EDI-Flyer

Based on what I have seen of Nurse watching the Soo this season I would rate Nurse at around No 5 also. Having said that IF we are picking 2nd or 3rd then I have to say you take Drouin or McKinnon, whichever one is available. Whilst the organisational need for a solid D prospect is huge for me you take one of those two guys and then either Coots or Schenn becomes expendable and could be flipped for a decent Dman.

And given that they are sponsored by Delta Dental I am not sure exactly how much money they cost the Flyers but it can't be much. They also do PR visits in the community too I believe?

See these links to the petition and a little more info about the situation. http://www.thepetitionsite.com/873/487/658/save-the-flyers-ice-girls/ http://www.flyersnation.net/2013/03/save-the-flyers-ice-girls-sign-the-petition-.html

Yep, the kid is playing well... Likewise Cousins for the Soo, another two pp goals last night against Owen Sound to get them back in the series...

“We don’t like this hit. It absolutely should have been a two [minute minor], and probably should have been a five,” said Shanahan So what are you going to do about the referees who didn't call it on the ice then? Where is their feedback, are they going to sit for a game or two because of it? Of course not, this is the NHL where refs are not accountable...

Per Puck Daddy, the reasoning for the non suspension... http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/brendan-shanahan-explains-why-rangers-rick-nash-wasn-220502216--nhl.html#more-53554 NHL Department of Player Safety chief Brendan Shanahan called Rick Nash of the New York Rangers after Nash's controversial hit on Tomas Kopecky on Tuesday night. “It was a rotten hit,” Shanahan said he told Nash. But not a suspension. "There are lots of hits that we don’t like," he said. “We don’t like this hit. It absolutely should have been a two [minute minor], and probably should have been a five,” said Shanahan, in a phone interview on Friday. The no-suspension ruling from the NHL on the Nash hit was that it was an awkward, spinning collision between two players in which the significant majority of the contact from Nash landed not on Kopecky’s head, but the back of his shoulders. “We don’t see this as being principal point of contact to the head. For a fact, we don’t see much contact to the head at all,” said Shanahan. “On the Florida feed, when you slow it down, you see Kopecky’s back right shoulder is the initial point of contact. If you slow it down even further, you see the back right shoulder and the nameplate aren’t just the initial point of contact, but the principal point of contact.” Controversy raged over the hit because the aesthetics were damning for Nash. He left his skates to deliver a high check, and Kopecky’s helmet came crashing to the ice after it. On the latter point, Shanahan said it was a “whiplash effect” that caused Kopecky’s head to snap and helmet to fall. As for Nash jumping into the hit, Shanahan said far too much attention is paid to that aspect of many checks. “The commentators have too much of a fascination with ‘did you leave his feet?’ We don’t suspend for leaving your feet. We suspend for leaving your feet and hitting a guy in the head violently,” he said. “It’s like a slashing minor, a slashing major and a slashing suspension. It’s the same thing as leaving your feet on a hit. When it rises to a suspension is when a player is in control of your hit; when we see a predatorial play and make significant contact with a player’s head.” While they weren’t primary factors in the decision, Shanahan said that Nash’s clean record for supplemental discipline and the fact that Kopecky wasn’t injured “reinforced” the League’s decision that this wasn’t a suspendable offense. It wasn’t a hit the League felt should have been delivered, and told Nash as much. But the NHL felt there wasn’t enough contact with the head to warrant a suspension nor did it rise to the level of “predatory” hits that only make some contact with the head. Thus, Rick Nash skates away from a potential suspension, as a time the New York Rangers couldn’t afford to lose him.

Absolutely hilarious... More back pedaling than a French army bicycle...

Bill Meltzer pretty much somes up my thoughts on this one "Meltzer's Musings: No Need for Rentals This Year" Except I would say absolutely no point whatsoever in rentals rather than no need...! With regard to Jagr, if he was available at the right price in the summer then maybe I give him a shot but not otherwise.

Dear god, I hope she doesn't have daughters?!!! That would be interesting, thanks.

I quite agree, the Nelson blind eye in full effect there. That is indeed the idea behind it and the way it should be. I knew a family who billeted Joe Thornton as a young player and from what they said there was a specific agreement in the contract that they had with the team about looking out for the young kids, not sure if that was team or league specific though.

