Digityman

That Gerbe goal was at least 50% luck. He has skill and speed no doubt but eyes in the back of his head? na. Buffalo on the inside looking out in the beginning of 2012 wasn't in many people's predictions. Seems as though they haven't come together as a team whether because of injuries or chemistry. I'd say 8 out 10 is very possible and as you said very very important. 9th spot up all have winning records in the last ten. About 90-92pts should be enough to get the 8th spot in the East this year. They need to go 25-18 over their last 43 (or any combination with the loser point) to get there. Doable but difficult.

What a horrible line that would be. Obviously the word is out that Carter isn't a passer. Him, BongBoy and Kessel would be fighting to see who has the most shots in the league (Kessel is #4, Lupul is #6 and Carter is usually in the top 5 without injury) I'd still like to see one of Nash, Iginla or Ryan on Giroux's other side in replacement of Harnell. Having someone that has hands and can finish might push that line to super star status. Yes, I understand the salary cap. Yes I understand that something of value has to go the other way. Yes I understand the NMC.

I said it in the thread but I'll say it again - Winter classic as the Popularity Game (aka all-star game) is a great idea. To add to it, make it in February after the super bowl. It's before March Madness, after the NFL is over and there really isn't much else it can compete with. Plus, February IS winter in the northern hemisphere. The WC on New Years competes to much with NFL, Bowl games and christ for that matter the holidays/new years. I'm not a huge fan of a rematch of the finals. Viewer choice is the popularity game. See #1 I believe the WC is starting to slowly lose it's luster. It needs to change. Just a date change alone should pick it back up.

The other thing they can try is: Hartnell - Giroux - Couturier Simmonds - Schenn - Voracek vanRiemsdyk - Briere - Read Rinaldo - Talbot - Zolnierczyk/Sestito Briere and Read seemed to have some chemistry. JVR would give him the big guy on the boards ala Hartnell. Simmonds - Schenn - Voracek could turn into a pretty strong line.

@hf101 @Podein25 @AlaskaFlyerFan I admitting haven't thought this through but is it safe to say that the speed of the game is the ultimate cause of the increase of severe injuries. So either you have to slow the players down or make everything around them softer: softer shoulder pads & more padding in helmet. Which leaves two hard surfaces (that don't have any give at all) - the ice and the boards. The ice is rarely a cause of injuries especially if you are able to redesign the helmet to add more padding. That leaves the boards. There has to be a way to make the entire wall structure similar to the way the glass gives a little when hit. An entire plexi structure that is see-through would actually be nice to see the puck on the near walls also. Just a thought.

@Leach27 I nominate you Chief Polling Architect. We need a 2nd to make it happen. Anyone?

I would like to see: Jagr - Giroux - Read Hartnell - Briere - Voracek Talbot - Schenn - Simmonds Sestito - Court - JVR They have to get at least Briere going. Put Hartnell back with him to see if he can spark him back to life.

He can sit right next to Shelly.

Automated my 80% of my job and my wife works nights.... Good idea. I'll add it in.

Decent college bowl games, it being on a Monday and the time change didn't help. Honestly, I think the winter classic is starting to loose it's luster. It's hyped big time but the quality of hockey isn't that great due to the crappy ice. The puck bounces all over the place so the flow isn't the greatest. That's just my opinion anyway. I was more interested in the HBO 24/7 series than the WC itself. But in the end, I'm glad they are both over and the Flyers can get rid of the distractions and start focusing on actually playing again.

That's a good point @terp Maybe I can incorporate that. I started off with the goalies as it's seems to be the most debated topic so far. But you do have a point.

Lundqvist and the Rangers seem to be pulling it all together. Whether or not it will last another 4-5 months it's anyone's guess but they have a world class goalie and a young talented group. Bruins vs Rangers in the ECF.

