The last couple years have been hard for Simon Gagne. After a slew of unfortunate injuries, the one-time face of the Flyers’ franchise found himself in the unenviable position of being forced to waive his no trade clause. Gagne was shipped to Tampa Bay for a poor return. It was the only team for which he could see himself playing. The team had plenty of cap space and he believed this meant that he would be able to remain there for the foreseeable future. However, after the injuries continued and he put up modest numbers throughout the 2011 campaign, it …
Suggested slogans for 2012
For the 2011 playoffs, the Flyers chose a slogan that was a favorite expression of coach Peter Laviolette. It read, “With all our will, we will.” Personally, I’m convinced that the players spent so much time trying to figure out exactly what this meant that it caused brain drain, which then led to the listless team that could barely keep up with their postseason opponents. So, we would like to suggest some new slogans for next season to prevent this potential disaster from happening again. With any luck, one of these will stick. Business never personal Get off our backs, …
Do the Flyers have a deal in place with Bryzgalov?
Rich Winters did not mince words when he spoke with Chuck Gormley. “The fact is there will be no disclosure by the Bryzgalov camp,” said Winters, the agent for prized goalie, Ilya Bryzgalov. “Anybody that guesses at this point will be proven only to be one thing: a guesser and misrepresenting things to the public.” Around that time, Winters put a kibosh on public comments relating to negotiations between his client and the Philadelphia Flyers. So, it caught many people off guard when Bryzgalov joined Twitter yesterday and wrote this in his second tweet: Negotiations Negotiations Negotiations # Flyers Although …
Was trading for Bryzgalov’s rights a worthwhile risk?
To answer this question, we must first ask another one: What benefits are there to trading for the rights of a pending unrestricted free agent? Ideally, negotiating rights will allow you work out a reasonable deal before a player hits free agency. If this is the intent of a general manager, then he had better be sure that the player is willing to take a discount to sign now in lieu of testing the market. Also, he should be sure that the player wants to play in that city. In the case of Ilya Bryzgalov, his actions suggest that he …
Poll: Who will the Flyers trade to make room for Bryzgalov?
Last night, the Flyers acquire the rights to UFA-to-be, Ilya Bryzgalov. Assuming they sign him, they will need to clear out a big contract to remain under the cap. Who will they move?
Flyers acquire rights to Bryzgalov
The Flyers confirmed that the Flyers have traded prospect Matt Clackson, a 2012 3rd round draft pick, and future considerations to Phoenix for the rights to goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov. Bryzgalov is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. The Flyers have until then to try to sign him. In 2010, the Flyers acquired Dan Hamhuis from Nashville for a conditional draft pick but failed to sign him. His rights were then traded to Pittsburgh but, ultimately, he signed with the Vancouver Canucks. In 2007, the Flyers traded a first round draft pick for the rights to Kimmo …
Is Paul Holmgren still the right man for the job?
Paul Holmgren is a bold man, sure of what he wants and unflinching in his actions. He is willing to pay extra to beat the surge of activity to get his man. As a result, he’s built a team capable — in theory and in his own mind — of competing for the Stanley Cup. However, these actions are adding up and taking an increasing toll on a team that put its eggs in one basket for the 2011 season. That ultimately-failed course has been run, and the team did not win the Cup, yet again, and it is now …
2011 Stanley Cup Finals predictions
VANCOUVER VS. BOSTON Bob H I can’t remember a Finals match-up this even since 10 years ago when the #1 Avalanche faced off against the #2 and defending Cup champion Devils. Both sides match up well against each other, and where one team has a deficiency, some other aspect of the club makes up the difference. For the Bruins, that is the constant liability of the power play. However, their near-perfect 5-on-5 play and penalty killing covers up that issue. For the Canucks, that’s their seeming lack of consistency through 60 minutes. However, four balanced lines and Roberto Luongo playing the …
Poll: Would you rather re-sign Leino or have Gagne back?
Gagne may be taking a paycut and Leino is in line for a sizable raise. All things considered, the two players could end up making about the same amount next season. Which would you rather have?
PHI/WAS poll response
I agree with the majority of responders and would not trade Jeff Carter and Matt Carle to Washington for Mike Green and Semyon Varlamov. The Flyers could certainly use a right-handed shot from the point to help boost scoring, especially on the powerplay. However, Mike Green is a defensive liability who comes along with a hefty price tag. You could limit his defensive faults by pairing him with Chris Pronger or Kimmo Timonen but it’s simply not practical to consider adding Green’s $5.25M cap hit to an already expensive defense, even if he does have the potential to score 20+ …