An interesting article by Ryan Kennedy in The Hockey News... http://www.thehockey...with-women.html The most divisive story in the news right now centers around a Steubenville, Ohio high school football team and the conviction of two players on rape charges involving an unconscious underage girl. I won’t go into all the details here, but the backlash against the guilty verdict has become a flashpoint in our culture, with some claiming the victim brought the acts perpetrated (and recorded on camera phones by the players’ accomplices) on her upon herself because she was drunk. The fact the convicted boys were star football players in a town that worships them also fed the flames. Hockey has yet to have its Steubenville crisis, but with the culture that has surrounded sports, it’s only a matter of time. Stick around the arena long enough and you’ll hear plenty of yarns about all the tawdry deeds players get up to when they’re not on the ice, from the junior levels right on up to the NHL. On the weekend, Windsor Spitfires forward and New Jersey Devils draft pick Ben Johnson was arrested and charged with two counts of sexual assault, stemming from separate incidents with a 16-year-old and a 20-year-old in the washroom of a nightclub and bar, respectively. Johnson has not been convicted; it is very well possible he did nothing wrong and will be exonerated, just as Los Angeles Kings star Drew Doughty was when he was accused of sexual assault last year. Similarly, the three Sault Ste. Marie players accused of sexual assault (Mark Petaccio, Phoenix pick Andrew Fritsch and Flyers prospect Nick Cousins) earlier this year have yet to be convicted of anything – there are two sides to every story and the truth will hopefully come out in a court of law. But coupled with the Boston University report surrounding the “culture of sexual entitlement”that permeated its powerhouse hockey program, it’s not hard to reach the conclusion that hockey has the same problems as other sports, particularly when it comes to testosterone-soaked teenagers. Are there young women who actively pursue hockey players? Of course. The “puck bunny” is a well-known archetype in our culture, the girl who wants to sleep with players because they’re players. “It’s a status thing,” said one young woman I spoke to who admitted to being labeled a bunny. “I know it was for me.” Her main paramour was an Olympian and Stanley Cup winner and the two would send provocative pictures back and forth when they couldn’t meet in person. In the Boston University report, the committee noted that a “small subset of BU’s undergraduate population,” supported a “culture of sexual entitlement” among the players who achieved such status because of the team’s popularity on campus. It’s important to note that I have no problem with equal-opportunity prowling. If women want to have casual relationships with hockey players, they have the same rights as those players do to pursue said women. The problem comes when the players assume a young lady’s interest in them gives them a free pass to do whatever they want, whenever they want. Consent lies at the heart of many of these cases and the investigation at BU unearthed some shocking attitudes among the players. In one interview cited by Boston.com, a member of the team told the task force, “You don’t ask (permission for sex) when you are drunk.” Changing a culture is difficult, but not impossible. I find it amazing that hockey has embraced the gay rights advocacy group You Can Play, taping scores of public service announcements for the very worthwhile cause of smashing homophobia in the dressing room, yet no players stand up for the rights of women. You know, the group that represents half the population and has its own professional hockey league unto itself. I’d love to see an NHL all-star or even a whole team stare into a camera lens and say “It’s not OK to refer to women as sluts,” or, “When a woman says ‘no,’ I stop what I’m doing.” You Can Play has made huge strides in just over a year of service. Some hockey players may not even know they have gay acquaintances, but they all have women in their lives, from mothers to sisters to wives or girlfriends. It’s time for hockey to step up.

No, maybe not but trust me I have met plenty of douchebag Flyer fans too...

Ya gotta laugh, there is a good deal of truth in it too...

Absolutely right... And I also agree that the billet mom and the team need to be taking some responsibility for looking after the players. Sure they are young guys and out to have fun but there is a tradeoff between the opportunity to be a pro hockey player and living the life of a normal 18 year old IE going out to bars and picking up chicks etc. The stupid part is that there are more than enough willing puck bunnies out there without getting caught up in bar toilets etc... For gods sake take her out in your car somewhere quiet if anything goes wrong it looks a hell of a lot less tawdry...

Bad news for the OHL and hockey in general... All over Canada bars encourage players from junior hockey teams to hang out as it helps market their establishment with the local population. Granted this should only be the case with players of legal age but it is still going to happen. Another major concern is what a 16 year old female (one of the alleged victims) is doing there? This place should be losing it's license for sure if they aren't managing their clientele. Either way, if it did happen my heartfelt sympathy goes out to the victims, if it didn't then to the player whose name has been trashed. The problem being guilty or not the association will always be there with his name.

