EDI-Flyer

But it sounds to me it's like they want more and aren't being given their fair cut of the pie.....like what college football is going through, and also what is the reason there is no NCAA college football coming out this season kids want to get paid for their likeness in the video game.

Not quite sure that this is being driven by players... an earlier attempt to unionise the CHL crashed and burned because there wasn't a great deal of interest. Don't get me wrong, the league is making some real money but at the end of the day no one forces the kids to play in the CHL..

To me this is more about the union trying to build up membership. And you can forget the BS about it being a nominal fee, they will soon get their hooks in for more dough.

For clarity, this is from the article linked to by hf:

"The East Coast Hockey League had at one time become a forgotten league, where players who couldn’t make it in the NHL or AHL wound up to play out the rest of their careers on semi-professional teams. However, today the ECHL is back in the loop of respectable hockey leagues and it might be taking one might step forward by combining with the Central Hockey League.

The latest rumours swirling around the hockey league have the ECHL and CHL merging leagues to become one destination for hockey outside of the NHL and AHL. The CHL already holds designations with teams such as the Allen Americans, Mississippi RiverKings and Brampton Beast.

Adding the ECHL to the mix would only help widen the validity of the CHL and perhaps convince players to stay in the CHL over the NCAA route. There is such a wide gap or leagues for players who aren’t ready for the AHL or NHL as of yet and this will certainly open more doors for more ECHL players to get call-up’s."

 So in other words....who cares? 

 

 I mean go ahead and merge, I doubt it has much of an effect as far as most of us are concerned.

Indeed...

@jammer2

Methinks you are getting somewhat confused... The CHL being referred to here is not the Canadian Hockey League (OHL, WHL, QMJHL) but the Central Hockey League, a US based league. Nothing to do with David Branch and young Canadian kids!

Good deal IMO. Maybe partially makes up for signing him at 6 mill last year... 

You still want to scratch Akeson????

OR, Last night Akeson was very good, generated a lot of offence and was directly responsible for both Flyers goals. I really liked the awareness of his kick back of the puck on the second goal.

@brelic, I read the same article as well as the tweets. 

Whilst not good news in any way, a stretched/strained Achilles tendon sure as heck beats a rupture. 

Let's hope the kid is okay and doesn't suffer any long term issues as a result.

@flyercanuck

Yep, all part of Branch's ongoing campaign to make the OHL a non contact league flavoured with a little bit of London favouritism.

Read this article and wondered what Bob Duff is smoking...

FC, I know we have discussed Dave Branch's "interesting" decisions before but I have to say this just left me absolutely speechless. I watched the video without benefit of voice over the first time and just watched the "hit". I could hardly believe this was even reviewed, let alone a 15 game suspension. When I heard the rationale behind the decision I didn't know whether to laugh or cry...

Truly, an absolute joke of a decision, almost Colin Campbellesque in its ludicrosity.

I doubt that "hit" even gets reviewed in the WHL...

Yep, it's not a surprise that the natives are getting restless...

You would have to think that one more early playoff exit would be the straw that breaks the camels back in terms of his job security. On the other hand right now Disco Dan is keeping the heat of Ray Shero, that's the only reason I can think of that he has a job.

I just pray you keep Bylsma, if you had a better coach your team has the potential to be lethal.

My favourite DFB quote of the games last weekend... "We are a grind team"... Unfreakinbelievable that he says that, let alone is serious about it.

Noss, I feel your pain...

He just doesn't seem capable of reacting to situations in game... Or else he is so blinkered he just doesn't see the need, I'm not sure which. It might be fine during the regular season to a degree but come Playoffs or tournament play you get found out real quick ie during the Boston series last year or this years Olympics.

@yave1964

I saw this game too and couldn't agree with you more. For me there is no doubt whatsoever that McKinnon will win the Calder this year, barring some unforeseen injury. And even then I suspect he has done enough to seal the deal already.

I will be interested to see how they get on in the playoffs this year, they are certainly a contender but it might be one year too early for them. Next year, watch out, especially if they can add to their D. 

Anybody else with some good fan taunts?

