Poulin20 Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Its time for another installment of the STH meetings. Taking a cue from some other board members who have attended with me or in my place in the past I have recorded the presentations and will transcribe the interesting bits to you here. Since I have recorded them there is more info than when I did it from memory and so I will break them down into individual posts rather than 1 huge post with all the info. The first post will be the Hexy presentation. Hexy was introduced by the team as the "best GM in Philly" and entered to a rousing ovation. Several fans congratulated him on freeing up cap space and putting the team in a good position to succeed long term. The first question was about video replay and if it would be used to overturn bad penalty calls (the fan was intimating that the recent Gudas match penalties were bogus and could have been reversed by review). Hexy said that the reviews are long enough already and disrupt the flow of the game and there is no way they would use them ever to review penalties, although he agreed with the sentiment about the bad calls against Gudas. He said that there is talk to expand replay to verify whether or not a puck cleared into the crowd from the defensive zone cleared the glass cleanly or not (in order to assess a delay of game minor) but that is the only expansion being considered at this time. Next was a question about resigning Brayden Schenn, Hexy is not worried about him leaving as a RFA and said that "we will sit down this summer and hammer something out for him". Hexy went on to say that there is "no risk of losing him". Then there was a comment about how Hexy preaches patience all the time and that this particular STH felt that we have been patient so far and it has been hard. Hexy said he knows that we have been patient and appreciated it and there are days when it is hard for him to be patient as well. The STH then went on to ask if Hexy could let us know when more reinforcements were coming. Hexy said that he is absolutely not opposed to young guys making the lineup however he does not want to do anything to damage the career of any young guys over the long term. Hexy also said (as he has said in the past) that these guys need to appreciate how nice things are at the NHL level by spending some time in the minors. He gave the example of Morin whom he said is "having a good year and is playing 20-22 mins a night for LV. He said if he had come up in September flying on charters rather than buses he wouldn't have an appreciation for the NHL level and learning what it means to earn something in life. He said that none of us come out of college and become an executive right away, we need to work up to it. He said he doesnt want to take chances with the career of a young kid, especially a young defenseman and went on to say that he doesnt want to see him fail here, need a change of scenery and then thrive with another team. [If they are not ready to help the Flyers right now then there is no sense of them being here right now], is his philosophy. He went on to say that all too often a new kid comes up and plays big minutes his first night and then has them reduced as the league catches up to them and before they know it there are only playing a few minutes a night. Hexy said there is no sense in that which is why he likes them in the minors for now where apparently the top prospects are finding a lot of success playing big minutes, especially on the PP. Hexy also said that for next year they have ideas about who may be up (he would not disclose but said "you know our top prospects") he went on to say that if a kid comes into camp and shows the brass that they can contribute to the Flyers for a whole year (not just 2 weeks) then they are not necessarily opposed to them staying with the big club. He then told a story about Ghost and how in the beginning of the year he basically was a nothing player in the AHL. Then 20 games in or so he began to really take off and then Streit went down. They gave him the call up and if he didnt score the GWG vs Carolina he would have been back down again but he continued to progress at the NHL level and the "rest is history". His point was that the AHL experience was very valuable to Ghost (whom Hexy said would agree with that) and that it is an important part of the process and not a punishment in any way to any of the players (he also said "have you seen that new arena in LV? It is hardly a punishment to be there.") It is all about them helping the Flyers in a meaningful way, nothing more. Finally Hexy did tip his hand a little about next year saying "Quite homestly, if I'm a betting man we are going to have 1 or 2 of the young guys up with the Flyers at the beginning of the year and as the year goes on maybe even more". I then had an opportunity to ask about Jordan Weal and what the deal was with him and if he has a future with the Flyers. Hexy said he is caught up in a numbers game at the moment. He explained Weal was an AHL MVP and has mastered that level, however he had a hard time cracking the LA lineup which is stacked with good players and lots of depth. When we got him in the trade we were in the middle of our season and lots of our guys were playing well at the time. Also Hexy mentioned that we already have guys currently in our lineup who are his size and are playing the role that he would be suited for at the moment. They wanted to get him in the lineup but there have not been many opportunities to do so. Hexy said that this kid loves to play the game and is a highly skilled players (not the biggest or fastest however). Hexy said he will get a chance to prove himself (he was not sure when however..could even be as late as next season) but he will have to earn it and that he will definitely get a look at some point. Then there was a question about when the young defensemen come up, if they all come up on or near the same time if there are concerns about how they will mesh with an NHL lineup. Hexy agreed that all of them coming in at once, plus Ghost is a lot. He said it is going to be a process and it is going to take 2 or 3 years to get them all in. He also said dont forget that they wont all be ready at the same time. Hexy said he has a feeling that there will be at least 1 ready in October however again it goes back to their skill level and how much they can help the Flyers and not some formula about how we need to have X guys here now as this is our plan and we have to stick to it. He then went on to say he would be very surprised if 1 