4 games is ridiculous for a first offence... Don't tell me that the hit against Washington didn't factor into this decision, despite it being stricken from the record...

Leino lucked out in Philly, wound up really clicking with Briere and Hartnell. I don't think he was overrated here particularly, he knew his role and carried it out well for 825k PA. Only problem was he decided to cash in big time (which I can't really blame him for) instead of considering whether Sabres were the right fit for him. If he was getting paid 1.5 mill a year instead of 6 mill (4.5 cap hit) this year then I would be happy to have him on my team...

Nice article on Philly.com about the Flyers alumni team. http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/flyers/20130301_HED_TOO_LONG___Ice_aged__Orange-and-black_alum_still_have_some_Flyer_i.html Joe Watson is the first to arrive. He always is. He sets his bag down, strips out of his civvies and tugs on his uniform, just as he did when he played for the Stanley Cup-winning "Broad Street Bullies." Nearing his 70th birthday, Watson yanks up his socks, steps into his hockey pants and straps on his shoulder pads. With 2 hours to go until faceoff, he sits by his locker with his jersey off. Nearby is a cooler full of iced-down cans of beer. One by one, his teammates for the evening swing through the dressing-room door, bags in hand. Bob "The Hound" Kelly greets Watson and settles in at the locker next to him. At his heels stride Ray Allison, Mitch Lamoureux and Brian Propp. Larry Goodenough walks in his younger brother, Pat, who had driven with a friend from Toronto. Larry and Pat had never played on the same team together. As the players become reacquainted, shaking hands and slapping backs, the small dressing room at the Bucks County Ice Sports Center in Warminster grows noisy with laughter. On this Saturday in January, just before the NFL settled its labor impasse, the Flyers Alumni Team was the only hockey game in the Philadelphia area. In only the second game of their short schedule, the alumni had come this evening to play a team of house amateurs, by and large a group of younger players with younger legs. By the looks of them, it would appear as if they had an edge on Watson and his guys in terms of conditioning, especially since the Flyers alumni do not hold practices. They just show up and play. With a grin across his friendly face, Watson explains his strategy. "What we do is force them to chase the puck," says Watson, who is less a player-coach than an organizer of the team. "By the second period, they usually run out of gas." Center Mitch Lamoureux says: "Our strategy? Let them get exhausted and take advantage of them. It always works. They may have the legs, but not the hockey sense. We know what to do when the puck comes to us and where everybody is. And we know how to play off each other." Allison adds, "Our goal is simple: 'Get the lead quick and just go from there.' " The Flyers Alumni Team is sort of like the Harlem Globetrotters. They never lose - or, shall we say, they seldom lose. Since their inception in 1984, they have been on the losing end of only a handful of games. In addition to playing local amateur squads, the alumni team has played in Europe "seven or eight times," according to Watson, and has squared off against some of their old NHL rivals. Overall, they play eight to 10 exhibitions a year. Unless they are provoked - and they say it happens occasionally - the Flyers no longer engage in the type of sharp-elbow play that had once had been their calling card. They play now for the sheer fun of it. And for charity. Their game at Bucks County Ice Sports Center was for the benefit of cancer research. Although the Flyers charge a fee to appear, part of which is distributed among the players, proceeds from ticket sales are earmarked for whatever charity has been selected for a particular game. Watson says that last year, the alumni team generated $167,000 on behalf of various charities. "Overall," Watson says, "we have probably raised $2.5 million for charity." According to Watson, the cozy, 500-seat arena is sold out. Orange-and-black jerseys pour through the front doors. "I love it when the building is full, especially since we are playing for charity," says Propp, once a star left winger for the Flyers. "Everywhere we go, we get a crowd. And just have a chance to be out on the ice with some of the guys is always fun." Lamoureux agrees. Generally, it is fun. "Unless the other team wants to get serious," says Lamoureux, who played with the Flyers and Penguins. "We never get serious unless they do." And then? "And then it is not pretty," he says. "For them." Has that ever happened? Lamoureux turned to Watson at the adjoining locker. He asked him, "Has that ever happened?" Watson grins and replies, "Yeah." Lamoureux smiles. "I just wanted to give you the politically correct answer," he says. "Everything is good until somebody gets stupid out there and pretends he is a hockey player." Watson calls out, "Seven minutes till, boys." With faceoff near, the players leave the locker room and hit the ice, gliding in circles to loosen up. The local team does the same at the opposite end. Someone sings the national anthem; the sides position themselves at center ice for the faceoff, and the referee drops the puck. Watson, Kelly, Allison, Goodenough and Lamoureux do not wear helmets; few players did back when they played. Beyond that, no one expects the level of intensity to lead to the removal of any teeth. Surprisingly, the local amateurs score the first goal, which immediately wakes up the Flyers alumni. In keeping with their strategy, they spread the puck out and move it among one another with some precision passing. They score. And then score again. And again. By end of the first period, the Flyers are up, 4-1. As Watson had predicted, their opponents appear as if they could use some oxygen. Second period: Once again, the local amateurs score the first goal, cutting the alumni lead to 4-2. But the Flyers buckle down and begin peppering shots by the opposing goaltender, Scott Shaw. When their lead expanded to 8-2, the scorekeeper stopped displaying any additional alumni goals. The score remained 8-2 when the Flyers scored their ninth, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th goals. And it stayed 8-2 even after the local amateurs scored their third and final goal. Someone in the crowd yelled, "Come on! I want to see a fistfight." But at that point, the alumni were feeling more generous than rowdy. Lamoureux even took a shot at his own goal. It hit the pads of his goaltender and bounced back, at which point an opposing player with longish hair played it and fired it back on goal. Lamoureux explained: "I was trying to set her up and give her an opportunity to score off the rebound." Her? Yes, the local amateurs had a woman playing for them: Mary Gibson-Merenich, a youth-hockey coach. Even in the wake of a 15-3 loss, Gibson-Merenich says it was "a blast just to be on the ice with these guys." She adds that she appreciated Lamoureux's gesture. "He was just so gracious in doing what he did," says Gibson-Merenich, who was furnished with a separate locker room to dress. "It was as if he were saying, 'This is not all about us.' " In the locker room where her male teammates dressed, there is a palpable air of utter exhaustion. Not only had the alumni team forced the amateurs to chase the puck, they had forced them to chase it to Hawaii and back. As they strip out of their uniforms, their faces red and dripping with sweat, the amateurs acknowledge that they were in far over their heads. "One minute they were in front of you, the next minute they were gone," left winger Dominic Varacallo says. Defenseman Matt Rambo adds: "Remember, these guys have played in the NHL. No matter how old they are, they can still play. They know where to go on the ice. They are always two steps ahead of you on the ice. This was a little different than playing in a beer league." Shaw, the goaltender, just shakes his head. "These guys are pros," he says. "That ability is still there. They still know how to play the game. They could be 65 and they would still know how to play the game." Over in the alumni dressing room, someone had cracked open the ice chest and cans of beer began circulating. Watson announced there would be sandwiches upstairs. Told that the scorekeeper stopped displaying the actual score when it got to 8-2, Watson grins and says, "That normally happens. We did not come here to embarrass anybody." "So," Watson asks, "what was the final score?" Someone tells him: 15-3. Kiddingly, someone else asks him whether anyone kept a stat sheet. Watson laughs. "No," he says, "Oh, hell no."

