BobbyClarkeFan16

I think Konecny, Lindblom and Patrick are going to have monster years under Vigneault. He'll simplify things and they'll take off. They play the game the way he likes it.

I like Boldy. Big kid that can skate and has incredibly soft hands and a high IQ, plus a non-stop motor. He's also a full 200 foot player, which will appeal to the Flyers if he's still available at 11 (I have a sneaking suspicion that Edmonton and Vancouver might be interested). If he's gone when the Flyers pick, I hope the Flyers swing for the fences and select Arthur Kaliyev. The more I think about it, the more they need a pure offensive player who makes things happen in the offensive zone. The guy can finish and he's magic on his off wing. This is a boom-type pick, especially when you read his coach say that Kaliyev has really worked on other areas of his game and that he's still a work in progress, but things are coming together. I'm fine with either guy.

In all fairness to Hextall, those shooters are coming. Farabee, Frost, Ratcliffe are just three examples. You can also add Laberge to the list as he showed goal scoring acumen in the 15 games he played in Lehigh Valley. Rubtsov will also be a goal scorer. Don't forget that Konecny got 24 this year while getting next to no power play time. Lindblom got 17 and he played nearly a third of the season on the fourth line. Get him time on the PP and he's good for 25. The offense is a work in progress right now and until the offense is ready to blossom, the Flyers are going to have to play a defense-oriented system at first and they're going to have to be opportunistic. What I do expect is that when Knoblauch is let go and a new PP coach comes in, they'll get PP1 back on track by having Giroux on the left side to tee up bombs and I expect that PP2 will be given some much needed attention and that we'll see it blossom with Lindblom, Patrick, Konecny, Meyers and Sanheim all on it.

This is a direct result of the crap system Hakstol had them play. The Hakstol system was entirely perimeter-based hockey. Anyone else notice that as soon as Davey Dumb Dumb let them play in the middle, they often took it to the other teams? He was such a **** waffle that caused so much discord.

I'm not moving on Frost. I think he hits his projected ceiling and he's the Giroux replacement for a long time. Honestly, I'd be more inclined to move Nolan Patrick over Morgan Frost.

It could be worse. Fact is, Vigneault is going to bring in structure and discipline. People talked about him not using young players, but in Vancouver and New York, but both teams pretty much stripped the farm systems of youth and depth in order to compete for a Stanley Cup. And let's be honest, in 2010 - 2011, nobody predicted Tim Thomas would go on a run like no other and help Boston win the Stanley Cup. His performance was one of the ages. Nobody predicted that to happen. Vigneault comes to Philadelphia with a boatload of youth available to him. If anything, I expect he's going to embrace the youth and really help them get their games to the next level. If you take a look everywhere he's been (minus Montreal and as an assistant in Ottawa), players really thrived under his watch. His teams also played very cerebral and smart hockey. He's got some good veterans in Philadelphia he can lean on and he'll be able to trust the young players. We heard from Fletcher and Gordon about the Flyers lack of discipline and not being difficult to play against because they left the center ice area open. That's going to change. We're also going to witness the defense become more active and we're going to see more defense-led rushes. I'm willing to give him a chance. It can't be any worse than what we subjected to in the Haktard era. Couturier, Patrick, Konecny, Lindblom, Farabee, Frost, Provorov, Sanheim, Gostisbehere, Morin and Meyers will all thrive under Vigneault. I'm cautiously optimistic.

