For the second straight night, the Flyers were handed a loss by a team currently not in the playoff picture as the Devils won 4-2 in Jersey. He may have not scored the game-winning goal, but Patrik Elias essentially won the game for the Devils netting a hat-trick. Brian Rolston had all three of the primary assists on Elias’s goals and Johan Hedberg made 34 saves on 36 shots to give the Devils their third win of the season against the Flyers. With the Penguins and Capitals idle tonight, the Flyers had a chance to move closer to clinching both the division and …
Looking ahead: A few thoughts on the offseason
Numbers Current Projected Cap Space for 2012: $1,980,845 [source] Projected Cap Increase for 2012: $3,000,000 [source] Total Projected Cap Space for 2012: $4,980,845 Notable Pending UFA forwards: VIlle Leino, Nikolay Zherdev Notable Pending RFA forwards: Andreas Nodl, Darroll Powe, Dan Carcillo Notable Pending UFA defensemen: Sean O’Donnell, Nick Boynton Notable Pending RFA defensemen: Danny Syvret Notable Pending UFA goaltenders: Brian Boucher Thoughts Defense It’s likely the Flyers won’t need anything more than a third pairing defensemen. They have a number of options available to them: Re-sign O’Donnell or Boynton, play Matt Walker, promote Erik Gustafsson, or re-up Danny Syvret and …
Discussing the slump
Last night, ProHockeyTalk published three reasons why the Flyers are struggling. Quickly summed up, they believe the Flyers aren’t desperate enough, the scoring has dried up, and the team can’t seem to close out games in the third period. PHT also points out that the goaltending is not to blame here. For the most part, I agree with the article but I also think it goes a bit deeper than that. The Flyers are in self-preservation mode. The memory of all the fatigue and injuries suffered towards the end of the ’10 season and throughout the playoffs is once again fresh …
Quo Vadis?
Now that Nikolay Zherdev has cleared waivers with zero interest from the other 29 clubs in the NHL, it’s basically up to him what happens next. He has several options to keep playing: take a demotion to the minors, flee back to the country formerly known as the U.S.S.R., and (even though it might be dog dumb), sit out risking a suspension and await a deal out of Philly. Adding to the drama was the fact that multiple outlets reported this morning that Zherdev participated in an optional team skate in Voorhees. This, after he fled the same practice facility not 24 …
Trust, injuries played a role in Zherdev’s failure and Leino’s success
The signing of Nikolay Zherdev in the summer appeared to be one of the better moves Holmgren made in the summer. It seemed like the classic case of a low risk/high reward situation. Zherdev, a former fourth overall pick, is a highly skilled forward that had the potential to be a 60 point forward that chips in with around 25 goals a season. He was signed to a reasonable one year deal worth $2 million. The work ethic issues that has followed Zherdev everywhere he has gone was the reason the Flyers were able to sign him for to such …