BobbyClarkeFan16

Howdy:

 

Putting aside whom to pick, backtrack and ask what mode is Hextall in? Is he really going to keep this core? Or does he basically say other than Giroux, Voracek,Simmonds, and Raffl (he's cheap) anyone is expendable? Seriously--if this D is as bad as everyone thinks, and our prospects will take 2-3 years...everything is possible? But I don't see Tallon giving up his top rung picks.  

 

We didn't think Richards are Carter were going anywhere, right? 

 

Howie

In fairness, Couturier and Mason are also on that list. Hextall has a legitimate nice base to work with in terms of prospects and younger players. I don't think guys who are younger than 27 are going to be moved if Hextall decides to retool. I think you're going to see guys like Hartnell, Lecavalier, Read, Grossmann, maybe Coburn, be guys that Hextall will look at moving. I know Hextall has also said he wasn't going to blow things up on the big club because he said he liked the roster that Holmgren put together, but there needs to be some tweaking of the roster and that the farm system needs to be vastly improved. Hextall played a huge role in the LA Kings farm system when he was the assistant GM there, so you can bet he's going to seek to improve the farm immediately. 

I don't think Hextall is going to go free agent shopping either. The Flyers have about 7 million in cap room and with big contracts like Vinny and Grossmann on the roster, it limits his flexibility in terms of what he can do. That's part of the reason I honestly believe that he'll deal both them. Hextall will want some cap flexibility as well as get some half decent prospects for them. Part of me hopes that if Hextall can move Vinny to Nashville, that the rights to Del Zotto come the other way. I think he'd be a guy who would benefit from John Paddock's coaching (the guy has been an excellent coach when it comes to developing defensemen). As well, if Hextall can deal Grossmann for picks or B level prospects, that would be something that would help add to the farm. It also frees up a spot for a guy like Alt, who's upside is that of a legitimate second pairing defenseman. 

I know there was talk that with the draft being in Philadelphia that the Flyers were probably going to make a big splash. I honestly don't see them doing that with Hextall on board. He seems to be really committed to building through the draft and I think that's going to be the m.o. going forward.

By the way, i still hope it's Robby Fabri from Guelph who they end up drafting. I'll say this right now. For all the talk that Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett get, I think Fabri is right up there with them in terms of skill and compete level. This guy is a legit talent that if teams are patient with him, they'll be rewarded greatly. He's a little light right now, but the weight will come. 

I respect, and disagee with, the position.

Not like he's scored 30 twice.

Yet.

I'll bite. I wanted to like JVR. I really did. However, I saw that he was never going to fully buy into what's required to take his game to the next level and be amongst the elite at his position. Now, part of that blame goes to UNH, where he played his NCAA hockey. They allowed him to develop lazy habits that should have been corrected immediately. JVR was allowed to cherry pick and not back check hard. He didn't really have to play any sort of defense there. As well, he only played a 40 game schedule. If he would have went to junior hockey, those bad habits would have been corrected and he would have gotten used to playing a long schedule. For me, JVR was all about the easy way to get things done. Million dollar talent, ten cent work ethic. He was given a prime job on the left wing of Giroux and he blew it. That's something we can all say pretty fairly. He had the chance to become a 35 to 40 goal scorer in Philadelphia on Giroux's wing and he blew it. Yes, I get that he broke his foot and he suffered a concussion, but during the time he did play, he was no hell. 

As for JVR's time in Toronto, he started out hot, no doubt about it. He looked like he was going to be that 85 to 90 point elite winger. However, once the rest of the league caught on to him, he practically disappeared. He stopped fighting for pucks. He stopped going to the net. He stopped doing all the things he did to start the season. He rested on laurels and pretty much coasted down the stretch when his team needed him to really step up. And once again, I blame that on his development at UNH.

I wish JVR all the luck in the world because there's obviously talent there (legitimate talent that should make him one of the elite game breakers). However, I wouldn't rest hopes on him because he simply doesn't have the drive to sustain that for long periods of time.

I hated the JVR pick. I wanted them to select Sam Gagner. I still think to this day that if Gagner never went to Edmonton and went to Philadelphia instead, he would be a much better player.

