Earle'sGaffe

Interesting. Most prognosticators had the Flyers protecting Patrick. Wonder who gets that last spot now?

It seems like this deal is being evaluated almost exclusively in terms of Hartnell’s offensive skill set in relation to RJ’s, as well as the merit of the two contracts. I just have a gut feeling those weren’t the primary considerations. As I watched Berube during the course of this past season, I was struck by how much more demanding he seems to be of his players than other recent coaches, particularly in terms of fitness and discipline. Many times during the a game a Flyer would take an undisciplined penalty at the worst time, and the camera would pan to Berube and you could almost see the smoke coming out of his ears. Very often I thought to myself, “There are some players who aren’t getting it. He’s going to send a few guys packing in the off season.” Nine times out of ten, the player that got him fuming was either Hartnell or Downie. We haven’t heard a peep about resigning Downie, as we all expected, and now Hartnell has been sent packing. It’s just a hunch, but I think this is more about Berube and Hextall saying, “We have certain expectations, and if you want to play here, you’re going to have to meet them.” I’m not ragging on Hartnell’s offensive skills, which if not epic are at least adequate. But he’s undisciplined. I think Hextall’s looking not just for skilled players, but for a certain type of mindset. At least, I hope so. RJ might not score as many points as Hartnell, but if he stays out of the box, he helps keep the penalty killers of the ice and allows them to stay fresh during 5 on 5 play. That may help make up for the difference in scoring.

@aziz I wouldn't have been surprised at all to see him sign somewhere in the 2.5-3.0 range. It's a pretty sure bet at least a handful of teams would have been willing to extend an offer sheet for at least that much if he had gotten to free agency. So yeah, a little unexpected that he took this offer this early. But hey, good for us. I love that the young core is already getting locked in for the next few years. It should help ensure that any overly aggressive moves at next season's trade deadline or in free agency don't eat up the cap and squeeze out the young talent.

Cap hit of $1.75 per year, per Anthony SanFilippo. Sounds like a solid deal.

So I guess I'll put my Laughton jersey in moth balls....

Morin wasn't who I was pulling for, but I can at least hope that the pick is indicative of a newfound commitment to patiently developing players from within. C'mon, prove me right Homer!

I'm interested in this prospect but don't know much about him. Can anyone answer these questions? Does he care about the universe? Does he own a husky? Does he have a soft spot in his heart for brutal tyrants? Any help you can offer would be welcome.

I could see that if management had a track record of developing talent. But frankly, how many players that the Flyers picked up five years ago are still with the team? If they draft a player that's five years away from the NHL chances are he'll be traded away before he ever contributes!

I had to wonder when they noted that Morin "should be a good NHL player in 4-5 years." Whereas they admitted that Risto is "nearly NHL ready."

Mario I stand corrected. I forgot Buffalo also has pick #16!

I hear ya. I'm not saying Fucale couldn't go mid to late 1st round, just that he'd be a big reach in the 1st for any of the teams you named. Of course, if they really like him, they can trade down and get him later, but they'd have to REALLY like him to trade out of a top-ten pick in this draft.

I just realized what I did there. I implied that I'm beginning to understand how Homer's brain operates. Maybe it's time for me to go lie down for awhile....

Acquiring the Oilers two 2nd rounders would take them out of the picture. Neither NJ nor Buffalo are going to pull the trigger on Fucale in the 1st round (unless they trade down), and this deal would give the Flyers the highest pick of the 3 teams in the 2nd. I think this may just be what Homer is thinking.

Sean Couturier's status is the reason the Laughton pick, which initially had me upset, is growing on me. Scott supposedly has similar defensive skills to Couturier and it would be great to see him be able to take over that defensive center role, freeing up Couturier to be more offensive-minded. Sean has said he prides himself on his defensive game so we'll never have to worry about him getting one dimensional, but if the Flyers can afford to turn him lose more consistently than last year, and play more minutes, it could be fun to watch. Of course, with the current log jam at center, who's ahead of Couturier on the depth chart might be a bigger factor than who can fill in behind him.

You're forgetting Jeff Finger....

Can't wait till the Flyers play the Wild and we get to see this: The puck comes to Parise and he can't decide whether to dump it into the Flyer's zone or to carry it in. He pulls out his cell phone to call his fiance and see what she prefers, but while he's dialing Giroux steals the puck and goes the other way. Suter has to decide whether to try taking him into the boards or poke checking the puck off his stick, but he refuses to choose until Parise does. Meanwhile Giroux goes in on net unchallenged....

Yeah, but they've resigned Leighton so the goaltending issues have been solved!

Now you're talking. I think I'd rather see another Max Talbot-type signing or two before one of these overpriced "saviors" that tie up so much cap space that you can't afford to have solid talent throughout the line-up.

@flyerrod Agreed that diving is ruining a great game and something needs to be done. It's not easy to judge a player's intentions, though, so I'm not sure how to enforce penalties fairly. Some sort of after-the-game review seems the way to go, but even then, you'd never be absolutely sure the call was justified. All-in-all though, the problem is so bad it's time to try something. Maybe I'm a naive idealist, but I almost think the answer might lie in the way the game is taught to youngsters, rather than in assessing penalties. It should be pounded into their heads that diving is so shameful that they'll be universally despised if they try it. Either that or make offenders start wearing a dress during games.

I've never liked the 2-minute delay of game penalty for shooting the puck over the boards. I get the reason for the rule, but the infraction is rarely intentional and assessing a penalty for nothing more serious than putting a little too much mustard on a clearing attempt doesn't sit well with me. Plus, it seems like a disproportionate number of these calls are made when a team is already killing a penalty, thus putting them two men down for a pretty piddly infraction. I'm for treating shooting the puck out of play the same as an icing call. The guilty team must face off in their own end and can't change players. In my opinion that's a much more reasonable "penalty."

It seems like half the fans more and more of the GMs in the league are becoming shopaholics. Every big name free agent that hits the market sparks another frenzy of "I gotta have one," whether or not he really fits a need or a system. It's the way of the world now, I guess, but I miss the old days when you won championships by building chemistry and developing talent, not buying it.

I had the exact same thought. If he really thinks the West is the better option maybe he's not smart enough to play in Philly!

Beat me to it, Grump. I haven't seen enough yet to convince me there's any general hesitation among UFAs to come to Philly. Hamhuis wanted to be closer to home. Schultz insists on playing in Canada. Suter supposedly doesn't want to play anywhere in the East, and even then his agent denied that he has a list of teams he's excluded. Anyone wanting to play for a winner could do a lot worse than to come to a team that racked up 100+ points with a roster featuring half a dozen rookies in ksignificant roles, Bryz notwithstanding. And the Flyers have a good reputation as a team that looks after their players. I don't think a few recent trades--even high-profile ones--can erase that decades-old image. If anything, it just speaks to a desire to do what it takes to build a winner.

Maybe this is common knowledge, but it's the first I've heard of it. Earlier this week Pinacchio reported that Jagr "suffered an unannounced left quad pull against Pittsburgh that was so bad it was hemorrhaging prior to the series against the New Jersey Devils, even though he played every game." Explains the sub-par showing in the post-season. Gotta give him some credit for some grit, if nothing else. Not quite Lappy-esque, maybe, but not bad...

Thanks for the updates!