mojo1917

@radoran what @BobbyClarkeFan16 said. I believe I heard Buffalo was once interested in Laughton, a young player who is "stuck" would be an excellent return in a trade scenario. If Buffalo thinks "a Laughton type" helps them get over a hump maybe a trade could happen. Not everyone in the league has the jaundiced view of the Flyers players that the fans do. Frost is cheap and controlled for one more rfa year. He might be appealing to a team that has salary cap concerns. Maybe a 2 + Frost and the fact the NHL and CAR hosed the Flyers on DeAngelo provides the right atmosphere to put Necas on the table.

@SaucyJack I like home whites too.

Geez this is fun so far. Lots of speed , skill and toughness on display . 6 past Georgiev.

Just two of these guys would increase the skill level enough to where some the young skill the Flyers have on the wing could really improve too. It's an interesting time to be a fan of this team. I have no idea what they have planned . Both coach and GM say they need more skill in their exit pressers, so I'd be surprised if the roster isn't different next season -and maybe significantly so.

Well hell, the Flyers could have lost 4-1 just the same. That was some low event hockey there. Anyway. The Rangers are looking like the chalk.

This was a lot more competitive than I was thinking it would be. Maybe the 'Canes just don't have it. The Islanders should have won that game. Anderson wasn't good by any stretch, the Islanders shots were right at him. If the Canes don't get it together they're going to be at home before they're ready; and then what happens to them with their salary crunch? Big changes everywhere?

Ugh Jimmy Vesey the Ranger I dislike the most scores, after the goon. The Caps look washed to me. If this goes 5 I'll fall over.

Damn Jets...110 points during the season. 110 really quiet points and they got beaten by the Flyers 2 times, so I'm going with MacKinnon and Makar. Hellboy steals 2 and the Jets win one but they can't get the 4th.

I have zero clue how the Predators made the post season. That said, I think their truculence will make the series interesting. Vancouver is young but really good- so it may take a minute to find their playoff game. I just think there are too many good players on the Canucks and they win in 6

This seems a shame to have this series so early. A lot of writers are picking Dallas to win it all. I think this will be an entertaining series. I do think the Stars advance, I also think they'll be diminished afterwards.

This group of Leafs is one of the most talented they've iced in 50 years. I still don't think thy have the playoff guys to advance beyond a round. As much as I like Matthews, Marner, and Johnny Pajamas I don't think they have the defense or the toughness/skill combo in the bottom 6 to win the cup. I picked Boston in 6, I know they're not setting the world ablaze with their play lately. They have had the Leafs number in the playoffs, I don't see where Toronto has made any adjustments to change that narrative.

Well ****, all that based on less than 30 games. You got some lottery numbers to share? You're certainty about this comes from what information? The fantastical scenario where Anahiem gives up its 1st pick happens how? because you'd "alpha up" on the trade partner or something as looney? Who had the leverage? Where is your info from or is that scenario what you'd do on Playstation? Your post is a bunch of ill informed nonsense. But written in an authoritative way, to seem like you knew better then and certainly know better now. Your insight is usually way better than this garbage.

I'm hoping that he outgrows the injuries. It's happened before. Justin Williams was a good example for this. He was injured frequently in his early career also. He wound up having a pretty good career.

@flyercanuck @radoran Wasn't that guy injured during his draft year? It's Jiriceck right? He had a bum knee, and it was serious like missing most of his season serious. I'm remembering this correctly yes? Funny to me how that guy gets a pass- but Drysdale? he's damaged goods. Is it a size thing? Not trying to start a row or anything but I do question if I'm remembering it right and why I perceive this difference.

@icehole I don't agree with everything you wrote there but the overall message is spot on, they need better players.

Hahahahaha the Islanders still suck. Somehow every other team in the Metropolitan division managed to suck more. Carolina will eviscerate them. I picked 'Canes in 6 because the Russian goalies are hard to beat when they're average and the Isles have 2 good ones. I think these games will be non-competitive and boring. Carolina will have the puck all the time but will need 40 shots to beat the Sorokin /Varlarmov tandem. The Islanders effectively ended the Flyers season when they won in overtime two weeks ago. They were terrible that night but somehow managed to beat a spent Flyers club. I never liked them and hope they lose as embarrassingly as possible.

hoo-boy I think this will be a fun series. There is still plenty of animosity between these teams, so this will be appointment viewing for me. I have no idea what will happen. If Vasievski plays well it could go the distance with an upset. If he plays like he has for most of this year. Cats in 6 I picked cats in 7

I can't tell if this year's Washington offering is a bad good team or a good bad team...regardless the Rangers, though I think they are soft and I hate them with fire of 1000 suns, are better in every facet of the game. I think the games will be competitive but dudes like Vinnie Trocheck, and Alex Lafrenière will make the difference for the Rangers in victory.