The only thing the contract states is that Bryz was given 9 years because the Flyers expected him to be the #1 they have sorely missed. Playing a struggling goalie based solely on contract isn't good business. Regardless of how much the players make, teams bench players for poor play all the time. There shouldn't be a difference for a goalie. Bryz is a professional athlete and a adult. If his confidence is lacking it's his own fault and being that professorial for many years should know that it's on him to regain it. The Flyers nor any other organization are in the business of codling the egos of players.

Doesn't not having him in the lineup (our #1 or #2 depending on your view) screw up the line combinations? Carle without Pronger is noticeably weaker. I agree the stats tell a different story but there are many different factors that go into that. I do think it's fair to say the Flyers are a better team with Pronger vs without.

So true.

First, let me say that this is going to be an ongoing spread sheet to try to compare Flyers goalies & skaters versus their opponents to try to figure out which is responsible for the result (win or loss). I haven't found anything like this so I started from scratch. I'm open to suggestions on how to better track if you have any. Please don't flame me **All of these numbers are based on the 37 games the Flyers have played in the 2011-2012 season and will be updated each week. (Last update: 1/4/2012) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part #1 - Let’s start off with some real basic numbers. These are just to lay the foundation as we move on. Starting Goalies Average Save Percentage: NHL Average – 0.913 Flyers – 0.886 Opponent – 0.875 Flyers starting goalie has a higher average save percentage than the opponent’s average. Shots For / Shots Against per game: NHL Average = 29.9 Flyers Shots Against Opponents – 31.5 Opponent Shots Against Flyers – 28.5 Flyers as a team have more shots than the average while giving up less than the average Goals For / Goals Against per game: NHL Average: 2.73 Flyers: 3.38 Opponent: 2.89 The Flyers score more goals than the average but also let in more than the average. Part #1 Result - Pretty straight forward. Most teams with a decent winning record will have similar numbers. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part #2 - Let’s dig a little deeper by comparing how the goalie played vs how the skaters played. To do this we needed to pull 3 stats for each position. Goalies 1) If the Flyers starter has a better Save % than the opponents starter – 1 Point 2) If the Flyers starter has a better Save % than the league average – 1 Point 3) If the Flyers starter let in less than the league average goals against per game – 1 Point Skaters 1) If the skaters score more than the league average goals per game – 1 Point 2) If the skaters allow less than the league average shots against per game – 1 Point 3) If the skaters shoot more than the league average shots for per game – 1 point CLICK TO ENLARGE CHART Part #2 Result - Although statistically the Flyers' starting goalies have a higher average save percentage then the opponents starters, it is still well below the league average. The Flyers have received turbulent play from their goaltenders while the skaters have turned in fairly steady performances. Looking at the column "Goalie - Goalie played well enough to win" you can see that during the 7 game winning streak the goalies only had a -3 (red) in the game against the Ducks. The skaters won that game despite the goal tending. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part #3 - Taking part #2 and comparing the Flyers goalie & skaters to the opponents goalie & skaters with the same ranking system. This will determine whether or not the opponent's goalie's are winning or losing more games for their team. (Part #3 is still in process) Part #3 Result - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Part # 4 - Determining how many points the Flyers gained or lost based on the play of their starting goalie. (Part #4 is still in process) Part #4 Result - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please make any suggestions for other comparisons / stats. ***Opponent = The Flyer’s opponent’s averages not the NHL averages which shines a light on the Flyers games only.

That's what Homer says. And at this point, Homer has no credit what-so-ever.

Washington has 2 first round picks. At some point this team will pull it together and win the cup. I mean, how can they not? Another Russian going to the Jackets. Another Russian going back to the KHL.

" Who? I don't want to talk about the Flyers..." "I don't know if NBC got together with the refs to get this game into overtime.." I wouldn't be shocked. There were some calls there that were pretty bad. That PS was a bit of shock.

CBS Sports

That's true. But to bench Jagr? CBC showed him testing the groin in the hallway. I think that's what it is.

Mez should have stepped up or went down....one or the other.

I'd hate to think Lavy is making a statement in the WC.

I think it's time also. Lauren should be doing it herself at this point. Maybe she is the one that likes to do it though?