Oh he's certainly not innocent by any stretch. However he wasn't the problem child some made him out to be. If he was guilty of anything, he was guilty of making a poor decision and being in the wrong place.

Whoa... just a minute there! You can't drop a bombshell like that and expect to get away clean. We want some dirt. THE dirt. Party boy or no? 

He likes to drink beer, but the reports of him showing up to practice late or hung over are completely false. The guy is a gym rat and work out fanatic. You can't be in the shape he's in and drink till there's no tomorrow and it not having an affect. He's a really nice, well behaved and well spoken dude. When he brought the Stanley Cup to a work function, I was wearing my Flyers hat at the time and he said that if he could go back in time, he would have done a few things differently and would have associated himself with other guys on the club. I think Jeff got lumped into the party crowd because he was guilty by association more than anything. 

I feel for Wellwood, but good for him at the same time. Yeah, it sucks that his career came to an end as a result of a freak injury, but good for him to know that his career wasn't going to get back on track. There's nothing worse than seeing someone continually try and try and try to make things work when they know deep down it isn't. Wellwood obviously knew that his pro career was over, so it was time to move in another direction. Kudos to the Flyers for looking after him and for offering him a position in the organization. Not many organizations do things like that. That's 100% class.

Lol....I actually work with Crater's mom. True story. When Crater got traded, I was the one who broke the news to her because no one had contacted her to tell her that Jeff was traded. She thought I was lying and I had to show her the story on TSN. As for Milano, his hands are gold. He's a legitimate goal scorer. Should be fun to watch him, Alex Tuch and Jack Eichel all play on the same line in Boston College next year.

I'm not sure if anyone saw the video on TSN yesterday about Sonny Milano, but holy crap, what hand to eye co-ordination. Here's a link to the clip:

http://www.tsn.ca/bardown/Story.aspx?Stick%20Tricks%20with%20Sonny%20Milano&id=453448

Bet there's going to be numerous teams who's interest will really be piqued now and teams that were interested are probably even more interested now.

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm quite content with this club sitting at 17. There's going to be a very good player available. Every year, there's always a player that drops and there's always a player that rises.

My biggest concern is this club trying to make a big splash because the draft is in Philadelphia, but I'm also feeling comfortable in that Hextall has turned down media requests so that he can focus on the draft

I really think the biggest moves we see from this club are sending Vinny Lecavalier and Nicklas Grossmann packing.

And there isn't a team out there that is going to offer sheet him. If he wants to play, he'll sign what hextall offers, within reason. Power entirely on the team's side.

I'd never say that there isn't a team that would offer sheet him, but the chances of it happening are very unlikely. The only way some team would offer sheet him would be to handcuff the Flyers financially. Even then, if they signed Schenn to a contract between 3.4 and 5.1 million a year, the Flyers get a 1st and a 3rd for it. Agreed though. Power is definitely on the team's side and that he'll get a reasonable offer from Hextall.

On a completely different note, I was on Cap Geek this morning and saw that the Flyers only have 6.8 million in cap space. I hope Grossmann and Lecavalier really see that the writing is on the wall for them and that they give Hextall a list of places they'd go to.

I think there'll be heat on Schenn to re-sign at a value similar to Couturier's. He'll probably get a wee bit more simply because of offensive numbers (argue all you want, Schenn was a 20 goal scorer this past year and that means something), but it won't be nearly double of what Couturier is getting (maybe 250 to 300K more). Fact is, Schenn said he wants to be in Philadelphia and that a deal will probably be worked out that will be reasonable and fair for both sides.

@jammer2 and @OccamsRazor, Hextall has already said his first order of business is to improve the pipeline of prospects and development system. He said that he won't gut the big club that Paul put together because he said he likes a lot of the pieces that Holmgren has put in place. His big thing is that he wants to fix the farm system because he sees that's where the biggest issue is. So, I'm expecting that Leier, Laughton, Stolarz, Hagg, Gostisbehere and even Morin (when eligible) are all going to spend time LeHigh Valley before even seeing the Flyers. The only people I expect to see on the big club this year will be Akeson and Alt. I'm not expecting Manning or Lauridsen either as I think they're nothing more than AHL fodder. I get the impression that Hextall is going to have complete autonomy when it comes to replenishing the farm system and building the big club, so I expect very little interference and influence from Snider and company, especially when you consider that Hextall and Lombardi basically rebuilt the Kings into perennial Stanley Cup contenders and winners in 2011 - 2012. I'm just wondering who Ron is going to jettison from the big club.