or 2 of the young guys are not up with the Flyers for at least part of the year next year but it will all be dictated by the players and their play. Hexy said the hardest part is keeping their roster flexibility as it is hard to try and keep the team together with enough forwards and defensemen and still have enough room for a young kid to come in and earn a spot. Hexy said the toughest part of his job is to try and predict and project all this kind of stuff. No matter what he said that they will not be ready all at the same time and will trickle into the lineup...maybe 1 at the beginning of the year and another later (middle to end of year). The final question was the plan for the upcoming draft do we take the best player or address our needs and will we look in Europe for FAs again as that produced PEB and Raffl? Hexy said that we will always pursue all avenues including Europe. Hexy then talked up PEB for a few minutes saying now here is a kid that cares, is all in, and wants nothing more than for the Flyers to win. He doesnt care about his own stats or anything like that, it is just all about the team winning in his eyes. Hexy said he wishes he had a few more players like him. Regarding the draft Hexy pointed out the obvious that we have many needs and are a little light in most areas. Hexy said that in a perfect world, no doubt we pick a forward with our first pick, however if there is a D man there who is better we could take him or move back in the draft. He said he cannot say for sure what would happen on draft day as it is all dictated by what players fall to where. Overall Hexy said he does subscribe to the best player available school of thought on drafting however if your need is great enough he would consiider a trade down to get the guy he wanted. Hexy said right now we are lacking in size and are looking for a big skilled LW and center and also big skilled defenseman who shoots right. He said the past draft and the upcoming one are rare as this will mark 2 years back to back the draft is extremely deep. He reminded us that they have 10 picks and he hopes they use them wisely. That concluded the Hexy portion of the meeting. I will post the others over the next few days! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claude Monet Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Great insight. Thanks, as always! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samifan Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 @Poulin20-Thanks for taking the time to share this stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fan4ever Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 @Poulin20 - As always, thanks for the great, in depth write up. Love having someone on the 'inside' so willing to take the time to share with us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canoli Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Thanks Poul - much appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlaskaFlyerFan Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 @Poulin20 , Thank you once again for sharing this information. Great write up!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyercanuck Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Awesome Mr. Poulin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pilldoc Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 @Poulin20 As everyone else has mentioned....GREAT JOB. Totally appreciate your time and energy to attend these events. Gives great insight. For the time being, because I know this will become a hot topic, I have pinned this thread to the top. At least for a few days until the topic dies down then i can unpin at. Again great job! Good to know Hexy has a plan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poulin20 Posted March 2, 2016 Author Share Posted March 2, 2016 Thanks Fellas for the kind words. I will write up the Hacks, Homer, and Chris Pryor ones in the coming days...I thought I would do the Hexy one first as it was the most interesting of the 4 sessions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pilldoc Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 I like Hexy's explanation on Weal. Is it possible that Weal could be dealt in the offseason? He is a RFA next year and only making $632K. He could be resigned cheaply. https://www.capfriendly.com/teams/flyers Again looking at the cap...McDud's contract is just so damm ugly! (banging head on wall screaming ..why Homer...why) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ8812 Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 32 minutes ago, pilldoc said: I like Hexy's explanation on Weal. Is it possible that Weal could be dealt in the offseason? He is a RFA next year and only making $632K. He could be resigned cheaply. https://www.capfriendly.com/teams/flyers Again looking at the cap...McDud's contract is just so damm ugly! (banging head on wall screaming ..why Homer...why) We arent going to get anything valuable for Weal since he's an unproven commodity at the NHL level. LA just threw him into our deal to open up a contract spot. I think we are better off re-signing him and giving him a shot to show us what he can do with the Flyers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Podein25 Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 9 hours ago, Poulin20 said: Hexy said right now we are lacking in size And players that play big. Thanks @Poulin20 as always. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OccamsRazor Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Thanks for taking the time to inform all of us who care. Great job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brelic Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 That's a very insightful read, @Poulin20. So appreciated! One thing that stood out is how much he values character with his strong support for Bellemare. I feel good knowing that Hextall is dialed in to those kinds of intangibles. I guess I always assumed it to be true, but to hear him say it gives me confidence. I would say that for that reason alone, Drouin will not be on the Flyers' radar. He sounds like the complete opposite of the type of player Hextall covets, one who has to ride buses and understand that you don't become an executive overnight. You have to earn your spot in the NHL, something Drouin has not done. I would also guess that Provorov is on the opening night roster. If there's a second player, I would say Konecny. The future is looking bright for the O&B. