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Point/Counterpoint: Shut up and do something!

Welcome to another edition of Point/Counterpoint, where a pair of Flyers Faithful scribes square off, debating an issue with their own unique style and flair. This week, Bob H and Nick D find some common ground, though with different voices, over how we should feel now that the NHL is in the throes of another lockout. Point, Nick: I grew up watching hockey. This city became enamored with the way the Broad Street Bullies played the game: grind it out, blue-collar, arrive in ill-humor type stuff. They won by outworking other teams. It is an incredible spectacle. Even now, with much of …

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Around the Net 10.02.12

Welcome to Around the Net, a weekly look through linkage at the Philadelphia Flyers and other news from around the NHL. Matt Read heads for Sweden The promising young Flyer heads to Europe to get some work in: [Broad Street Hockey] Giroux heading to KHL? Claude might end up playing with Jagr this year after all: [The 700 Level] Don’t I know you? Flyers teammates practice while their younger teammates practice with the Phantoms: [Philly.com] [Hockeybuzz] Lockout update Both sides are set to resume talks today: [The Hockey News] That’s all for this week, join me next week for more …

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CBA 101: Why isn’t Matt Read playing with the Phantoms?

I’ve opened up CBA 101 to mailbag questions as I had more or less covered the critical topics with respect to the, now expired, Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). I had received a question about NHL player eligibility for the AHL during the lockout from reader Will Heineman, and then more specifically, from reader Tom Ciaverelli, “why isn’t Matt Read playing with the Phantoms?” The answer ultimately comes back to waiver eligibility, which I covered in my very first CBA 101 article. Without re-hashing the entire contents of my article on waiver eligibility, the crux of the topic comes down to A) when a player …

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This Week in Flyers History 9/30-10/6

Welcome to the first installment of the second series of “This Week in Flyers History,” which aims to dredge up old memories, good and bad, of Flyers feats in the recent to distant past and to provide good fodder for trivia buffs. As it was during the second half of last season, we’ll be here every Sunday through what would have been the first part of this season, choc full of facts, figures, names and dates you need to know to gain that true depth as a Flyers fan. October 1, 1985: Flyers-Rangers bench-clearing preseason brawl – Live and in …

Eric Wellwood

Bruise or Bust: Filling the Forwards Pt. 2

Last time, we looked at some of the guys on the Flyers roster that might be vying for the 12th and final spot within the forward group. With half of the list already complete, it’s time to complete the list and breakdown who might have the upper hand. Zac Rinaldo: 66 NHL GP, 9 pts, 232 PIM, 22 yrs old, 5-11 / 169 lbs Rinaldo spent most of his rookie season with the Flyers, accumulating 232 penalty minutes in the process – just 3 shy of the league lead, despite averaging the third fewest time on ice per game amongst …

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Then and Now: Lukas Krajicek

In the middle of the 2009-2010 season, it didn’t look likely that Lukas Krajicek would be playing hockey in the NHL anytime soon let alone play in the Stanley Cup Finals. That’s exactly what happened though after the Tampa Bay Lightning terminated his contract in late January of 2010, which allowed him to sign with the Philadelphia Flyers shortly after. In his second season with Tampa Bay’s organization, Krajicek had an assist, 21 PIMs, and a minus-4 rating in 23 games. He also had six assists in 15 games for Tampa’s AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals, before he was dumped by the franchise. …

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Brothers Keepers; Speed Kills

Later this evening, the Flyers lineup should have been witness to something that hadn’t happened in more than a generation. If brothers Luke and Brayden Schenn stepped onto the ice and into the lineup for the Orange and Black’s preseason contest against Chicago at the big building on South Broad Street, it would have marked the first time since twins Rich and Ron Sutter prowled the Spectrum ice in the early Spring of 1986 that two siblings made it to the Philly roster. April 15, 1986 was the exact date. Game 5 of the Patrick Division Semifinals against the underdog …

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Around the Net 09.25.12

Welcome to Around the Net, a weekly look through linkage at the Philadelphia Flyers and other news from around the NHL. Wayne Train goes to Germany Wayne Simmonds will play in Germany during the lockout:[Philly.com] [CSN Philly] Phantoms are back in town,sort of The Phantoms will hold their training camp in Voorhees:[Broad Street Hockey] The lockout drags on Both sides meet to discuss HRR and not much else:[CSN Philly] [Toronto Sun] [The Hockey News] [Philly.com] Seattle Oilers? A really rich guy wants a free arena:[Puck Daddy] [The Hockey News] [Edmontonsun.com] That’s all for this week, join me next week for …

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CBA 101: Could the lockout result in additional 35+ contracts?

Last week I opened up CBA 101 to mailbag questions as I had more or less covered the critical topics with respect to the, now expired, Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Flyers Faithful’s own Marcello submitted a question. Let’s say a player signs a contract extension set to kick in during the ’13 season, when he turns 34. If there is no season and the contract does not start until he’s 35, is it now considered a 35+ contract? This is a very interesting question, and to be honest, I didn’t definitively know the answer. So I took some time to …