radoran

DL - thanks for the post. Good reading and a nice sum or a bunch of stuff.

Yes, well, the off-duty cop was from North Jersey. And the reason that they released the video of the incident is that THERE WAS VIDEO OF THE INCIDENT. Most people standing in line to buy a sandwich on the streets of a major metropolitan city in the United States of Americaaren't expecting to be brutally assaulted. As for "couldn't stand for himself" - you try taking on three drunken punks and see how you do. Making excuses for this behavior is despicable. Anyone who does should be ashamed of themselves.

Here's the Police-edited video (the original was taken down from YouTube): http://www.philly.com/philly/video/136693928.html This "good old rough housing" consists of at least three, if not more, "Flyers fans" beating on an off-duty police officer and his son. I'm sure the cop was just looking for trouble - you know how they are... You can also see who throws the first punch - the "Flyers fan" wearing #28. You can also see many other fans wearing jerseys from both teams in line. It's ridiculous to say that people can't go stand in line for a cheesesteak (no matter how awful Geno's is) wearing a Rangers jersey without some loser-ass punk exercising his alcohol-fueled testosterone because his team lost. As Sam Wyche once said: "You don't live in Cleveland!" There's also the moron who posted on Facebook that it was him and he was proud to be beating a guy on the sidewalk. They need some good old fashioned jail time. And quick.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=610012&cmpid=nhl-rxl-fb Tim Thomas is obvious. Karlsson has a good argument. Spezza? Michalek?? ALFREDSSON??? A joke. Nothing more.

Tell him about the Twinkie.

Gosh, Geno's is usually known as a bastion of tolerance and reason...

Can't make it in Tronno - perfect for Philadelphia? Um, no.

Luckily, Rupp is signed for two more years with the Rags. No chance of Homer giving him a contract.

He's got $10, $6.5, $8, $6 on the books in the next four years. That's $30M in the first four years. $36M after 5. Plus the $5M bonus(?) I am admittedly just spitballing here, but he could also be "Filatoved" over to the KHL in an "agreement" with, say, Minsk(?) I would be shocked if he was here for the full nine years of the deal. Simply shocked. And I felt this way when it was signed.

Nodl's already got four points in Carolina...

This is an organization that traded for Billy Tibbetts and drafted Steve Downie. Jus' sayin'... Don't miss carbomb. He never panned out to be what they hoped and his schtick is wearing mighty thin.

I could see Bryz "retiring" in that time frame and heading back to the KHL. That takes care of everything. This isn't an Over-35 contract. Bryz can just walk away. With the NMC, there's precious little the Flyers can do but hope. I am a bit confused though - capgeek.com has him at $10M salary and $5M signing bonus this season, but that makes it a $56M contract? Is the signing bonus part of this year's salary? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

If Henrik Lundqvist is showing you five hole on your penalty shot approach you can bet dollars to donuts Henrik Lundqvist wants you to shoot five hole.

The Very Last Thing this team needs right now is a visit from Mister Softee.

I think the Carousel of Crap in goal finally snapped Snider - about 15 years too late. I honestly don't think Snider did this as a PR move. He did it to "fix" what he identified as a "problem" because that light at the end of his tunnel is turning rapidly into a train. Yes, he got the problem right. The solution was garbage and based entirely on "who's the best UFA goalie available" because the Flyers "don't rebuild." Pegula in Buffalo's in a different light. The Sabres aren't perrennial contenders and don't claim to "retool, not rebuild" - and he kept Reigier who I consider slightly above Mike Milbury in the ranks of general managers.