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJgoal Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Thanks for posting this Poulin. Very informative, as always. I keep saying this is what I'm picking if I can ever manage season tickets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojo1917 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 yeah Poulin20 thanks for your time with this, i enjoy reading what these guys are telling the STH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murraycraven Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 awesome @Poulin20 ... My favorite posts of the year! Did he say that Umberger would be bought out? Please!!!?!?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJgoal Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 3 minutes ago, murraycraven said: awesome @Poulin20 ... My favorite posts of the year! Did he say that Umberger would be bought out? Please!!!?!?! Unless the Flyers are going to be big players in free agency, it doesn't really make sense to buy out Umberger. He has one year left, and the free agent crop isn't such that you're going to be missing out on much. You have to sign some of our own guys, but you're not looking at a big outlay of cash on that front. You could buy him out, but I'm not sure it will be necessary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radoran Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 14 minutes ago, AJgoal said: Unless the Flyers are going to be big players in free agency, it doesn't really make sense to buy out Umberger. He has one year left, and the free agent crop isn't such that you're going to be missing out on much. You have to sign some of our own guys, but you're not looking at a big outlay of cash on that front. You could buy him out, but I'm not sure it will be necessary. It's not the worst idea in the world, either, if you think that some of the younger guys could use some time and probably contribute about as much as Umburglar for much less price and gain experience going forward. The downside is a $1.5M cap hit in 17-18. The upside is no more RJ Umburglar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poulin20 Posted March 3, 2016 Author Share Posted March 3, 2016 56 minutes ago, murraycraven said: awesome @Poulin20 ... My favorite posts of the year! Did he say that Umberger would be bought out? Please!!!?!?! Unfortunately that question was not asked in our session in fact Umburglar was not mentioned at all. I have to think that someone in one of the sessions asked it at some point. I wish I would have thought of it. I was too interested on why Weal wasn't getting a look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pilldoc Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 5 minutes ago, radoran said: The downside is a $1.5M cap hit in 17-18. The upside is no more RJ Umburglar. To the tune of the TV show ... The Facts of Life... (I know kind of quirky.... ) You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have The facts of life, the facts of life. There's a time you got to go and show You're growin' now you know about The facts of life, the facts of life. When the world never seems to be livin up to your dreams And suddenly you're finding out the facts of life are all about you, you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJgoal Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 7 minutes ago, radoran said: It's not the worst idea in the world, either, if you think that some of the younger guys could use some time and probably contribute about as much as Umburglar for much less price and gain experience going forward. The downside is a $1.5M cap hit in 17-18. The upside is no more RJ Umburglar. Well, I'd rather sit Umberger as your 14th forward than a kid, and if you buy him out then you need to find that experienced guy to sit in the pressbox in his place. If you really, really, need the cap space/roster spot, then sure. I'm just not sure it's necessary at this point. Will also depend on what the cap does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radoran Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Just now, AJgoal said: Well, I'd rather sit Umberger as your 14th forward than a kid, and if you buy him out then you need to find that experienced guy to sit in the pressbox in his place. If you really, really, need the cap space/roster spot, then sure. I'm just not sure it's necessary at this point. Will also depend on what the cap does. hockeyscap (now capfriendly) has them at $8.3M and change in cap space* going into next season with: 10 forwards 5 defensemen 2 goalies Schenn/Cousins/Gudas/Weal RFA I could see Schenn eating up half of that right out of the gate. Cousins/Weal back to the AHL? Gudas likely in the $1-1.5M range? Do they re-sign White ($800+K?)? Manning ($635+K?)? Medvedev ($3+M)? Do Proviewit or Konecny make the squad out of the gate? ($925K each) Things can get a little tight where that $3M from Umburglar could come in handy. And it means that there's not likely a fit on the LW in the UFA market. A guy can dream, right? * That also includes $2.25M for VLC if he decides not to retire. That can certainly play into this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OccamsRazor Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 16 minutes ago, AJgoal said: Well, I'd rather sit Umberger as your 14th forward than a kid, and if you buy him out then you need to find that experienced guy to sit in the pressbox in his place. If you really, really, need the cap space/roster spot, then sure. I'm just not sure it's necessary at this point. Will also depend on what the cap does. Yes it would be nice if the buy out could be taken into the season and used at any time it would make the decision easier...a little but it can't so you have to use it before the season starts and only within a certain window. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJgoal Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 3 minutes ago, radoran said: * That also includes $2.25M for VLC if he decides not to retire. That can certainly play into this. Medvedev doesn't seem to be in their plans. Schenn certainly could get 4.5-5. after that, I don't know. If VLC thought he was a pariah in Philly, I don't want to know what would happen to his reputation if he changed his mind on retiring in LA. Obviously there's nothing binding, but I'm pretty sure even his agent let it be known he was done after the season - so it'd be hard to say "I never said that," with a straight face. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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