From THN:
 

Winnipeg Jets fans are the best. They wholeheartedly commit to booing a star player from every team that rolls through the MTS Centre. They’ve chanted “Silver medal” at Ryan Miller, told Alex Ovechkin that “Crosby’s better,” and in my favorite of their efforts, they called Sidney Crosby “Mario’s poolboy.” That’s quality material.
It seems Jets fans do their homework when calculating their creative jabs. Friday night in Winnipeg when the Canucks dropped in, recently suspended John Tortorella was the target.

 
http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/embed?playlist=552913



Sorry I can't get the video to embed. 
 
Gotta love the Mario's Poolboy chant

Not saying he will, but I believe (for the first time in a quarter century) we do.

Agreed. We finally have a goalie who can win us games... It's an incredible feeling to know that a breakaway isn't automatically going to lead to a goal nowadays.

but I don't think they're a darkhorse candidate this year.

I tend to agree... certainly not an overall Cup winner. However I do agree with Ken Campbell's basic premise that in a 7 game series we are capable of beating any team in the East. Boston would probably be my biggest concern as although the Pens are strong they hold no real fear for me.

There is not an NHL team that takes more penalties or fights more often than the Philadelphia Flyers do. And lately there aren’t many teams that have been winning games with the regularity they have displayed.

And as a result, the Flyers have transformed a season that began as an unmitigated disaster into one in which they could be a force in the Eastern Conference. After defeating the Montreal Canadiens 3-1 for their 10th straight win at the Wells Fargo Center – all of them in regulation – the Flyers find themselves firmly in possession of a playoff spot in the east.

 

They’ve gone 8-2-0 in their past 10 games overall and since getting off to the worst start in franchise history at 2-10-0, the Flyers have put together a 21-7-4 run to pull themselves out of the abyss and into the ranks of legitimate playoff contenders. Remember, we’re talking about the Eastern Conference here. Is there anyone out there at this moment who thinks the Flyers are not capable of beating any team in the east in a seven-game series?

 

There are a number of reasons for the Flyers return to success, the most paramount being that aside from firing coach Peter Laviolette and replacing him with Craig Berube, GM Paul Holmgren did not go into panic mode after the Flyers poor start. In fact, the only deal he made was to reacquire Steve Downie from the Colorado Avalanche for Max Talbot. He showed faith in his core players and they rewarded him by rebounding nicely, none more than captain Claude Giroux. Discuss amongst yourselves whether the Canadian Olympic team is better off with Rick Nash than Giroux, who waited just a little too long to show the Canadian team management why he is one of the league’s elite players.

 

The Flyers are getting all kinds of balanced scoring with six players in double figures in scoring and 12 in double figures in points. Quick, who is Philadelphia’s top goal scorer? Go to the head of the class and collect your gold star if you guessed Wayne Simmonds. Half of those goals have come on the power play.

 

And finally, who would have thought that Philadelphia would be a place where a goalie would go to actually revive his career? After so many train wrecks and good careers gone south in the Philadelphia,Steve Mason has 18 of the Flyers 23 wins so far this season and has posted a .922 save percentage. The tricky thing now for the Flyers is what to do with Mason in the off-season. After being dealt to the Flyers last season, Mason signed a one-year deal worth just $1.5 million and undoubtedly deserves a raise when that deal expires.

 

Largely because the Flyers have been shorthanded 175 times this season – second most in the NHL – they also give up almost 30 shots a game, so Mason is obviously earning his keep. But how long and how much do you commit to a goaltender with such a checkered past? On the other hand, how do you not sign Mason to a long-term deal if you believe he has finally come to save you from your long history of goaltending ills?

 

Those are questions the Flyers have some time to answer. Barring a complete collapse, they’re a playoff team in a conference where anything can happen, and often does. Just four years ago, this same team came within two wins of winning the Stanley Cup after finishing seventh in the conference and qualifying for the playoffs on the last day of the season. That 2009-10 team finished with 88 points, while this year’s version of the Flyers is on pace for 93.

Which is something of a miracle considering the depths they were occupying just over two months ago.

Source

Absolutely right Howie, I said much the same thing in the shoutbox. Great determination and guts to get the tying goal, this team would have collapsed after the Canucks 3rd a couple of months ago. 

Mason was immense for us tonight, absolutely was the single biggest factor in us winning the game.

