BobbyClarkeFan16

I don't think the Flyers are going to put Patrick on the table. That almost sounds rather Ektardian of Broad Street Buzz to even mention Patrick's name. Will Frost's name be on the table? Absolutely. Even with his shoulder, you can bet that Kekalainen and Tortorella would love a player of his ilk. I also don't see Zamula, York or Brink on the table either. Zamula is loved by the current group, York looks to be a potential Brian Leetch clone and Brink could be a potential Gagne-type of player. I still think that the Flyers would put Laughton and Sanheim on the table and if that's not good enough, they'd move on. I also couldn't see Kekalainen walking away if a Dubois + another piece (maybe David Savard or Gabriel Carlsson) for Laughton, Sanheim and Frost.

I blame the Blue Jackets for this. Not so much Tortorella as much as it is Kekalainen. Everyone in hockey knows what kind of coach Tortorella is. So the fact that Dubois dogged it wasn't so much a slight at Torts or his teammates. This was his way of speeding up the process. As for Jarmo, he knew that Dubois wanted out for some time (according to some reports, Dubois wanted out shortly after the playoffs) and instead, he kept a malcontent knowing that there was a good probability this was going to backfire. And now we're witnessing that. I'm not condoning Dubois for dogging it, but at the same time, this situation was going to happen. This can't be compared to the Bobrovsky or Panarin situation either because neither of them asked to be moved. Dubois did. Kekalainen had time to work out a deal, but he didn't.

I really thought Sanheim was going to thrive under Mike Yeo. He seems to have a touch with defensemen and that he's developed several good ones during his time in St. Louis. The fact that Sanheim can't seem to get it going under Yeo leads me to believe that maybe he just simply wasn't as good as we were lead to believe. And honestly, I think York might end up being the best of the bunch. There's simply no panic in his game. He makes smart decisions all the time and he just knows how to get that puck off his stick quickly and up to his forwards. At this point, I'm sure Sanheim is going to kept though because Vigneault and company believe this roster is a Stanley Cup contending roster. However, we still have three playoff dogs in the lineup and a bottom pairing defense group that are colossal screw ups when on the ice. But, argh siiiize and all that other crap.

Look, everyone assumes that the issue is with Tortorella, but what if the issue is actually with Jarmo Kekalainen? I mean, everyone in hockey knows what Torts is like as a head coach, but at the end of the day, he's fair and he's going to play you if you buy in. However, there where also whispers that negotiations between Columbus and PLD weren't going well and that maybe, just maybe, Jarmo might have said or done something that offended PLD. We don't know. Yeah, PLD dogged it, no doubt. At the same time, the franchise had to know that this was going to happen sooner or later. You don't have a malcontent in there and then expect them to be content while awaiting a move. This partially falls on Kekalainen for knowing the player didn't want to be there and he just kind of mulled it over and did nothing. I'm certain that PLD could have been moved at the draft and the return would have been outstanding. This always happens when a franchise keeps a disgruntled player. It just makes for an ugly situation and nobody wins.

I'm down on Sanheim because the skill is there. The physical tools are there. The toolbox might not be there because he makes questionable decisions several times a game, which leads me to believe that he doesn't have the IQ to put it all together and he'll be another Braydon Coburn type. Let's not forget that Coburn's first season here, he put up 36 points, but then his numbers went down and his play became more and more inconsistent every year after that. That's what I see with Sanheim, but with less physicality than Coburn. With regards to Pronger, let's remember he came into the league as an 18 year old. Big difference when compared to someone who's first full NHL season came at the age of 22. Pronger was still a kid and was growing into his frame. And let's not forget that he was still rushed by Hartford and then got dealt and really blossomed under Mike Keenan. As for Sanheim, he had the luxury of playing his full junior complement and also had a season and change in the AHL. I want to like Sanheim, but I see nothing special. It's all about results. I remember for years how people continually said "just wait, eventually Coburn will put it together and he'll be the defenseman this club needs" but it never happened. That's Sanheim. He has so much talent, but he always leaves you wanting more and the results seem to be disappointing.

