Photo Courtesy of theahl.com Position: Defenseman Shoots: Left Height: 6.0? Weight: 225 Birthdate: September 17, 1989 Age: 21 Hometown: St. Hyacinthe, QC Acquired: 2008 3rd round pick – 67th overall “Bourdon is a big man, who also plays a very physical game. He has a lot of offensive skill, but it’s going to take some time for him to cultivate it and round into a better all-around player.” – Former Phantoms coach Kjell Samuelsson Bourdon began his junior career during the 2006-2007 season. The promising rookie finished the year with 2 goals and 26 over 63 games. He also had …
Tapping the Pipes 4/8/11
The Flyers’ well-publicized fall from grace continues to unfold before our eyes, seemingly with no end in sight. Closed-door meetings led by both Captain Mike Richards and stone-faced General Manager Paul Holmgren have been described by varying sources as “productive” and “intimidating” respectively as they players attempt to regain the spark that saw them rocket to the top of the Eastern Conference before the all-star break. If you ask any educated hockey fan, and even uneducated hockey fans who think that they’re educated, what the traditional issue with the Flyers is, they will immediately point to the goaltending. So great …
Tapping the Pipes
I suppose it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Sergei Bobrovsky read my column last week. Or at least someone he knows who speaks English pointed it out to him (yeah, I’m harping on the language barrier again. Sue me.) Because, since I stated last Friday that Bobrovsky doesn’t seem to want to take the reigns as playoff starting goaltender, he’s started to play like one. Including the Pittsburgh game at the Wells Fargo Center this past Thursday, Bobrovsky has allowed a grand total of 5 goals in his last 4 starts (that’s 1.25 goals per game, for …
Tapping the Pipes
I looked at my calendar today and did a double-take at what I didn’t see. March, on my calendar, wasn’t labeled “Flyers Goalie Controversy Month”. I was shocked. How could this be? The time in the stretch run of the NHL season where the historical goaltending woes of the Flyers rear its ugly head. Since the start of the month, the goaltender play which had been relatively solid throughout the season has started to fall apart. In the month, the Bobrovsky/Boucher tandem (as that’s the order it seems Coach Laviolette wants it to be) has combined for a .889 SV%, …
RICE & MICE: The phenomenon of delayed-onset muscle soreness
While not technically an injury, delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is a phenomenon that every athlete experiences and can cause significant discomfort and pain. DOMS occurs in response to increased exertion and can also occur after “new” activities and exercises. The delayed onset peaks in 1-2 days following exertion and the soreness usually will resolve in around 4 days, though full recovery may take a week. An older school of thought attributed DOMS to a lactic acid build up in muscles. Lactic acid accumulation can cause some discomfort during and immediately after exercise, but only lasts an hour or so. …
Hitting the posts: 12.10.10
“Hitting the posts” is a weekly roundup of links to hockey stories from across the web. If you have any suggestions for articles that we should use, hit us up here. Evaluating Zherdev and the expectations surrounding him :: Broad Street Hockey For Danny Briere, everything’s coming up Millhouse :: Philly.com And, at the quarter pole, god breathed life (back) into James van Riemsdyk :: NHL Hot Stove The Maple Leafs inquired about JvR :: Philly Sports Daily Ville Leino has spectacular vision :: The 700 Level Everybody loves Bob, including Bernie :: NHL.com That being said, what’s going on with Bob? :: …
Hitting the posts 11.12.10
“Hitting the posts” is a weekly roundup of links to hockey stories from across the web. If you have any suggestions for articles that we should use, hit us up here. Mike Richards’ role change :: SB Nation Philly Could a trip to the AHL cure what’s ailing James van Riemsdyk? :: NHL Hot Stove JvR was not happy about being scratched :: In the Room The Phantoms suck, set new lows :: The Phantoms Forum
Tim McManus shares his thoughts on Erik Gustafsson
Bill Meltzer wrote, “According to Derian Hatcher, it’s ‘no contest’ that Erik Gustafsson is the most skilled and polished of the defense prospects who attended the rookie camp earlier in the week.” Do you agree? What is your impression of Erik Gustafsson? I didn’t get in to town until after the rookie camp, but I’m not surprised that Meltzer thought that. The first word I think of with Gustafsson is poised. When he got to Adirondack last season, he immediately reminded me of Danny Syvret, who he played on the power play with. I don’t mean Gustafsson projects out to …