Hmmmm, Demko and Stolarz in the future to battle it out. Interesting. I'll be honest though. I'm not sure if it's something that I do. Part of the issue is that goaltender values are weak when compared to other positions. You can build a trade package around an elite forward and defense prospect, but you can't build it out of a goaltending prospect because nobody knows how said goaltender is going to project. With that being said, if Demko is available when the Flyers choose in the second, I'd hope they'd be all over him.

@jammer2 Thanks. I'm originally from the Ottawa area and used to see all the 67's games, so I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for the 67's. Yes, I'm in London and yep, I watch an awful lot of Knights games because the company I work for has season's tickets in the box suite. I've got nothing but good things to say about the Knights franchise because they've managed to remain competitive year in and year out, but this upcoming fall will probably be the year that they tank. They're going to lose an awful lot of players this year and they've consistently made big move after big move after big move and they've gutted quite a bit of their depth.

Meh, I'm so so on Goldobin. I've seen enough of him from going to games in London and Sarnia that I can honestly say that there's just something off with him. Million dollar talent, but the work ethic on the defensive side and physical part of the game is definitely lacking and there's been talk that if he gets drafted and gets returned to the OHL, he's bolting for the KHL and Metallurg, who drafted him 8th over in the KHL draft back in 2012. I know he wouldn't be cracking the main roster until he's 21 or 22, so playing in the KHL might no tbe a bad thing, but the Flyers have not had good luck with prospects from Russia.

I'm still hoping that if they draft a forward, it's Robby Fabbri from Guelph. If they draft a defenseman, Roland McKeown is the guy I hope they look at.

 I've seen a few mocks where we take Julius Honka. I'd be fine with that....he's a tad undersized, but a very exciting prospect with tremendous offensive upside. I can see the "orange Julius" t-shirts right now...lol.

I prefer the nickname Honka Honka Burnin' Love instead.....lol

@OccamsRazor

 

Virtanen won't be around when we pick in the 1st...let alone the 2nd. If he drops it may be a couple of spots. There's no way he falls to the 2nd round.

Agreed. He won't be around in the 2nd, but he is definitely no longer a lock to be top 10. Too many teams are going to be worried about his shoulder, especially with the game Virtanen plays. I don't think it's unreasonable at all to see him drop to where the Flyers might be able to get him. Look at a guy like Mikhail Grigorenko. He was expected to be the 2nd or 3rd player drafted behind Yakupov and he had quite the fall - and he was healthy on top of it. 

I said no. A couple of things: 1) This was Johnson's first year in the NHL and he was also in the last year of his contact, so Tampa Bay was going to have to cough up and pay him the bucks. Seconds, while Schenn had shown progress, he's been slow to progress as far as some of his peers have. His defensive game is still problematic and his scoring is still far too streaky. He needs to develop consistency in all facets of his game. With that being said, let's see what happens to Johnson in his second year. I silk think that was too big of a contract for Tampa Bay to sign him too.

I should also throw this out there. Jake Virtanen, one of the top rated wingers in this draft, just had major shoulder surgery and is out for 4 to 6 months. I think we've found our first player who is probably going to fall in the draft this year. 

we can stand pat and in two years our defense could look like 

Striet, Alt

MacDonald , Schenn

Hagg , Coburn

Ghost

 

that's not too shabby.

....and that doesn't even include Morin, who is looking more and more like he might just reach his ceiling and possibly become a Chara type defender. At first, I was hesitant about the Morin pick because I really liked Josh Morrissey, but Morin has really grown on me and I think once he fills out and he's in the 230 - 240 pound range, he's going to be an absolute monster on the back end. He's also going to get a ton of power play time in Rimouski this year and that's only going to benefit his overall game. People are just going to need to be patient with the club and that patience will be rewarded.

