Sunday, October 19, 2008

Exact Same Save?

Evgeni Nabokov, May 17th 2008, Western Conference Finals Game 6 vs. Stars


Antero Niittymaki, October 18th, 2008, vs. Sharks


Just sayin'...


Extra Credit:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I44jRb1Xam8

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Draft Day News

The first day of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft was unusually eventful, and the Flyers' day was no exception. Long before the first pick was even made, the Flyers reportedly signed Jeff Carter to a three-year deal worth at least $15 million (the report, made by sportsnet.ca, hasn't been confirmed yet). The deal was not as long as one might have expected, but the Flyers did a good job of getting one of their key players signed early.

Earlier in the week, Philly.com reported that according to Paul Holmgren, Derian Hatcher, even though he is scheduled to make a high $3.5 million this season, is probably going to return. Even with this in mind, the Flyers continued to build up their defensive core in the draft, selecting defenseman Luka Sbisa with their 19th overall pick. How did they get that pick, you ask? They did so by trading the rights to R.J. Umberger to the Columbus Blue Jackets for the 19th and 119th overall picks. Umberger's return seemed unlikely to start with due to the the Flyers tight cap space and abundance of forwards. With less competition in Columbus, Umberger is expected to make a big impact there.

The Flyers probably traded up because they had their eye on Sbisa, because they did away with their original first-round slot pretty quickly. They gave the pick to Washington for defenseman Steve Eminger and the 84th overall pick. Eminger has had a disappointing career thus far, but at only 24, he could still have a bright future. Eminger, like Umberger, is a restricted free agent, so the Flyers will still have to work out a deal with him.

Of course, trade rumors involving Scottie Upshall and Mike Knuble are still going around.

So, with all this taken into account, the Flyer lines, at the moment, would look something like this (future signings, re-signings, and trades aside)...

Gagne/Richards/Hartnell
Lupul/Carter/Briere
Upshall/Downie/Knuble
Giroux/Tolpecko/Cote
-----
Timonen/Coburn
Eminger/Hatcher
Kukkonen/Parent


Now, there are always the free-agents we have yet to deal with. At the moment it appears that we'll have about $3-4 million to work with here, unless we make some trades.

Restricted:
Patrick Thoresen
Stefan Ruzicka
Randy Jones
Nate Guenin

Unrestricted:
Jim Dowd
Riley Cote
Jesse Boulerice
Jason Smith
Rory Fitzpatick
Jaroslav Modry

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Prospal Goes Back to Tampa

The Flyers traded Vinny Prospal back to Tampa Bay for a seventh round pick (actually Nashville's pick). Prospal was an unrestricted free agent, and he has shown little interest in returning to Philadelphia, given the fact that much of his life is still back in Tampa. I'd say a seventh round pick isn't really worth it, but it's better than nothing- which is what we would have received had we not made this deal.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Flyers Day at the Phillies

June 2nd was Flyers day at the Phillies. I had traded in my tickets for the game, so I didn't go. Nevertheless, I found it interesting how thin and out-of-shape Marty Biron looks like out of his goalie gear. Speaks volumes to his skill...

Friday, June 6, 2008

The Best Goal Horns

In recent years teams throughout the NHL have been following a trend of having new, more unique goal horn/song combinations. No longer does it seem that there are only five different goal horns used in the league as a whole, and no longer are the same three songs always used after the horn. With this in mind, how about we take a tour around the NHL examining the various cominations teams are using. I'll give a youtube clip with only the goal horn, and/or an example of the goal horn in action.

The Flyers changed theirs recently, they use relatively deep horn for just one long ring, and then play part of "Bro Hymn" by Pennywise.

This one isn't my all-time favorite, but it's unique, etching itself into our favorite memories of the past season. "Bro Hymn" is a great choice for a song, and it goes great with the horn. Using the same song every time magnifies the uniqueness, although I'll always miss hearing the classic goal songs like "Rock & Roll Part II" and "Zombie Nation".

Apparently the Ducks use "Bro Hymn" as well, but I don't like their goal horn as much. Anyway we used it first, so ours is by definition cooler.


