Philadelphia Flyers

[Flyer Fan]

Flyer Fan, this is a slightly off-the-bell-curve kinda question. Is there a Giroux hat-trick dance I can perform?

I'm in the playoffs this week, losing my shirt, and am in need of some sort of miracle. Appreciate the time.

Signed,
Bombing in Buffalo

Thanks bombing, that's an interesting question,

and in the past there have been certain ceremonial dances performed by fans that seemed to bring at least moderate success.

Unfortunately most of these dances ceased immediately after the fans were subsequently ripped by Flyers Captain Mike Richards during a radio interview:

"These are guys that have come in the league and haven't earned respect," Richards told the radio station. "It's just frustrating to see young fans like that come in here, perform goal dances, and so much as think that they're better than a lot of people. You have to earn respect in this league. It takes a lot. You can't just come in here as a rookie and dance like that. It's not the way to get respect from other fans around the league. Hopefully someone in their seating section addresses it, because, uh, I'm not saying I'm going to do it, but something might happen to them if they continue to be that cocky."


So while Claude Giroux goal dances are not reccomended, there have been individuals recently who have tried to gain additional defensive production out of him using some ancient mystical chanting and ceremonies.

Sadly, I don't have an actual transcript of the ritual, but I believe the chant is something like the ancient Hopi Indian version I was able to find on the internet (so you know it has to be legitmate), and posted below.

Ancient Hopi Indian Mystical Claude Giroux Fruitful Harvest Chant:

"WTF are you doing out there?
Get your bleeping head out of your bleeping $#$%.
This ain't bleeping Brampton anymore ya know.
Time to grow the #%$ up.
You were making the same bleeping dumbassed careless mistakes a year ago.
It was bleeping horseshit then, and it's bleeping horseshit now.
but WTF, I guess some people never bleeping learn."



I'm told, you may have to repeat this a few times for the desired effect, and that it helps if you're wearing some sort of frightening "death face" when you say it too. (something to do with the mysterious spirit world I guess)

Good luck!

[Flyer Fan]

The Flyers today announced that forward Jody Shelley will be out for 4 weeks with a fractured orbital bone after being struck by a puck during yesterday's practice.

The team has recalled D Danny Syvret from the Phantoms.

Of fantasy note: Shelley's injury figures to keep Dan Carcillo and Andreas Nodl in the lineup down the stretch, and leaves Zherdev as the next available forward if someone gets dinged.

pim and peripheral stats boost for carcillo owners, a little less pressure for the struggling Nodl, and Zherdev now one injury away from getting a chance.

Laviolette likes Versteeg with Richards, wasn't happy with Nodl's lack of production on the other wing, ....Nodl figures to get one more shot, but conceivably Carcillo could get a look there as well.

The fourth line figures to remain Betts, Powe and whichever of Carcillo or Nodl isn't playing on Richards line.

Carcillo gives that line a gritty edge, but makes it a little weaker defensively.

Nodl on the other hand adds speed and checking skill.

/either configuration would be a line who's abilities and ability to impact the game are far greater than the available ice time will allow.

All in all I suppose not having enough icetime for your fourth line is I guess a good problem to have.

[Flyer Fan]

Add Meszaros to the list of players benefiting from the additional icetime being given to him.

Read an interview recently where he said that upon learning he had been traded to the Flyers this summer, he made a conscious decision to try to play more physically that he had in the past. He has, and is currently second on the team in hits behind only Powe.

More importantly paired with Coburn and getting the icetime, he's shown that he's capable of handling it, and is looking look like a very good "3-4" defenseman.

Come playoff time, and with the return of Pronger the Flyers figure to be light years ahead of where they were last season at this time with regards to their third defense pairing. However it's configured, the team's third pairing figures to be able to take some of the load off of the top 4 without being exploited as was the case even in limited minutes last season.

Maybe I'm alone in this, but Timonan seems to me to have regressed into a 3-4 guy, albeit a good one. Father time always wins eventually I guess.

Coburn continues to impress, and Carle seems to be proving he's a legit 3-4 guy and not just a lucky passenger on the Pronger bus.