I really hope Schenn isn't moved. I think he's just scratching the surface of his potential and that this should be the year he really breaks out. He's been screwed over in terms of his development by the team consistently flipping him between center and wing, so I'm hoping that with Hextall on board, they leave Schenn in the center spot now and just let him play. No more moving him around to accommodate expired flavours. I know I'm aiming high here, but with Simmonds on one side and Hartnell on the other, I think it's very possible that you could see a 70+ point season out of Schenn. Some say he's not smart enough, but the puck seems to follow him around and he's got a knack for scoring in bunches. 

Thanks Occams. I'm having a great time here so far. Lots of good people and lots of knowledgeable people, which makes for great discussion.

@RonJeremy - The cost for an unknown like Ekblad isn't worth the Schenn brothers and a 1st. On top of it, if the Flyers do the expected and move Lecavalier, that leaves Brayden in his role as a center and not having to move around to accommodate whatever expired flavour the Flyers might be bringing in. He's a center and that's where he's most effective. I also feel good about prospects like Alt, Hagg, Gostisbehere and Morin all possibly vying for a spot on the big club. If a guy like Alt gets 19 to 20 minutes a night, that's a win. He's done his time in Adirondack and looked very good under the watch of Terry Murray. I really think Alt is ready and he should be able to step in with no problems next season. Does it make him a top pairing guy? No, but if he gives a solid 17 to 19 minutes a night, then that's fantastic for a first year player in the NHL. 

@OccamsRazor - McKeown would be a fantastic addition to the blue line prospects. Add him to the current group of Alt, Hagg, Gostisbehere and Morin and that's quite a good collection of young defenders. As for Travis Sanheim,  his offensive game grew last year and now that Calgary has three defensemen that will be gone due to overaging, Sanheim is going to get top pairing and top power play ice time. It's possible that he can score 10 goals and add 55 to 60 assists in that role. He's got one heck of a shot from the point and he's got good soft hands to distribute passes. I did find some scouting reports on Sanheim and some of the scouting reports liken him to Sam Morin in that he's got exceptional ability, but he's raw. McKeown is a more polished prospect at this point, but the upside of Sanheim could be huge.

I'm still hoping for a forward though and that Fabbri is the guy they go with. With four solid defenders in the pipeline right now, the club really needs a legitimate left wing prospect. I doubt they'll draft one of the Russian prospects (if they did, Scherbak from Saskatoon is a heck of a player), so it's pretty much Fabbri or bust as far as I'm concerned. Although, with the draft being in Philadelphia, I'm wondering if there'll be pressure on Hextall to make a big splash to acquire a big name and if the first will be used as bait.

So i'd be ok with this cause with your lines i see no mention of Vinny....so you traded him???? I like it make you GM.

Yeah, I'd trade Vinny. I mentioned in the Vinny thread that I'd consider Ryan Ellis or the rights to Michael Del Zotto for him or if it's with St. Louis, maybe a guy like Ian Cole. Just get that horrible contract off the books and into someone else's hands.....

As far as defense goes, we have a small offensive highly skilled guy in Ghost, we have a big shutdown guy in Morin, and Haag is a all around kinda guy . So all we need now is a franchise dman? I really would love to trade the Schenn brothers and our first rounder to Fla for the pick so we can get Ekblad. In our entire history we have never drafted a dominating defenseman.

You know, I'm not really sold on Ekblad. His performance at the WJC was kind of mediocre and while it's not the be all and end all for players, it's certainly brought up some red flags. As for Morin, Gostisbehere and Hagg, one of those three have the potential to be a very good top pairing guy. People also forget that with a guy like Morin, he's still about 25 to 30 points under weight for his size and that once he adds the weight and muscle to his frame, he's going to be a legitimate monster to play against. As well, this was the first time in Morin's junior career that he got to play a bit of offense and he looked good on the point in Rimouski. I hope they send him back and let him dominate as a 19 year old before calling him up.

As for this year's draft, as much as I like Honka (and he's a good free wheeling defenseman with incredible hockey IQ), Roland McKeown in Kingston would be the guy I'd target if they draft a defenseman. His coach and GM (who both have played with against Scott Niedermeyer) called him a Scott Niedermeyer clone in how he plays the game. He can skate, play physical, is smart defensively and has developed his offensive game. Another guy to watch is Travis Sanheim from Calgary. He's really climbing up the charts in most scouts eyes and he had a fantastic U18 tournament (a tournament the Flyers scout and invest in very seriously).