How do you see Sanheim?

The first three lines would be in tact, but the fourth line will look different. I folktales expect Laughton will be one of the pieces moved, Frost will be one of the pieces and I think Sanheim would be another piece. I could see Laughton thriving under Tortorella. I know Frost is hurt, but he'd be a Tortorella favorite as well. Torts might be old school in his bench boss approach, but he likes offensively skilled players who can skate and are smart. Frost fits that bill. As for Sanheim, I think the organization can move in from him and they won't be the worse off. Honestly, I'm disappointed that Sanheim hasn't taken that next step yet. He's got all the tools, but I'm wondering if this is another case of Braydon Coburn in that all the physical tools are there, but the toolbox just isn't there. Maybe someone can coach it into him, but I don't think Sanheim is long for here.

I think if Dubois comes to Philadelphia, he stays on the wing. I don't think he'll have a problem here because he'll probably get to play some center as well. Vigneault loves versatile forwards and that will garner Dubois tons of time.

I think Dubois is going to end up in Philadelphia. Just a gut feeling. It has Flyers written all over it.

Sanheim. He's slowly playing his way out of town and in a contract year none the less.

Gus is trash. Pure trash. Not a single bit of defensive acumen in him. Chicago saw it, Calgary saw it and we're witnessing it. He's an absolute disaster in his end. He's filler until the chin can find a viable right handed defenseman. He won't be around next year and I fully expect he ends up in ether the KHL or SEL.

Absolutely no to Gustafsson being part of this defense going forward. He's a stop gap and nothing more. His defense, which is primary characteristic and function of a defenseman, is nonexistent and putrid. He's even worse than Ghost. His $3 million salary is better used elsewhere.

I should also add that if Hamilton ends up pricing himself out of that range, there's always a rescue of Brandon Montour from Buffalo. If there's ever a player who got stuck in a ****** situation, it's him. I think he could be a great fit in Philadelphia.

We'll have to see what the cap situation looks like. I know it's flat for next year and the year after. On top of it, Hart, Patrick and Sanheim aren't going to get the big pay day that we all think they're going to get, especially in a flat cap situation. I fully expect that they'll sign for a moderate raise during the flat years, but then try to maximize after the flat years are done. As for Hamilton, I don't think he's getting a 7 or 8 million dollar deal this offseason. I think those days with those kind of contracts are going to be things of the past for the next little while. No one is going to tie up that kind of money anymore into those types of contacts. The current world conditions have changed all that. You might see a 7 million per year deal, but that's going to end up being rare. Honestly, I think you'll see 6 - 6.5 as the standard high numbers going forward.

Agreed. How funny is it that the largest market in the NHL ends up with top 2 picks two years in a row. I don't believe for Ione second that some sort of fix wasn't in. We get the Penguins who conveniently win the Crosby sweepstakes, the Devils who win the Hughes sweepstakes and now the Dangers who win the Lafreniere sweepstakes. It's a farce. Do the draw live. Throw all the balls in and do the draw that way for all to see.

Nope. Flyers are good from a center aspect. They need a legitimate right handed defenseman to balance the roster. Make the pitch for Dougie Hamilton when he becomes a UFA. Get that top fight player to go alongside Provorov.

No, he was a right winger when he was drafted.

I think put all the jack rabbits on one line - Farabee/Frost/Konecny. Let them use their speed and free wheeling to drive the opposition nuts. You can't hit what you can't catch and they'd be great at that. Next line I'd go with is Lindblom/ Hayes/Voracek. There's size, offense and defense there. Let Hayes bulldoze the center ice area to open lanes for Voracek and you can park Lindblom in front of the net for the garbage goals. Third line would be JVR/Patrick/Giroux. Patrick gets the benefit of playing with Giroux and Giroux gets to be the playmaker on the line without the defensive responsibilities of being a center. You can then leave your fourth line of Raffl/Laughton/NAK. Of course, these aren't a 1 through 4. The Hayes line would be 1, Patrick 2, Frost 3. Just how I'd put the lines together.