If they are traded this calendar year? I don't look at the situation quite as black and white as that. If anything more teams may inquire about Laughton. The trade deadline by it's nature limits the amount of teams where a player can be traded. Bubble teams aren't looking for other bubble teams players when they're pushing for a playoff spot. But maybe a team that just missed the playoffs thinks, we're a Scott Laughton on the bottom 6 away from making that next step. Konecny won't be a diminished asset for a few more years. I don't think the Flyers will be better next year unless sweeping changes happen and the Mad Russian makes his way to the US. Maybe the 25 draft is stronger than this one and the carrots to Michkov's peas is found then.

If you look on Capfriendly his buy out is a nightmare scenario. Couturier absolutely has to come back to at least 90% Selke version of himself for that contract to cripple the team. He was good early on this year but then really ran out of gas, it's a crap shoot as to whether this is him going forward or a learning for everyone about his workload.

I've been puzzled by this too. The Flyers needed to win in regulation if they were to have any chance to make the playoffs. A tie was the same as a loss. They were playing for their own benefit, not the Wings or Pens Some of this kind of "reporting" comes from counting internet opinion sites as news outlets. I think. I like to listen to the ALLCity network podcasts, because that's where a beat writer I have come to like participates. The other dudes on the podcast don't know any more about the sport than you or I do- but Charlie O'Connor gets interviews with players, coaches and "people who know stuff". So unless he's saying it, anything coming from that outlet shouldn't carry much weight. At least that's how i try to filter stories like the one you're mentioning. It's the old "consider the source".

I don't think this decision exists in a vacuum. If Michkov is coming over early does that change the calculus for anyone? I think it does for me. Bringing Matvei into the room with peak TK would be a good thing IMO. The things that happen around the draft, if anything happens around the draft, may have some bearing on an extension for TK as well. Are they able to move up to get a centerman? do they move some guys in hockey trades ? I know the management loves TK, I also know he is the most valuable asset the Flyers have. Like it did at the trade deadline, the state of the team will impact the decision making, I like that.

Great post Howie. I don't think Rocky Thompson is a terrible anything (his hair is bad) he's been pretty successful in the CMJ and AHL. He can't get blood from a stone, add your favorite metaphor, the talent is not there yet. I really just wanted to say Rocky's hair is bad. great post, strong agree.

I'd like to see that too, very much in fact. But I'll settle for being entertained. to be clear. I don't think the work is done here, the team can be improved and I'd love to see it. I'm not delusional. I get zero enjoyment from watching a team get it's ass kicked with the "promise of better days ahead", did that with the Sixer and Orioles thanks. I get zero enjoyment from watching a team quit after a thing goes wrong, which happened far too frequently in the Giroux era. This season has been a near 180° turn from 2 seasons ago. That's not nothing, and I'm sure as **** not going to grouse and moan that a team with 3 good players isn't lifting the cup. Those 23 guys played their asses off this year and I'm grateful to have watched that instead of season 2 of the San Jose experiment.

Not really, I appreciate falling back into top 15 draft position. Realistically no team trades out of it's top pick especially if it's in the top 10. I don't anticipate much happening in the way of off-season intrigue. By that I mean The Danny Jonsey® being able to work some kind of miracle trade to move into the top 5. I think unless Michkov can join the team, they will be worse next year. A lot of what I think will happen will depend on the Michkov timeline. If the Flyers aren't saying anything about how they got Fedotov maybe that means they have those people working on the bigger fish. If Michkov is in play, then extending Konecny isn't the worst move. But there are other threads to come for that nonsense. This isn't necessarily all directed to you OR, but this thread feels like a good place for an end of season impression. The team is being rebuilt or at the very least made to be different, if people cannot see it I don't know what to say anymore. If people don't like the way the Danny Jonesy® are going about it, that's a different story but fine by me, there's no one right way to do it. I dont' like the way my mother-in-law makes lasagna either. The roster has 5 players remaining from the Giroux era. That's 79% new faces since the bubble, that's real turnover. I cheer for hockey and hockey teams, not draft picks and trade speculation, the season being over means the part I like least about following the team has begun. yay If winning a championship is the only criteria used to gauge success then I reckon those who think that way should get used to feeling miserable. I was entertained by this hockey team this season. They were easy to like, they played hard. They got everything out of their ability, which was limited. What's not to like about that effort? The building is more full and more engaged than it has been in 6 years. The management has made big strides toward repairing the relationship with the fans, they aren't pissing on our legs and saying it's from the lawn sprinkler.