Yave, At first glance I would have to say I agree on most of the names you have on the list... Might swap Leino for Myers though!

At the end of this season DB has two seasons remaining on his contract at 3 and 2 million respectively, giving a total contract value of 5 million. He would receive 2/3 of this, IE $3.33 million. In other words it could potentially cost him $1.66 million. However given that over the 6 seasons (including this one) so far he has banked $44 million dollars I dare say he he is not too concerned. Also, should he be bought out I am confident another team would pick him up in a hurry allowing him to double dip on salary...

Apparently would cost them a 1st and a 3rd if done on ave contract value... http://www.pensionplanpuppets.com/2012/6/26/3117738/2012-13-NHL-Restricted-Free-Agencyrfa-compensation-table-offer-sheets

Terms are 2.5 million signing bonus, and 1 million salary for 2012-13 and 6.5 million salary 2013-14. Big chunk of cash for him....

Title says it all really. According to Darren Dreger Calgary Flames have submitted an offer sheet for Avalanche RFA Ryan O'Reilly. No details as yet on the terms of the offer.

As you say it will be interesting to see which Flyers team shows up. I personally feel it will be the one that ended up winning in Pittsburgh, albeit with a slower start than we would want to see. They certainly should have sufficient motivation after the game in TO earlier this season. That being said we should also have had motivation against the Panthers and we all know how that ended up...