Personally, I'm a Brock Nelson fan. I think with the way the Flyers are built, Duchene will be out of the question. Don't forget that he talked about Tavares and free agency and honestly, I think he's looking for a $10+ million pay out. No thanks. If the Flyers bring in Brock Nelson, I'd construct things as follows: Giroux - Couturier - Konecny Lindblom - Patrick - Voracek JVR - Nelson - Connolly (I really want Connolly from Washington to man the 3RW spot) Raffl - Laughton - Hartman UFA extra I'm thinking we're going to see the end of NAK in the Philadelphia organization. I also like that this doesn't rush Farabee or Frost into the lineup. Let them go to Lehigh Valley and have a year uninterrupted. Let all these guys plays together (Laberge, Bunnaman, Farabee, Frost, Rubtsov, Ratcliffe, etc....) and just let them learn and win together. Winning breeds familiarity and then next season, when training camp rolls around, they can really push guys on the roster and can probably land spots. Just let them play in all situations and win together. As for defense, I do the following: Provorov - Karlsson Sanheim - Gudas Morin - Meyers Friedman I thought Trouba might be the guy they target, but I think the asking price will be outrageous. With regards to Karlsson, if San Jose wanted him around, he would have been signed by now. I think there's some smoke to the story that his wife did not want to leave Ottawa and that she wants to be close to Ottawa, so the teams on the Eastern Seaboard will have a chance at him. Right now, the Flyers have the most money and the most assets to compete immediately. Having Karlsson onboard also means the Flyers have an all star veteran compliment to their youngsters, and I can only see positive things from Karlsson affecting Provorov, Sanheim and Meyers. The sad news in all of this is that it means it's the end of Ghost here. I would have loved to keep Ghost here and learn from Karlsson, but it's clear that there's a disconnect between the Flyers brass and Ghost and that maybe he needs a new start somewhere else. I can see a deal centered on picks and prospects to keep the pipeline full in Philadelphia. The good news with Karlsson signing is that we'll finally see the end of MacDumbDumb and Hagg. Good riddance to both! Finally, the Flyers need a competent and capable backup to Hart. Looking at the list of UFAs, there'd only be two guys I'd be interested in - Semyon Varlamov and Robin Lehner. You've got veterans who are capable starters and could help mentor Hart along. Some might disagree, but I think one of these guys would be a great fit. Remember, we're probably going to see some sort of sophmore jinx with Hart as well, so having one of those guys would certainly help in case that does happen. Having someone help lift the heavy load of expectations on Hart's shoulders will certainly help. So yeah, that's my lineup I want to see. As for coach, I'm starting to think that Vigneault is probably going to be the guy they hire. Hopefully he gets to bring in his own assistants too. I want to see the end of Laperriere and Knoblauch. Let Rick Wilson retire gracefully and let Dillabaugh decide where he wants to go or if he wants to stay (he's done good work with Hart, so I see no reason for him to go -> I know some will point to Elliott, Neuvirth and Mrazek as reasons why he should go, but it's not his fault that Elliott fell apart, Neuvirth was always hurt and Mrazek never listened to instruction).

I doubt Fletcher adds a lot of vets. I see some big UFA signings (I'm looking at possibly one of Kevin Hayes/Brock Nelson at center and Karlsson on D <- I honestly believe he'll want to be closer to Ottawa to his wife's parents while not being in Ontario or Quebec) and a possible trade for a good, reliable back up goalie, but I don't see any guys like Meyers, Morin, etc...being dispatched. I also think that Fletcher moves on from Hagg and MacDonald and possibly has an auction for Gudas or Gostisbehere. There's going to be a chance for the kids to make the club, but they're really going to have to earn it. As for head coach, I grew up in Ottawa when Alain Vigneault was THE coach in the area when he was the bench boss for the Hull Olympiques and they were the top team in the country. They had great defense, great goaltending and an incredible offense. Plus the team was incredibly young, so I'm not convinced that he can't work with younger players. I think he might be a bit tougher on them in order to coach out bad habits though and I think he's going to have to be a little bit more hands on in his approach. Of course, we don't know the full list of candidates, but if Fletcher is doing a scorched earth search, then why not add Tom Watt, George Kingston, Ralph Krueger, Barry Melrose, Mike Milbury and Doug MacLean to the list? Might as well go full on bat **** crazy for the search.

Draft the best player available on your board. If Cole Caufield is the best player at 11, then take him. He just turned 18 and he's probably got one final growth spurt that should be good to bring him up to 5'9 - 5'10. The 5'7 doesn't bug me though as he's got natural talent and skill and that more than makes up for any size issues that there is.