A couple teams, notably the Penguins and Stars, have opted to stay with the classic choice "Rock & Roll Part II", but they put an ingenious twist on it. Instead of waiting for the goal horn to end, and going straight to the chanting part, they start at the drumming part, and start playing it along with the horn. This creative spin on a classic is spectacular because the combination makes it feel like the crowd's celebration starts right after the goal, not after the horn. The Stars are a bit more consistent with the combination, while the Penguins sometimes do something between the classic goal horn/song and this combination.


The Red Wings' Goal Horn is one I'll personally remember as that of the New Jersey Devils, before they moved to the Prudential Center. Now, I know it's sacreligious, but I love this goal horn. It has a sort of intimidating, ring-in-you-opponent's ear feeling to it. As horns go, songs and combinations aside, this is my personal favorite.


The Capitals' Horn just makes me want to shoot somebody. I don't think the combination is bad, it just gets sort of annoying. Using sirens in hockey at all is a bad idea in my opinion.


The Sabres' horn is a popular one, and it uses a horn which I don't believe any other team uses. Now, I'm aware that they use a siren along with it, but it's more like an ambulance siren than a police siren. It isn't as loud and less emphasis is put on it, so it isn't that bad of a touch at all. The right amount of something that's usually annoying, when placed in the right spot, can actually be good.


Now let's take a look at some of the truly awful ones...

The Hurricanes' horn sounds like the horn is regurgitating:


I was never a big fan of the fog horn being used as a goal horn; it hurts your ears after a while. The Sharks' horn is the best example (by the way, ignore the awesome tech version of "Rock & Roll Part II" that follows- I'm just focusing on the horn here).


Okay let's just stop before my ears fall off.

Now that that's over, here's a good example of a pretty "generic" goal horn if you want a point of reference. It's the Flyers old goalhorn that was replaced for the 2005-06 season.

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Top 10 Flyers Postseason Moments

10) Three Straight to Steal the Lead and Put Away Montreal


9) One More Night To Celebrate (Before the Pittsburgh Massacre)


8) Briere's Goal Ignites the Crowd in the Home Opener


7) Umberger's Diving Rebound Goal vs. Montreal


6) Thoresen's Domino Job on Huet


5) Biron's shutout in Game 2 vs. Washington


4) 3 Goals in 2 minutes in Game 3 vs. Washington


3) Richards' First Career Playoff Goal on a Penalty Shot


2) Knuble's 2OT Goal vs. Washington


1) Lupul's Game 7 OT Goal

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Top 10 Postseason Moments

10) Huet's Remarkable Stop- In game 5 of the Caps' series against the Flyers, Cristobal Huet made a miraculous save that ended up being the difference maker in his team's 3-2 win.




9) "HOSSA!!!"- In one of the most electrifying plays of this postseason, Marian Hossa blew the roof off the Igloo during Game 5 of the second round with a series-winning overtime goal, leaving play-by-play man Mike Emrick only to proclaim "HOSSA!!!"




8) Umberger's Second Round- For somebody whose playoffs started with a demotion from the first to the fourth line, R.J. Umberger had a pretty amazing second round. His eight goals, some of them scrappy, some beautiful (such as the one in the video below), led the Flyers to a surprising 5-game series victory over the Canadiens.




7) Saves of the Century- In overtime of game 6 of the second round matchup between the Sharks & Stars, both Evgeni Nabokov and Marty Turco each made a miraculous, simply unbelievable save to keep their respective teams alive. Only the videos that follow can hope to illustrate how miraculous those saves were. It was these two mind-blowing stops that helped elevate this game to the status of one of the best of all-time...






6) There's No Place Like Home (Penguins Home Winning Streak)- When the Red Wings beat the Penguins at the Igloo on May 31st, it was the Penguins first home loss since February 24th and goalie Marc-Andre Fleury's first home loss since November 21st. Now, Fleury may have been out for a couple months, but the Penguins home play down the stretch was remarkable. Without it their easily-won playoffs series could have turned into nail-biters.


