PAUL HOLMGREN: We just wanted more than anything to give Jaromir a chance to take care of you guys, and give you a chance to meet him and talk to him. We’re obviously very excited to have Jaromir join us this summer through free agency, and bring him back to the NHL. We feel he’s still going to be a good player in our league, and we’re looking forward to seeing him do good things for the Flyers this year. Q: Why was this the right fit for you at this point? JAROMIR JAGR: Well, I already answered that question …
Pronger named captain
Chris Pronger has been tabbed the 18th captain in franchise history. The Flyers made the decision official on Friday night, ending almost three months of speculation as to who will wear the “C” following the trade of Mike Richards to the Los Angeles Kings. It will be the third time that the native of Dryden, Ontario will be officially required to handle team business, after previous captaincies with St. Louis (1997-2003) and Anaheim (2007-08). He’s the fifth defenseman in Philadelphia history to earn the letter, after Ed Van Impe (1968-73), Eric Desjardins (2000-01), Derian Hatcher (2005-06) and Jason Smith (2007-08). …
2012 AHL All-Star festivities to be held in Atlantic City
Courtesy of AHL.com SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … American Hockey League President and CEO David Andrews announced today that the 2012 AHL All-Star Classic will be held at historic Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J., on Sunday, January 29 and Monday, January 30, 2012. The first AHL All-Star event held outside an AHL city is being made possible through the partnership of the Atlantic City Convention & Visitors Authority, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, Caesars Entertainment and the American Hockey League. “The American Hockey League is looking forward to working with Boardwalk Hall, the ACCVA, the CRDA and Caesars to make the …
Thoughts on the Yaroslavl tragedy
I never want to wake up to news like this, whether it’s about family, friends, relatives or a hockey player I only met once but whom I admired for years as a kid. When I wiped the crust out of my eyes and pressed the buttons on my phone to find a text from our intrepid editor Marcello D this morning, I felt like another part of my childhood had been ripped away, like tearing a photograph out of an album and letting it be blown off on a malicious wind. Brad McCrimmon, dead at age 52, along with the entire Yaroslavl Lokomotiv club …
2012 Winter Classic comes to Philly
At long last, the 2012 show. Ending months of speculation, the Philadelphia Flyers confirmed that the 2012 Winter Classic will take place in Philadelphia, at Citizens Bank Park, between the New York Rangers and the Flyers. The news was broken in a letter to season-ticket holders, according to Sarah Baicker of CSNPhilly.com. The story on the website also confirmed that tickets to the game will not be part of ticket packages, and must be purchased separately. But the new twist is that the game is scheduled for January 2, breaking the brief four-year tradition of the league’s premiere outdoor contest being played on …
McCrimmon perishes in Russian plane crash
Former Philadelphia Flyers defenseman and long-time NHL blueliner Brad McCrimmon has died in a plane crash in Western Russia on Wednesday morning. The plane, carrying members of the Yaroslavl Lokomotiv club of the Kontinental Hockey League on its way for a game in Minsk, Belarus, crashed just after takeoff, killing all passengers. Only one crew member survived the ordeal, and a player who survived the crash reportedly later died of his wounds in hospital. McCrimmon had signed on as the club’s head coach in May following a successful three-year stint as an assistant with the Detroit Red Wings. “I’m personally …
Holmgren updated
On Tuesday, the Flyers issued an update on the condition of general manager Paul Holmgren. “Holmgren was injured in a bicycle accident at the South Jersey shore on Monday, Sept. 5.” Holmgren also released the following statement to the media early this morning: “[I am] sore, but otherwise in good spirits.” President & Chief Operating Officer of Comcast-Spectacor Peter A. Luukko also gave the following statement and account of what happened: “It appears that he might have hit a rut or something as he was biking in Avalon. I know Paul, he’s pretty fast on that bike so he probably …
Holmgren injured in bike accident
We’ve recently spent some time shredding Paul Holmgren’s role in the Flyers’ recent roller-coaster pursuit of a Stanley Cup, but this is never good news to report: According to CSNPhilly.com late Monday night, the club’s 55-year-old general manager was injured while riding a bike in Avalon, New Jersey. The report stated that Holmgren suffered broken ribs, a broken shoulder and other cuts that required stitching. Holmgren was apparently taken to Cooper Medical Center in Camden and will be kept overnight for observation. On Tuesday morning, the Inquirer revealed the full statement taken by Avalon police on the matter: (Avalon, NJ)—Avalon Police …
Flyers 8/30 conference call transcript
James van Riemsdyk conference call – August 30, 2011 Q: On signing his extension “I couldn’t be happier, obviously. Over the two years I’ve been here, and even prior to that when I was with the organization, I’ve seen how well they treat their players and how highly everyone around it talks about it. Even before I signed, Jim Dowd was actually telling me how lucky I was to be coming to the Flyers and how well they treat their players, and I’ve seen that first-hand. When these talks of an extension started to come up, that was in the …
Flyers, vanRiemsdyk agree to multi-year extension
The Flyers announced on Tuesday afternoon that they have agreed to a multi-year contract extension with New Jersey native and forward James vanRiemsdyk. Terms have not been announced, but vanRiemsdyk reported via his Twitter account that the pact is for six years. He would have been a restricted free agent at the end of this season, after making $875,000 per year on his initial three-year entry-level deal. The 22-year-old tallied career highs of 21 goals and 40 points in 75 games for Philly during his sophomore season. He added seven goals in 11 playoff contests. A product of the University of New …