The absence of Pronger's leadership seems to be a bigger loss to this team than the absence of Pronger's play. The team seems downright bored with the regular season.

Bobrovsky's play yesterday, and in the Pens game went a long way in quieting concerns in the media about the Flyers goaltending heading into the playoffs.

One reporter even asked Holmgren if were considering trying to recall Leighton ( ...another team could claim him for half his salary, but wouldn't be able to use him in the playoffs)

Bobrovsky's history seems to indicate that he's a big game goalie, he seemed pretty much impervious to pressure when competing for a roster spot, or in rebounding from a bad game all season. I think he'll be just fine, ...it's been a long season, practically impossible to be mentally and physically sharp for every game, ...particularly on a team that seems to be comfortable with it's position, and biding it's time waiting for another shot at the cup.

Sean O'Donnell was interviewed by a local radio station after yesterday's game in Long Island, and said he feels good physically. Also added that he saw two Islanders players challenging Carcillo before the opening faceoff, so he figured he'd let Carcillo fight one, and he'd oblige the other.

Goes to show, there are at least some teams who do notice when there's not a heavyweight in the lineup. The Isles have a few decent fighters on the roster, but they're not an overall tough or physical team. Doesn't seem to be a viable identity for them to grab without revamping the roster a bit.

Pronger's rehab has advanced to the point that he's handling the puck.

JVR scored his first NHL hatrick, and seemed to be skating well. Hartnell quietly had a real strong game, hitting and skating.

Yesterday's game was a good reminder of how tough this team will be to match up against for a playoff opponent. Enough size, speed, and skill there to beat you a number of ways, and enough depth to do it even if you manage to shut the "big guns" down.

[Flyer Fan]

Kimmo Timonen missed the third period the other day, and is now being listed as "day to day" with a lower body injury.

(any speculation that it's mild hip pointer and that he's already feeling much better and expects to play; would be probably be an irresponsible internet rumor)

The Flyers effort vs. the Pens was probably their best in the last month or so. The work of the Briere, Hartnell, and Leino line in particular stood out both on the ice and on the scoreboard.

Nodl was playing mostly with Giroux and Carter, JVR with Richards and Versteeg.

The Richards, JVR, Versteeg combo looks to be an interesting playoff line given all three of the players trackrecord for increased production in the post season.

Not too shabby a third line at any rate.

[Flyer Fan]

Two games, two good efforts, two bad bounces, two losses for the Flyers.

Good.

Maybe a little adversity, and learning that they can lose even if they do "show up" will help shake some of the complacency off.

Nodl found himself back in the press box this time in favor of Zherdev who logged almost 18 minutes; most of them with Carter and Giroux and actually looked pretty good last night.

His insertion into the lineup is a good indicator of both his continued good effort in practice, and Laviolette's frustration with Nodl.

Carcillo remained in the lineup, but still isn't getting much ice time. Nor is Boyton for that matter, ...looks like Lavs doesn't have much confidence in the guy, and views him strictly as a last resort.

Coburn, Carle, Meszaros, and the slightly hobbled Timonen are the horses right now.

Pronger suffered what is being called a "small setback" and is now expected to be out until the start of the playoffs.

Given the Flyers position in the standings and the strong play of the above mentioned defenders, the biggest obstacle this seems to present to the team is that of leaving the first power play unit still in a state of flux going into the playoffs.

Laviolette downplayed concerns about a lack of leadership in the dressing room with both Pronger and Shelly being out. There seems to be a slowly gathering crowd starting to look at Mike Richards' captaincy though, ...unthinkable a year ago.

For what it's worth, Richards isn't alone in feeling the team can't/won't prove anything until the playoffs start he's just a little more honest about expressing it, and now with the team struggling abit, some people feel that that attitude has had a detrimental effect on the team's motivation/play.

I can agree with that, but at the same time, it's been an attitude that's permeated the entire organization, and while frustrating at times, it isn't nescesarily wrong.

This is a team that's always played best with their backs to the wall, that sneaked into the playoffs last season on a shootout victory on the last day of the season. The regular season was nothing more than a qualifier then, and despite everyone's best efforts at pretending otherwise, it's nothing more than a qualifier now.