5) Os-Great- He didn't win the Conn Smythe, and didn't even start the season or postseason as the starter, but there's no denying that Chris Osgood was sensational this postseason, posting an unreal 1.55 Goals Against Average (the highest by .42) and a .930 save percentage. Osgood was on Detroit for their two cups in 1997 and 1998, then sort of faded away, but now has roared back with a spectacular performance this season. Detroit's unmatched success during the season was undoubtedly largely in part due to having probably the two best goaltenders in the league both on your team.





4) So Close, Yet So Far- Hardly anyone was counting down when the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup, because the Penguins were knocking hard on the doorstep. A spectacular two minutes from the Penguins, in which they poured on the offense, was just a bit too late to overcome their 3-1 deficit, as Marian Hossa was seconds and inches away from tying the game in the dying seconds.





3) A Fleury of Hope- The Penguins simply should not have won Game 5 of the finals, but they did thanks to superhuman goaltending by Marc-Andre Fleury. He had saves that were above and beyond the call of duty, allowing the Penguins to win depite the fact that Detroit dominated for most of the latter five periods.



2) Picking Up the Scraps- A season sold on the theme of "Vengeance" for the Flyers awful 2006-07 season might be better labeled as "Survival". The Flyers managed to squeeze into the playoffs after a season of multiple crushing injuries, depressing losing streaks, and disasterous lead-relinquishing. The Flyers' first round wasn't much different. They worked up to a 3-1 series lead, but then lost game 5. Game 6 in Philly, carrying the slogan "THIS is Game 7!" for Flyers' fans saw the Flyers go up 2-0 but then lose 4-2. The series culminated in a game 7 in Washington, which saw the Flyers struggle into overtime on the backs of two ugly goals, one trickling through Cristobal Huet's five hole, and the other after Patrick Thoresen dominoed a Capital into Huet, knocking him over leaving the Flyers with an empty net to score on. Yet, the Flyers pulled through in overtime, scoring on the power play to finally end the series. The Flyers organization, especially General Manager Paul Holmgren, deserves credit for fueling an amazing, often-overlooked turnaround this season.







1) Seventh Heaven- In one of the most electrifying games in NHL history, the Stars and Sharks played a stunning seven periods. However, this wasn't your grandmother's multi-overtime affair. The score may have been 2-1, but the unbelievable goaltending of Marty Turco and Evgeni Nabokov kept this game tied at one a lot longer than it should have been (with two unbelievable saves that made #5 on this list). The implications may have had a hand in the intensity of this game- the Stars were looking to put away the Sharks after two unsuccessful bids, and a loss would have been the Stars' third straight and would have forced a game 7 in San Jose making the Stars 3-0 series lead a distant memory.


Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Offseason Preview

Daniel Briere- $8 million
Simon Gagne- $5.25 million
Scott Hartnell- $4.7 million
Mike Knuble- $2.8 million
Joffery Lupul- $2.9 million
Sami Kapanen- $1.25 million
Scottie Upshall- $1.25 million
Mike Richards- $5.4 million
Kimmo Timonen- $8 million
Derian Hatcher- $3.5 million
Mike Rathje- $3.5 million
Lasse Kukkonen- $0.9 million
Braydon Coburn- $1.2 million
Dennis Gauthier- $2.2 million
Martin Biron- $3.5 million
Anterro Niitymaki- $1.375 million



In addition, here are a few Phantoms players who might come up at some point during the year, adding an amount of their salary to the cap proportional to the amount of the season they play...

Ryan Parent- $850,000
Steve Downie- $585,000
Dennis Tolpecko-$500,000
Claude Giroux-$850,000



This would leave the team with a Cap Hit of just over $50 million, leaving them about $8 million with the salary cap expected to be around $58 million. With only the players who aren't going to be free agents (and many Phantoms players added as necessary), the Flyers' lines would look (very vaguely) like this, using the rarely realistic assumption that the best players will always be on the better lines:

Gagne/Richards/Hartnell
Lupul/Briere/Knuble
Upshall/Downie/Kapanen
Greentree/Potulny/Giroux
-----
Timonen/Coburn
Hatcher/Kukkonen
Parent/Rathje



With $8 million to spend, that's not half bad. There clearly wouldn't be enough depth when it comes to forwards, and they still could really use a big-name defenseman. It's also important to note that Sami Kapanen might retire. With all this in mind, let's examine the Free Agents for the Flyers...