Pierre LeBrun said that Columbus was getting serious offers for PLD and that if things don't go smooth in the first month, expect the trade chatter to heat up. I think the Flyers will investigate as they should, but I really believe the Flyers will try to acquire a right handed top pairing defenseman before they even consider a move for PLD.

I can't see the Kraken taking Voracek if he's available. For these start up franchises, especially once the damage from the pandemic is taken into consideration and just how much the cap will do, that will just cause all sorts of cap issues for them. With that being said, I'm feeling very certain that Voracek will be protected in that he's good friends with the captain, is well liked by his teammates, and is not a locker room distraction or problem. Those three factors are incredibly important. Losing a player like Voracek could have a devastating effect on the locker room and I think Fletcher knows that.

Any deal for Dubois begins with Frost and probably Zamula or Sanheim. Any talk of Ghost or Voracek or JVR is out the window. If Ghost is hurt again (just speculating here, but I'm wondering if it's a degenerative knee condition), there's no value there. JVR and Voracek simply have too much money on their respective deals. Anyways, I think a deal ends up something like this: To Columbus: Frost, Zamula, Laughton, Philadelphia 1st To Philadelphia: Dubois, Jenner, Columbus 3rd

He fills a role and does his role well. Skates hard, is always on the puck and nerve takes a shift off. Let's not forget that there was some skill there until Hextall and Hakstol basically didn't want him to use his skill and just be a checker. They wasted him. With that being said, he's replaceable, especially if guys like Allison and Laczynski hit their ceiling.

Gut feeling says they move Frost. I don't think they want him in Philadelphia. He's not a Fletcher/Vigneault type of player.

I get what you're saying. My issue I have with the club and most clubs around the league is that you can have talented youth in the lineup and in most cases, they'll outplay the vets, but there's this misguided sense that you have to play the vets because 'they've been there' while the youth have to sit and watch because they've 'never been there' and this is a 'learning opportunity' for them. It's garbage thinking. The Flyers are at a point now where the veterans should be supporting the youth and the youth should be playing the critical roles. We're seeing that with the defense, but we still don't quite see that with the offense. The young guys seem to be bounced all around the lineup while the Girouxs, Voraceks, Hayes, etc....all seem to have their spot secured, so no matter how crappy they play, they'll always be guaranteed the playing time in top roles. It baffles me. As for Niskanen, gone. I absolutely loathe the idea of Braun being around, especially when the statistically worst defenseman in the league (Robert Hagg -> out of 196 defensemen in the league, he was rated 196th on advanced stats) occupies a spot in the lineup. This was a chance for Fletcher and Vigneault to get younger and more mobile on the blueline and they kept the status quo. I'll never understand it.

I'll openly admit I have incredibly high standards. I understand that everyone who qualifies for the playoffs is a contender, but that just doesn't fit the bill for me. As mentioned, I've watched this club for 40 years and visually, you can tell when you have a true Stanley Cup contender just by the way they play. There's a crispness and a dedication to system and style of play and I don't see that fun this group, yet. They're getting there. The veterans might already be there, but its the young players who need to get there. Meyers and Sanheim are close to reaching that point, but they aren't there yet. Farabee looks like he could get there. Lindblom has questions and so does Patrick. We don't know if Frost will ever crack this roster and if he does, how far is he away from hitting that crispness and compete level that's required. I don't know if I'm making sense, but that's how I see things right now. The maturation process simply can't be rushed and sometimes this franchise does that. They don't show players to make mistakes and learn as that's part of the process. We all saw how Haktard crucified Konecny and Ghost and we even saw Vigneault do that with Ghost as well, even though he and the staff knew that Ghost was injured (in all honesty, Ghost should have never been playing last year, but that's on the medical staff). In my mind there are just too many question marks to make them a legitimate cup contender. We can see the window opening, which is a great sign, but there's still a lot of work to do.