A hero returns, and a fond farewell

By Hal G
Posted on 03/01/2013 at 1:00 pm

I feel like it was pretty obvious what I would be writing about this week. One of my all-time favorite Flyers (and your most loved Flyer) returned to Philadelphia to once again don the Orange and Black sweater. That man, of course, is #12, Simon Gagne. My love goes back to my years in high school. I recall reading about Gagne and how he would be the “next superstar” in Philadelphia. Although Gagne never gained “superstar status,” he was a star in the NHL. At just 33 years of age, Gagne – barring health issues – can continue to be …

Photo courtesy of Bridgetds-http://www.flickr.com/photos/bridgetds/sets/72157628266089729/

Around the Net March 1, 2013:Simon Gagne and Scott Hartnell are back; O’Reilly signs with Avs, more

By Dain S
Posted on 03/01/2013 at 11:00 am

Welcome to Around the Net, a weekly look through linkage at the Philadelphia Flyers and other news from around the NHL. In case you missed it… Claude Giroux missed Scott Hartnell: [Philly.com] Philly missed Simon Gagne: [The Checking Line] Harry Z missed a suspension from Mr. Shanaban: [The 700 Level] [Philly.com] Tom Sestito and Michael Leighton were waived: [Hockeybuzz-Bill Meltzer] Avs match the Flames offer sheet for Ryan O’Reilly: [NHL.com] All the twitter feeds you’ll ever need in one place: [Broad Street Hockey] Go get some Philadelphia Flyers tickets today. That’s all for this week, join me next week for …

Crashing the Crease: Bryzgalov Wearing Down?

By Justin Brennan
Posted on 02/28/2013 at 9:00 am

How much can one reasonably expect from a goaltender when playing him almost nightly behind a worn down, somewhat-ramshackle NHL defense? If you live in Philadelphia, the answer may be to simply look at his cap hit for your answer. Recently, there’s been a lot of talk regarding Ilya Bryzgalov and how well he “should” be playing based on his AAV of $5.67 million. In a lot of ways, it’s a reliable fallback story for a season full of nearly regular Jekyll-and-Hyde nights where serious hockey analysis of defensive breakdowns and failed offensive forays will bore and confuse the average …

HE'S BACK!!! Image courtesy of lehighvalleylive.com

Atlantic Watch: Gagne Returns, Pens and Rangers Deal With Injuries, Devils and Islanders Endure Goaltending Woes

By Craig F
Posted on 02/27/2013 at 11:00 am

The Philadelphia Flyers won a pair of exciting contests this week, but they also lost two games where they could have easily grabbed points. With the return of a familiar face, the Orange and the Black look to reach .500 with two tilts against teams below them in the standings and a matinee against a Northeast Division foe. The Flyers started their week, and concluded their road trip, with an exciting 6-5 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins at the CONSOL Energy Center. Jakub Voracek put the game-winner past Tomas Vokoun with 1:31 left in regulation to complete his hat trick, …

2012 award recipient Aleca Hughes from Yale. Image courtesy of http://www.hockeyhumanitarian.org

College Hockey Roundup: Hockey Humanitarian Award finalists announced

By Tom Zulewski
Posted on 02/27/2013 at 9:00 am

In 1995, John Greenhalgh and Jeff Millman sought to create an award that honors one college hockey player that embodies what is right about the game of hockey. Each year their foundation board gathers nominations from every college varsity hockey program in the country male and female in Divisions I-III. Both Millman and Greenhalgh have spent countless hours over the years reading biographies of Rhodes Scholar candidates, team captains, and volunteers helping our youth, the handicapped, and the disadvantaged. They also have said each year that there are, throughout college hockey and other college sports, young people whose upbringing, whose …

“Trees” and the Motown Blitz: 25 years later

By Bob H
Posted on 02/26/2013 at 3:00 pm

One thing astute observers could say about the successful Alumni Game which took place two days before the 2012 Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park, was that former Flyers goaltender Mark Laforest put together his finest performance while wearing the Orange and Black. He came back to the Quaker City for the first time since absorbing an 8-2 loss while playing for the Ottawa Senators in March of 1994, worked the majority of minutes in between Bernie Parent and Neil Little, and posted a 3-1 victory over the New York Rangers’ old-timers. Now 52 years old, Laforest’s first spin with …

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The Stars and Stripes Starting Six: Flyer targets from the USA U-18 team

By Jared Abbott
Posted on 02/26/2013 at 1:00 pm

Here are six players on the USA Hockey National Team Development Program (USNTDP) Under-18 squad I believe the Philadelphia Flyers should target in the 2013 and 2014 NHL Drafts. Goalie: Thatcher Demko (San Diego, Calif.) We will start out in net with the most impressive player on the ice for the USNTDP Under-18. Demko is still a junior in high school, but is so talented and “mature beyond his years” as Coach Don Granato puts it, that he is in an accelerated program to earn the required high school credits before heading to Chestnut Hill. It says something about the …

Around the Net February 26, 2013:Flyers fall to Leafs; Malkin out with concussion, more

By Dain S
Posted on 02/26/2013 at 9:22 am

Welcome to Around the Net, a weekly look through linkage at the Philadelphia Flyers and other news from around the NHL. In case you missed it… Flyers lose again: [Broad Street Hockey] [Philly.com] [The Checking Line] [Kuklaskorner] Zac Rinaldo welcomes JVR back to Philly: [The 700 Level] Evgeni Malkin has Sidney Crosby syndrome: [The Hockey News] [ Go see the Flyers! Get your Philadelphia Flyers tickets here. That’s all for today, join me Friday for more links from around the web on the Flyers and the NHL.

Analyzing Giroux’s faceoff opponents; is he just cleaning up on weak competition?

By Kevin Christmann
Posted on 02/25/2013 at 11:00 am

Through 20 games in the 2013 season, Claude Giroux has been winning faceoffs at a clip of 55 percent. That places him at 18th in the league in faceoff percentage for anyone playing at least 10 games (as of Sunday 2/24). Last Wednesday against Pittsburgh, Giroux struggled winning only 12 of 31 for 38.7 percent, while Sidney Crosby–who many of those draws were against, who ranks 10th at 57 percent–was 21 of 28 for 75 percent. It got me thinking, is Giroux just not good enough to hang with the big boys? As our only good faceoff man, is Giroux …

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Future Flyers Report: Kessel’s Offensive Weekend

By Craig F
Posted on 02/25/2013 at 9:00 am

Blake Kessel is regarded as one of the better defenseman on the Trenton Titans. At 6’2″, 203 pounds, Kessel does a great job in his own end of the rink and can pitch in offensively as well. In his final two years at the University of New Hampshire and his time with the Adirondack Phantoms last season, Kessel posted a total of 16 goals and 67 assists in 133 games. This weekend, Kessel had a three-assist game on Saturday and a two-point game yesterday. Thanks to Stephen Schultz’s four-goal game on Saturday, Kessel showed his ability to start a scoring …

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