Restricted:
R.J. Umberger
Jeff Carter
Patrick Thoresen
Stefan Ruzicka
Ryan Potulny
Randy Jones
Nate Guenin

Unrestricted:
Jim Dowd
Riley Cote
Vaclav Prospal
Jesse Boulerice
Jason Smith
Rory Fitzpatick
Jaroslav Modry


The Flyers were clearly oversaturated with above-average forwards last year, with six players scoring over 20 goals. The forward that really jumps out as the target of most priority is Jeff Carter. The Flyers don't have a whole lot of centers, especially if Briere plays on the wing as he did in the latter part of this post-season. That being the case, I am almost certain that Paul Holmgren will make a strong attempt to ink Carter to a long term deal, even if it means outbidding the many other interested parties. I'd imagine Carter getting a four-year deal worth about $18 million. Carter recently said that he loves this franchise, so a Richards-like, long-term deal may be in order. One thing is clear- Carter will be one of the hottest Free Agents on the market this off-season, but Paul Holmgren has said he'll match any offer.

Here's the rundown of key forwards who might or might not test the market:

  • I expect the Flyers to re-sign Riley Cote, despite the fact that he's not very popular with th e fans. They didn't give him the "most improved player" award for nothing. He'll probably get a short-term deal around maybe $1 million a year.
  • I think the Flyers also liked what they saw from Patrick Thoresen, so I'd expect him to get the same as Cote.
  • R.J. Umberger proved his worth during the postseason, but I'd expect him to shop a bit for a team where he wouldn't get stuck on the fourth line going into the playoffs.
  • With Carter signed, Vinny Prospal is probably going to want more that the Flyers will offer, given the fact that their first two lines would be more that adequate without him. If he's willing to return for only a few million dollars, then a return seems probable. Besides, I'd be suprised to see the Flyers trade for him at the deadline and then not re-sign him.
  • Jimmy Dowd is probably going to retire, rather than sign a new contract with the Flyers or go into Free Agency.
  • Ruzicka, Potulny, and Boulerice are too minor for me to pass any sort of serious judgment on at the moment.

Otherwise, pretty much all the Free Agents seem expendable. They're all relatively easily replaceable, and I think the Flyers might want to sign (or trade for) another big-name defenseman, one that can provide depth beyond Timonen and Coburn. The conference finals left no doubt in anyone's mind that this is absolutely necessary. So, assuming Jeff Carter is signed, the Flyers would be left with about $4 million to spend.



As for the defensemen:

  • Jason Smith may be the captain, but his role for much of the season wasn't very large. He was checking very well in the playoffs, but the Flyers will be looking for speed next year, so his return is doubtful.
  • Randy Jones was given a big role with Timonen and Coburn down, suggesting that the Flyers will have an interest in having him return
  • Jaroslav Modry barely even played this postseason, so it seems unlikely the team will be interested in his services for 2009
  • Fitzpatick and Guenin I'm not going to pass judgement on, as they'll likely return to the Phantoms

Now, obviously the Flyers may choose to replace players such as Umberger or Guenin with comprable free agents, so one could hardly call this list definite. But, if things were to happen as above, the lines before other free agents are considered would look something like this:

Gagne/Richards/Hartnell
Lupul/Carter/Briere
Upshall/Umberger/Knuble
Kapanen/Downie/Cote
-----
Timonen/Coburn
Jones/Hatcher
Kukkonen/Parent



Now let's take a look at some other trade rumors and such (mostly coming from CSN's John Boruk) :


  • Mike Knuble and Scottie Upshall may be used as trade bait, given the Flyers large amount of depth in forwards.
  • Derian Hatcher and Sami Kapanen may be pushed into retirement, or otherwise their contracts may be bought out.