The team, the GM, the coach, and in fact the entire organization have been aware for some time that the "success" of this season rests entirely on whether this team wins the cup.

Whether it's been Holmgren's trading of draft picks for Meszaros and Versteeg, postpoing re-signing Leino, or signing vets like O'Donnell and Shelley, or Laviolette's careful monitoring of icetime throughout the season, this organization has gone "all in" to win the cup this season, anything less is a fail, and everyone from the owner to the coaches to the players to the stickboys knows this.

Richards is merely stating the obvious.

[Flyer Fan]

Tough week for Holmgren's plan of replenishing the team's prospect pool via undrafted free agents.

The Flyers lost Stephane Da Costa to Ottawa, and now Andy Miele has signed with Phoenix.

They did snag Harry Zolnierczyk a forward from Brown though.

[Flyer Fan]

From what I've learned about Zolnierczy, another, agressive, mid sized, hard nosed, modestly skilled checking winger (29 GP, 15G, 16A, 31PTS, 128PIM)

...apparently Homer's attempting to emulate the recent success the Calgary Flames have had stockpiling such players. <---- (that was a sarcastic way of saying "very limited upside beyond a checking or engergy role")

Asked whether he was disappointed by the teams inability to sign Miele or Da Costa or add a prospect, Holmgren said he was not, and pointed out that the team already had one, so adding another like Da Costa or Miele would have been kind of redundent. He then went on to mention that the Flyers lost interest in competing for Da Costa once they realized that he was French, and not French-Canadian as they had originally thought. (It was a similar mixup last season that had led to the team's mistakenly trading for Ville Leino, Holmgren noted) <---- This is a satorical paragraph

Back to serious stuff:

Bobrovsky's expected to start today, Briere is out with what's being labeled as "lower body soreness". If I find any additional info, I'll post it.

Forgot to mention when to talking about Pronger's absence and the affect it has on the powerplayer: For some reason Laviolette has been using a fourth forward at one of the point positions in Pronger's absence.

Last game, JVR (why you would select JVR for the role is another question I have) was caught as the lone defender back defending against a shorthanded 2 on 1, ...it wasn't pretty.

Hard to believe that from a group that includes a seven time 40 point defenseman like Timonen, and three young 35+ point scorers (Coburn once, Meszaros three times, Carle three times including one 40+), that the team would be fishing amongst the forward group for a replacement.

Further the team has re-called D Danny Syvret from the Phantoms for today's game.

Zherdev's play would seem to indicate him getting another shot today. Carcillo didn't see enough icetime to really make an impression, so it's possible that he gets pulled today if Lavs wants to give Nodl another shot, but my guess is that against the Rangers, Carcillo stays in the lineup.

Jody Shelley is making a faster than projected recovery from his orbital bone fracture/surgery and is now practicing with the team again; wearing a full face shield, he's expected to be available to play friday night.

Ian Laperriere. (just because )

[TK12555]

Let's go Flyers!

[TK12555]

The one time i cheer for the flyers....damn Bobrovsky.

[Flyer Fan]

In Philadelphia fans and media are still trying to remain calm now that the unthinkable has happened.

...That's right, Danny Syvret has found his way back into the lineup again, and played almost 15 minutes against the Rangers. Local officials all calling on all citizens to remain calm. (seriously, he looked fine). Syvret's also expected to be in the lineup tonight again in favor of Nick Boyton, which kind of tells you all you need to know about Laviolette's asessment of the trading deadline aquisition's ability to help this team during the playoffs.

The Flyers put up another decent effort against the Rangers, outplayed them, but lost in the shootout. Turns out that superior goaltending can sometimes overcome a team's being outplayed. Who'ld have thunk it?

Ville Leino was amongst those feeling Laviolette's wrath, being benched in the third period. He wasn't happy about it, and is scheduled to become a UFA so it bears noting.

Leino, Briere, and Hartnell have been the Flyer's best line for large stretches of the season, ...their play has dropped off at times as all three are prone to occassional bouts of "dissapearingitis", but their chemistry and return to production have left them pretty much immune to Laviolette's icetime/roster motivational tactics.

