (Smith) is a tremendous choice for us moving forward," said Holmgren in making the announcement. "He plays the game the right way. He is an old pro and I think that in the (locker) room it was a popular choice as well."
Jason Smith is the 16th captain of the Philadelphia Flyers. (Jack Cassidy)

"In Jason Smith, you have everything that you want in your captain," said Flyers Head Coach John Stevens. "He has a lot of experience in this position. He is kind of a father figure that just naturally looks out for the group. We just thought that he was an ideal fit."

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Written by Mike · Filed Under Hockey, NHL, Philadelphia Flyers | Leave a Comment