With the forward line combinations looking more than sufficient, the only thing left is to get that big-name defenseman. We've left a good $3-6 million in cap room, allowing us to have a pretty wide array of options. A defenseman could come in a trade, possibly involving Upshall or Knuble, but one couldn't hope to predict how that would play out

So, let's take a look at some of the top free agent defensemen available:


  • Mike Green
  • Wade Redden
  • Brian Campbell
  • Mark Streit
  • Jon Michael-Liles
  • Ron Hainsey
  • Michal Rozsival
  • Brad Stuart
  • Adam Foote
  • Mike Commodore
  • Rob Blake
  • Aaron Ward
  • Brooks Orpik


The names there that really stick out to me are Campbell and Green. I think it would be intriguing (to say the least) if Campbell played on a team with R.J. Umberger, who he gave a concussion with an earth-shattering hit a couple years back. He'll be a very hot commodity, though, so I'm not sure the Flyers would be able to afford him given the other expidentures I think they'll encounter this off-season. The key to this will be how much Jeff Carter ends up asking for. I'd imagine that the Flyers would give Campbell and 2-4 year deal, and probably a bit longer with Green. The main challenge in inking Green, besides money, would be the fact that he's very popular in Washington, and the Capitals have plenty of cap room should they want to keep him, and he's a restricted free agent so they can match any offer. Many of the guys towards the top of this list seem to be good possibilities, but any of them could really end up playing here next year.


So, if no trades were made this off-season, Mike Green was signed, Carter, Umberger, Thoresen, Jones and Cote were resigned, and Kapanen and Hatcher departed, our lines would come out vaguely like the following:

Gagne/Richards/Hartnell
Lupul/Carter/Briere
Upshall/Umberger/Knuble
Giroux/Downie/Cote
-----
Timonen/Coburn
Jones/Green
Kukkonen/Parent


This leaves us with one thing to adress, although you probably expected it to be skipped over- goaltender. As good as Marty Biron and Anterro Niitymaki are, I feel as if the Flyers might want to have a third option out there. Niitymaki could be traded to a team he could start for, and a little stronger competition might push Biron to up his game and gain consistency. So, with that in mind, let's browse some of the top free-agent goaltenders...



  • Jose Theodore
  • Olaf Kolzig
  • Cristobal Huet
  • Dominik Hasek
  • John Grahme
  • Johan Hedberg
  • Ty Conklin

We know right off the bat that Huet and Theodore aren't options, and Kolzig isn't good for this role either. I would loved to have seen Hasek acquired at the trade deadline (gasp!) but after his complaining about being a legend losing his starting job during the playoffs, I think he'll just retire again. I'd take him as a starter over Biron though, any day. Conklin might be able to get a starting job after his good run this year with the Penguins. That being said, I think dealing Niitymaki and getting Grahme or Hedberg could *potentially* be a good move, depending on what we could get for Niitymaki, and how much either of those two would want. Another goalie could break out, who knows.


So, with a potential roster set, who is going to be captain? Jason Smith is unlikely to return, and may even not be captain next season if he is. Mike Richards is the obvious choice, and he's been vouched for by pretty much everyone who'll talk about it, except himself- Richards, humble as ever, said he's not experienced enough to wear the "C" (as reported on philly.com). Kimmo Timonen, Derian Hatcher, Simon Gagne, and Daniel Briere would be other options. I think Richards may have a point about the experience factor, but he's probably going to be here for ten more years, so he's obviously going to be our man down the road. Maybe a tandem between him and Briere (whose signed for the next seven years) would work, with Timonen as the other assistant. I've always felt that Gagne was the often-overlooked perrenial favorite, but unfortunately for Gagne, Richards is the better choice.


Speaking of Gagne, his health might be a big issue down the road. Another concussion could possibly be career-threatening. The Flyers picked up the slack this past season without him (albeit only towards the very end of the season), but if I'm Paul Holmgren, I'd have the possibility of losing Gagne for an extended period of time in the back of my mind.


So, to review, the key priorities going into this off-season are as follows:


  • Re-sign Jeff-Carter
  • Get a speedy defenseman
  • Add more depth on the defensive end
  • Have a backup plan in case we lose Simon Gagne again
  • Continue to build the great nucleus they started last year with signing Richards & Briere to long-term deals