@jammer2

Yep, good news for fans of the game. I do think it was important to have some games on free to air tv and it seems the NHL agrees. TSN gets a little more in terms of playoff games and and Sportsnet gets the Sunday night games. Seems like everyone is happy, especially the league with the increase in cash for the deal...

Not my words, but those of Alan Bass on THN.com. Having said that, there are quite a lot of similarities. 
 
Maybe I've been drinking the kool-aid too much but I believe this team will make the playoffs. Once there then who knows. 
 
I still want to see how the Flyers shape up against some of the elite Western teams but in all honesty there are not many Eastern teams that cause me sleepless nights.
 

On December 4, 2009, the Philadelphia Flyers were in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, struggling to win games, and looking lost. GM Paul Holmgren, without warning, gives the boot to coach John Stevens, and immediately hires Peter Laviolette. The Philadelphia media howls, the fans protest, and the players seem confused to be losing a leader that they loved and respected. After the first few games under the new coach, the results are the same, and Philadelphia begins to lose patience with their team’s management. Fast forward five months, and captain Mike Richards is lifting the Prince of Wales Trophy as the Eastern Conference champions, and bringing his Orange and Black to within an overtime goal of Game 7 of a Stanley Cup championship.
Now let’s go to October 7, 2013. The Flyers are in last place in the Eastern Conference, struggling to win games, and looking lost. GM Paul Holmgren, without warning, gives the boot to Peter Laviolette, and immediately hires assistant coach Craig Berube as the replacement. The Philadelphia media howls, the fans…well, you can guess the next few steps. First few games are messy, then suddenly the team finds its way.
We’re now 22 games into the season and the Flyers are one point out of an Eastern Conference wild card playoff spot. Sure, it’s difficult to say this will be a mirror of 2010, with Claude Giroux lifting the Prince of Wales Trophy in May 2014. And no one saw it coming back in 2009 either, when they began to win some games.
But this year seems different, for some reason. After the first couple weeks of learning Berube’s new system, the Flyers look like a team determined like no other team Philadelphia has seen in decades. And more importantly, they seem to have solid, consistent goaltending for the first time since Ron Hextall. Even during their early season slump, Steve Mason was playing like an all-star. Now, going into the second quarter of the season, Mason is among the league leaders in goals against average and save percentage. He has yet to allow more than three goals in a game this season, and Saturday night’s victory against the Islanders, he is finally at .500. The team is finally playing like one in front of him.
The Flyers are winning games with the same tactics that helped them in 2010 – depth on offense, smart, defensive hockey, and a system that forces everyone to be moving and pressuring the opposing players at every second of play. Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves with predictions of a Broad Street parade – after all, it’s Philadelphia. But the Flyers have proven that they are a team to keep an eye on as we continue through the campaign.

 
Source

ask me what the word is for a fan who doesn't care about his team until they win a championship.

I know it's more than one word but doesn't that definition = Pens Supporter

So, reading between the lines, you guys are saying this was a good move by Homer, right?

Even a blind squirrel gets a nut once in a while

@jammer2

I tend to agree, and certainly I'd be happy to lock Mase up on those terms. The only positive is that he's only RFA not UFA. Personally I try and sign Emery for two years at 2-2.5 per annum. I don't think he is going to command a whole lot more than that on the open market.

Like you I'm more and more confident that we will make the playoffs and would love to see how Mase plays there. I realise that the playoffs are different but can see no reason for him to suddenly implode. He has his confidence back and the form he showed in his Calder season. Amazing how a change of scene has revitalised him so completely.

@ruxpin

I'm like the most interesting man in the world from the Dos Equis adverts... I once had an awkward moment just to see how it felt...

the response should be, "Paul can't come to the phone right now."!

Oh and just to kind of get back on topic, I too am impressed with the system that Berube has implemented. 

I was amongst those not thrilled with the hiring of Chief but I'm delighted that it looks like I may have been wrong. He has simplified things greatly and has them playing a whole team D.

If he was sending a message to Jake the other night then more power to him, sometimes you need to wake guys up. As long as he doesn't turn into the next Randy Carlyle and Jake into the next Mikhail Grabovski I personally am on board with it...

you're not even close enough to reality to mail a letter to it.

Just a beautiful line rux, never heard that one before! Filed mentally for future use