http://phillysportsdaily.com/flyers/2012/01/02/snider-happy-with-weekend-despite-loss/ The only downside of the hugely publicized event is that the Flyers continued their tradition of goaltending issues. However, even after the Flyers cut a nine-year, $51-million contract to Winter Classic backup Ilya Brzygalov at Snider’s command this offseason, the owner shrugged away any type of controversy. “We have two goalies and one was playing better than the other coming into the game, he won the start,” Snider said. “It’s not a big issue, we’re a team with two good goalies that will work out whatever issues they have and we’ll be in good shape. “There’s no issue, we have no issue. We have two good goalies, we’ll be fine. We’re fighting for first place, something must be working well. It can’t be that bad.” When asked about Bryzgalov’s increasingly odd behavior with the media, particularly his comedy routine on HBO’s “24/7″ and in announcing roster decisions against the team’s wishes, Snider was short, but not negative about how he felt about his franchise goaltender. “I think he’s colorful,” said the chairman. “He’s a colorful guy.” http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2012/01/02/sports/doc4f0283e3b5a87652014935.txt?viewmode=fullstory “It’s a long season,” Snider said. “He (Bryzgalov) was going through a little bit of a slump. And he knows it. Bobrovsky had played some really strong games. We’ve got two goalies. And I’m not disappointed. He’ll be fine, and I think Bryzgalov will be fine.” ---- There was another, even more positive one, but I can't recall when I saw it. Too much to ask for a team that has a plan and executes it instead of listening to whatever "the press and the fans" tell them to do? Was it the FANS who demanded Snider send his private jet for Bryz? Was it the FANS who told Holmgren he was going to sign Bryzgalov? I don't think it was the press or the fans. It was management. They did it. Ownership. Snider. And IF they did it "because it's what the press and the fans" wanted, then they should be fired. Twice already. A dumber, more short-sighted, smacked-ass STUPID way of running a team you will never find than "the press and the fans wanted it."

What counts as "losing it?" Giving up two momentum-changing goals in a marquee, nationally-hyped and shown game? Giving up a terrible game-tying goal to a division rival you are "outplaying" on home ice? I would have been FINE with a "retooling" year behind Bob or with a stopgap of Vokoun for his Caps contract to allow Bob some time. That's not what this team does. This team "competes for the Stanley Cup." Read Snider's quotes about the Classic and come back to me with the idea that "Bob will be in the driver's seat" for the rest of the season. If Ed Snider wanted one of his few remaining chances at a Cup to be behind Sergei Bobrovsky, we'd never have needed to figure out how to spell "Bryzgalov" much less ponder the infinite reaches of the Universe. He doesn't. He won't. They won't. And God help Laviolette if he bucks all that and still comes up short in the playoffs. And by "short" I mean "doesn't win the Cup." This isn't what I'D do. This isn't how I WANT things to go. This is how I SEE them GOING.0 I concur that Bob has room to improve and potentially a higher ceiling than Bryzgalov. I just really REALLY don't want him to "learn" here and "succeed" elsewhere... Which is what we're really looking at at this point.

Preach it, brother Maynard! Consult the Book of Armaments!

Which is exactly why they are forced to play Bryzgalov for most of the starts. Your nine-year $51M NMC investment isn't going to get better sitting on the bench. Again, the decision that was made - not necessarily the decision WE would have made...

Teh Facebook informs me that Jagr is now out 7-10 days with a "mild left groin strain." I didn't realize the groin was so close to the calf. Good thing it's not serious. And also not a recurring, chronic injury...

@aziz Saw the whole game start to finish. No point in playing the "what if" game about this shot here or that stop there. I just know beyondashadowofadoubt that I can guarandamntee if Bryz had been in net and EXACTLY the same things had happened in the game, the focus would ALL be on "why does Bryz suck so much" instead of "well, it really wasn't Bob's fault - except maybe that second one." Again, the point is that THERE ARE PROBLEMS BEYOND GOALTENDING - many of which will, in fact, make the goaltending look better no matter what number follows "3" on the jersey between the pipes.

It's more like an Occupy encampment, but smells better. I'm so sick of the excuses, I'm bursting.

I'm using the criteria developed on these very boards: 1) make it so the Flyers "don't have to score four goals every game" to have a chance to win 2) no "momentum-changing goals" 3) no "bad goals" 3-2 means they would have needed to score four to win. giving up a goal 30 seconds after going up 2-0 in the second in a game your team is "dominating" and then another less than three minutes into the third to tie it up? Seems "momentum-changing" to me. Rupp's second goal would be the poster child for "bad goal" if Michael Leighton had never strapped on pads.

I've been in the "make due with what we've got" camp for quite a while now. Founding member, practically. Welcome aboard! :-) We now return you to the "Play Bob And Fix Everything!" Show on hockeyblogs.net Today's episode: "How It Really Wasn't Bob's Fault"