Just wait if Gordon is made full time. We might see 9 defensemen dressed..... Lol

So a couple of things. First, Fletcher never had the scouting staff in Minnesota that the Flyers have. If anything, I expect Fletcher to really rely heavily on the scouting staff in Philadelphia this draft. As well, unlike Hextall, I'm certain that Fletcher is keeping Scott and Holmgren up to date with what his intentions are. Don't forget, a big reason Hextall was let go was that he essentially shut out Holmgren and he thought Scott was an idiot. Even if you don't like your boss, you don't treat him like he's a less than. Hextall's abrasive personality got the best of him and when people tried to reason with him, he ignored them. I think as long as Fletcher keeps everyone notified of what he's doing, they'll be off his back. Now, as for Ryan Suter and Zach Parise, Craig Leipold bought the Wild in 2008. How much of Parise and Suter signing in Minnesota was a direct result of Leipold ordering Fletcher to make a big splash? Every owner does it. Even the late Ed Snider directed Holmgren to sign players (see Bryzgalov, Ilya). So, I'm fairly certain that Leipold played a huge role in signing those two, especially when you consider there's history with Suter when Leipold was the owner in Nashville. I get that Fletcher wasn't a pick hoarder in Minnesota. I also get that when the owner directs you to do what you can to make the team get into the playoffs and to do anything you can to get the club to advance, draft picks become the easiest currency to swap out. Also, let's not forget that this was Fletcher's first GM job. Every GM learns from the first experience. I really think Fletcher learned a lot from his days in Minnesota and his press conference after the season ended really reiterated that. He wasn't talking about full blown rebuild or going crazy and trading everything. He had a very astute take on things. He identified the problem that he saw with the club. He identified what kind of players he needs going forward to help the team and he identified what he's looking for in the next coach. I'm willing to give him a pass and I'm willing to give Holmgren and Scott a pass as well. When Fletcher was brought in, they could have very easily told him to make moves to shake up the team and qualify for the playoffs. They didn't and that's the key. They let him make his evaluations and while his moves were nothing earth shattering, he accomplished something in that his additions were subtractions, with the exception of Hartman, who is the new Clutterbuck for this team -> the steam rolling ball of hate that can contribute 10 to 15 goals a year in a bottom six role. Everyone seems to think Simmonds was going to secure a blue chip prospect and a first. That boat sailed when Hextall failed to move him last year (when his value was higher than it was this year). Maybe I'm the optimist, but I think things are going to be OK. Holmgren is going on 64 years old and has said he doesn't want to be a GM or make GM decisions. He's quite content where he is and as long as Fletcher is keeping everyone in the loop, there's nothing to worry about.

So for those worried about Bruce Boudreau: [Hidden Content] One more coach off the list, one more coach closer to Sheldon Keefe.

I'm not worried. Honest to goodness, I'm not worried. There's always player/s that drop because teams sometime reach. For instance, look at last year. Barrett Hayton, Vitali Kravtsov, Ty Dellandrea, and Liam Foudy all climbed. Filip Zadina, Adam Boqvist, Grigori Denisenko, and Joe Veleno all dropped. Don't fret it, they're going to get a very good player. Or, if they move the pick in part of a package, they're going to secure a near elite right-handed defender.

I'm fine with 11. There's ALWAYS good players that fall and questionable players that ALWAYS rise. Out of the forwards, I'm expecting Boldy, Turcotte, or Krebs to fall. The Flyers are going to get a very good player (I'm hoping for Boldy to be honest). The Flyers don't need to do anything crazy and everything that Fletcher has done so far has indicated he's not going to go crazy. Aggressive? Yes, but not crazy. He'll make big offers to one of the UFA defensemen and forwards, but he's not going to make a deal for the sake of making a deal. He could have done that during the regular season. The only way he moves the pick is if he does manage to package it and a player and get a near elite right handed defender.

Oh, I don't expect to get Jones for that, but that's the kind of package I'm moving Gostisbehere for. I could live with Trouba because I think he's really scratching the surface of his potential and that there are issues with Paul Maurice (not the first time I've heard of a player who has had issues with Maurice). I think packing Gostisbehere and the pick, especially to teams that don't have a first in the draft, is very clever and could be a way of getting a very good player back and possibly a 2nd to go along with said player. For instance, Gostisbehere and Philadelphia's 1st for Colton Parayko and St. Louis's 2nd round pick. That still gives Philadelphia a chance to package both 2nd round picks and move up into the first and grab someone. There's flexibility there and more important, it adds a legitimate top pairing right side defender. Picture this: Provorov - Parayko Sanheim - Gudas Morin - Meyers That's a very good looking defense with the potential to be one of the best in the league.