Briere's absence meant that the line was already "broken up" in Laviolette's mind, and thus Hartnell and Leino were vulnerable to the same treatment guys like Carcillo, Nodl, JVR, Zherdev, etc have been subjected to all season long, ...it's a good thing. Leino will be fine and back at it.

Speaking of Zherdev, he had another strong game and figures to get an extended opportunity with Briere and Betts figuring to be out tonight. I know Dobber has suggested that Zherdev's icetime has come at the expense of Leino, but that's incorrect. Leino's played almost exclusively this season with Hartnell and Briere. It's been the Laviolette's most stable line, Zherdev's defensive weakness and Laviolette's unwillingness to break up that line have meant that any icetime Zherdev's gotten has been with either Carter, Richards, or Giroux.

Briere's absence does give the Flyers a chance to explore some other line combinations, but in practice it's been Jeff Carter who's been moved between Leino and Hartnell, ...Hartnell has had some success with Carter in the past, and seems to playing a smart(er), physical game latley, staying out of the box etc.

Giroux and Zherdev teamed up for a pretty goal against the Rangers, and imho if Zherdev is to remain in the lineup after Briere returns, this is where he's going to have to play (bumping Nodl), defensively he's still a liability, but he at least has the skill and mindset to contribute offensively to what Giroux and Carter are doing. Nodl's a much more reliable defensive player, but his lack of offensive ability pretty much leaves Carter and Giroux playing a two man game, and Nodl's checking ability isn't enough to keep this line from being defensively vulnerable, ...on the other hand making it more of an offensive force by adding Zherdev will make it a tough line to defend against.

JVR meanwhile has responded quite well to Laviolette's icetime restrictions etc, and is skating and hitting, and chipping in offensively, he has the ability to play with Carter and Giroux as well, and could potentially add a nice physical element to the line, ...but he's also prone to running around unproductively in his zone at times. I still feel that his best usage would be with Richards and Versteeg.

Richards quietly seems to be ramping up his game lately, while Versteeg's been "okay", I'm expecting both of these guys to be monsters in the playoffs, JVR could go along for the ride and add to that. Failing that Nodl would be satisfactory defensively, ...that is, he wouldn't hurt, but there's not alot for him to add to that combo from a physical or offensive standpoint, and Zherdev's 'off the rush" offensive game isn't a good mesh with Richards, ...I keep coming back to JVR as being the guy to put here.

The team has recalled Ben Holmstrom for the Phantoms with Shelley still a few days away, and the team being ultra conservative (or resting) in their treatment of Betts and Briere.

Both Brier and Betts could and would play if tonight's game against the Sens were a playoff game, ...another subtle indicator of the "it's the playoffs that matter" attitude that has permeated the organization this season.

[Flyer Fan]

The Flyers have quietly placed Leighton on re-entry waivers at noon today and are attempting to sneak him through. ....SShhhhhhh!

(just spitballing here, but I'm thinking that maybe trying to do so with Leighton coming off of back to back shutouts, probably wasn't the best time to try this)

Admittedly, Leighton would be of no use this season to any NHL club having not been on the team's roster at the trade deadline and inelligible to play, ...but signed through next season, at the half rate number of $855,000 Leighton would seem to have value as an attractive inexpensive backup option for an NHL club, and more importantly he would have value now to an NHL club looking to bolster their AHL affiliate's playoff goaltending.

I don't follow the AHL closely enough to know their eliegibility rules, or which teams might be interested, ...but adding an NHL goaltender to an AHL club looking to make a run at the Calder Cup, and then retaining an inexpensive trading chip for the NHL club down the line would seem to be an attractive option.

[dyzfunctioned]

Flyers have lost 13 of last 19. Ugly.

[Flyer Fan]

Flyers have lost 13 of last 19. Ugly.

Amazing isn't it! They flat out got outworked last night!

Nothing else to say.

[Flyer Fan]

It's 11:06 AM, according to reports, Michael Leighton was placed on re-entry waivers at noon yesterday, so there's less than an hour left for someone to claim him. I'll post anything I hear.

[horrorfan]

Do you have any thoughts or insight on Bobrovsky starting this weekend? With the B2B, I'm guessing that he'll split them with Boucher but unsure who will play on which day.