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Crashing the Crease: Long-term Shootout Shortcomings

We’re all Flyers fans here. Given that, we know the areas where the Orange and Black have consistently come up short. One of those, pardon my French, most damnably obvious areas has to be the shootout. The reality of just how bad this team is after the 65-minute mark may not be grasped by all, but a quick look at the stats reveals that the Flyers are very comfortable basement dwellers here. Thanks in large part to Winnipeg’s only having played in eight shootouts since re-expanding into the league, the Flyers sit firmly in 29th place in shootout wins. Their …

Team Hartnell's Justin Williams and Simon Gagne battle Team Richards' Steve Eminger and Cory Perry at Operation Hat Trick.

Players Giving The Fans What They Want

The blame game has been a big part of the current NHL lockout. Is the league at fault? The players? Both? Believe what you will, but one thing has been made certain: the players want to play. They miss the game and they know their fans miss it, too. Need proof? Consider the slew of pick-up and charity games that have been popping up recently. Spurred by a request from TSN’s Cabbie Richards, Mike Richards and Andrew Ladd organized an impromptu street hockey game in Winnipeg back on November 13 (similar to what Brandon Prust did in Montreal back in …

Photo courtesy of Broad Street Hockey

Around the Net 11.27.2012

  Welcome to Around the Net, a weekly look through linkage at the Philadelphia Flyers and other news from around the NHL.  Operation Hat Trick The charity event was a hit with fans and players alike: [Broad Street Hockey] [The Checking Line] 3rd man in A federal mediator is being brought in to try and end the lockout. This would have been a great idea 6 months ago:[Philly.com] [The Hockey News]  Decertify? The NHLPA might break up so they can sue the NHL: [Toronto Sun] That’s all for this week, join me next week for more links from around the …

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Crashing the Crease: Tools of the Trade

This week’s installment of Crashing the Crease is about the gear we use as goalies that seems to entitle the public to the criticism and bad goals that everyone loves (the title wasn’t self-referencing, despite what my teammates may say). For those who haven’t put on the pads before or have done so incorrectly, this should serve as a primer on what it is we wear and hopefully provide some insight should you decide to don the gear. I’ll address some of the manufacturers and tweaks guys have made to their gear in a later post. Because goalies are creatures …

Crease dimensions

Crashing the Crease: Window of Opportunity

Pardon my cliché-ness, but I’m going to start with a quote this week. When a door closes, a window opens. In my mind, this statement embodies the goaltending position. The entire point of the game culminates in beating the goalie, yet 90-plus percent of the time, the goalie prevails at the NHL level. As the art of goaltending has progressed into a science, we’ve seen goalies get better, average save percentages rise and strategies and rules put in place to effectively limit the goalie’s impact. I’d say that a majority of the new rules put in place for this purpose …

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A look around the Atlantic Division

By now, we know that the Flyers have “struck out” on all big free-agent items and failed to acquire Shea Weber. Right now, if you had to grade the Flyers offseason, what would you give them? Furthermore, what grade would you give the rest of the Flyers’ Atlantic Division foes? Let’s take a look at the rest of the division’s key acquisitions and losses, and where each of its member teams stand thus far through the end of free agency. New York Rangers Key Additions: F Rick Nash, Chris Kreider, Arron Asham. Key Losses: F Brandon Prust, F Brandon Dubinsky, …

Courtesy of Bleacher Report.

Crashing the Crease: A Tale of Two Bryzies

Goalies, by and large, are fragile.  As you look at more elite goalies, you see that they’re able to better overcome this inherent fragility, but even the best out there have developed coping mechanisms for the rigors of the position. “Routines” or “rituals,” as you’ll hear them called, are euphemisms for superstitious routines that let goalies exert a sense of ownership and control over a situation that is essentially dictating their activities.  Patrick Roy talked to his posts and skipped over the red and blue lines on the ice.  Braden Holtby, the Caps’ rookie netminder, was known for a “one-for-you, …

Photo courtesy of NHL.com

On Drafting Defenseman

The 2012 draft is days away and Flyers fans have been discussing draft strategy for the first round. What should the Flyers do? The general consensus seems to be that they need to draft a defenseman in the first round and anything else is disappointing. There has also been lots of talk on whether or not the Flyers should move up to draft one of the higher ranked defenders. Most specifically, Ryan Murray, who will likely be selected second. I’ve seen someone go as far as suggesting a trade of James van Riemsdyk, Andrej Meszaros, Sergei Bobrovsky, and a first-round …

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Point/Counterpoint: Offense vs. Defense

Welcome to the newest edition of “Point/Counterpoint,” where a pair of Flyers Faithful scribes present both sides of one particular issue with their own unique view and flair. This week Kim P and Craig F debate which mode is the most important part of a team: offense or defense. Point: Offense is Most Important By Kim P Whenever the importance of offense vs. the importance of defense comes up, arguments can be made for either side. Some say that a team is only as good as their goaltending and defense, and while both of those things are incredibly important, having a …

Jonathan Quick and Martin Brodeur, courtesy of Getty Images

Flyers West Update: Youth vs. Vet in Net

With all of the different storylines weaved into the Stanley Cup Finals between the Los Angeles Kings and the New Jersey Devils, it’s easy for some to fall through the cracks and not get much attention. But one storyline that seems to have gone with little mention is a major one — the opposites at opposite ends of the ice. The Kings and Devils have both had surprising playoff runs, and a number of different contributors to their success. Two huge factors have been the goaltending of Jonathan Quick for the Kings (12-2-0 with a 1.58 goals-against and a save …

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