Even though the Flyers finished with 99 points and made the playoffs, last season was sort of considered a disappointment. Due to the fact they were division contenders and lost out to New Jersey, and also lost in the first round to their state rivals Pittsburgh, in a series in which they were dominated. Injuries did hamper this club, as they lost one of their Frenchmen forwards Daniel Briere for extended periods of time. If healthy he can vastly change the Flyers’ outlook.
After getting tossed around by Pittsburgh in last season’s playoff series, the Flyers went out and acquired defensemen Chris Pronger. Considered to be the dirtiest player, Pronger can still play the game at a high level, both defensively and offensively. He will fit in nicely to a team that likes to play the physical part of the game. With this move, the Flyers have really improved their defense, which has a nice mix of youth, skill, veteran leadership and just some good defensive players.
Following up on Pronger is Kimmo Timonen, a smart veteran player that is more finesse than physical. He and Pronger will be perfect compliments to each other if on the same pairing. For instance both Pronger and Timonen can carry the puck and make a smart first pass out of the zone. Both can score points from the back end, and if Pronger plays with an edge, which is almost certain, that will free up Timonen to easily work the puck out of the zone. Look for some quick offensive rushes with that duo on the ice.
One player that has developed nicely with the Flyers over the years is Randy Jones. What a quiet player who gets the job done, and plays hard each and every night. Just like Pronger, Jones plays that physical style and it has worked beautifully for him.
With the youth the Flyers have, it was a problem in last season’s playoff series, but the Flyers have smart youth with great upside. Of the four young defensemen they have, two of them are almost guaranteed spots on the defense, Matt Carle and Ole Tollefsen. For Carle a prospect that was touted as being an offensive-defenseman has not lived up to the hype so far, as he has played on three different teams in two years. His offensive numbers are okay, but can be better, but his defensive game needs some work, maybe he will get back on track, because this will be his first full season in Philadelphia and with a training camp. With Tollefsen, he isn’t a physical player, but a smooth skater. His skills still need developing, which may lead to a demotion to the AHL which will suit him best, because the Flyers have one of the better farm systems in the NHL.
The other two young defensemen are Braydon Coburn and Ryan Parent. Both have good skill, are smart players, but have not found that consistency in their games just yet. Of these two, the player with the best chance at cracking the lineup will be Braydon Coburn, who has had more experience and has grown into a solid player.
The Flyers will have a good defense this season led by Pronger and Timonen, with excellent pairs behind them to follow. There still is one problem, the Flyers could have the best defense, but what this team doesn’t have, and has not had the past eight years or so is goaltending. Right now listed on the depth charts are Brian Boucher and Ray Emery. We all know and have seen that Boucher cannot handle the number one goaltending duties. The Flyers took a chance on Emery bringing him back to the NHL after he spent a season in Russia playing in the KHL, where it was reported that Emery did not get enough playing time and wasn’t getting paid on a regular basis. Emery has shown he can play and led Ottawa to the Stanley Cup Final in 2007. After that he was unfairly cut loose, but his numbers were good enough to stick around with Ottawa. Still, Emery is an erratic player who plays by his own rules, and maybe his attitude will change this season with the second chance that he is getting.
Now for offense, something the Flyers won’t have a problem with doing, score goals. Leading the team in scoring and for goals scored was Jeff Carter, with 46 goals and 84 points. Scoring 46 again is always tough to repeat, but he should at least hit forty goals, and tally another eighty points. Second on the team in scoring was team captain Mike Richards, with 80 points. His thirty goals were huge as well. Simon Gagne finally played a full season and showed why he is lethal when healthy, because he is a threat to score 30+ plus goals anytime. Last season scored he 34 to finish second on the team. Just for good measure the Flyers had another thirty goal scorer in Scott Hartnell who finished up with 30. These four players should all repeat last season’s success or at least come very close to matching it. For Carter and Richards those were career years, so they could even do better with all that upside they have.
The Flyers will get even more help as Daniel Briere looks healthy and ready to go. If Briere stays healthy he should be able to lead the team in scoring and finish with ninety points. Last season the Flyers also saw the emergence of prospect Claude Giroux as he got into 42 games and score 27 points. He has a strong chance to make the Flyers right out of training camp.
The Flyers this season should have two maybe three good scoring lines, and have a fourth line that will create havoc and get into the oppositions’ face.
OVERALL--> THE FLYERS WILL HAVE GOOD SUCCESS THIS SEASON AND WILL BATTLE PITTSBURGH FOR THE DIVISION TITLE.
POSITIVE--> GREAT DEPTH ON OFFENSE WITH THE CORE GROUP HAVING ALREADY DEVELOPED INTO STARS. DEFENSE IS WELL BALANCED WITH GOOD DEFENSE AND OFFENSE.
NEGATIVE--> GOALTENDING MAY JUST BECOME A WEAK POINT ON THIS TEAM IF RAY EMERY DOESN’T PLAY LIKE HIS OLD SELF.
X-FACTOR--> THERE ARE TWO ON THIS TEAM, JEFF CARTER AND MIKE RICHARDS. THEY SHOWED LAST SEASON THAT THEY CAN LEAD THIS TEAM AND CAN STILL PLAY AT A HIGH LEVEL IF LINE MATES ARE INJURED. IF THESE TWO PRODUCE LIKE LAST SEASON, THIS TEAM WILL HAVE NO PROBLEM GETTING INTO THE PLAYOFFS.
SLEEPER PICK--> THERE IS TWO ON THIS TEAM. ONE, CLAUDE GIROUX, HE SHOULD GET AN OPPORTUNITY TO PLAY A FULL SEASON AND IF HE DOES, SHOULD BE ABLE TO SCORE 40-45 POINTS. TWO, RAY EMERY, HE WILL BE THE STARTER TO START THE SEASON, AND HE MAY JUST WIN 25-30 GAMES.
PREDICTION--> THE PHILADELHIA FLYERS WILL MAKE THE PLAYOFFS AND FINISH IN THE TOP FOUR IN THE EAST.
The opinions and thoughts expressed in this or any other article written by 12nadnuk are of his thinking and what he thinks is correct or close to it in the sporting world. If there are any problems by anyone, 12nadnuk is open for rebuttal and what not, and honest criticism. There is also a comments section, so feel free to post what is on your mind about the article. Thank you for reading.
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