fanaticV3.0

I could list a bunch that would be a good start     The problem is that it is going to be tough to find a trade partner this early in the season.  If (&when) they make a move I hope that it is for a legit scorer and/or a mobile defensman.   It is going to be a tough one to pull off but you have to try.  

I'm with you (on all accounts). I wouldn't make a trade right now either. Besides being way too early and giving the players a chance to gel, like you said, it's going to be hard to find someone to trade with at this point. I'm just objecting to this idea that there isn't a single player in the league who would change this team. I think it's a pretty dumb thing to say to be honest.

The article focuses on one or two possibilities, but I meant a trade in general, yes.

I don't think so. We've seen personnel come and go through the revolving door over the past few years with the same mediocre results. So why would *just one more trade* make a difference?

By make a difference do you mean go to the cup or simply be a better team? I don't think they're going to the cup and no one player will change that. But if you think there isn't a single roster move to be made that wouldn't improve this team, that's pretty dumb. They are **** right now, there's nowhere to go but up. Winning and losing is a matter of chemistry and one player can make the difference in a team being a little better than they currently are.

A trade won't solve anything right now, the offense can't gel with what they have and you want to put another new body in?

So not a single player in the entire league can make this team better?

I didn't say I "want to" do anything. I'm questioning the idea that there isn't a single move to be made that could improve the team.

Totally agree.  I've been saying this for years now.  The Old Man is the sole reason why this team is such a friggin' disfunctional family.  Frankly, the team is turning into a laughinstock at this point and this guy seats there and says, "We know what we are doing".  I wanted to SCREAM when I heard him say that. 

 

The Briere, Bryzgalov, Streit and LeCavalier were Ed's moves.  How is that working out so far?

I don't think he's the sole reason. I think he's a big one and probably the biggest, but not the sole reason.

I think Richards and Carter were a couple of world class mental midgets and the team did everything it could to accommodate them. It surrounded them with a bunch of young players, when they became a distraction, they got rid of them. When they needed veteran help, the team went out and got Timonen and then Pronger. They bickered with them and cried to the media that they were mean to them. I think Hitchcock was a problem as well. He refused to play Sharp and Williams, relegating them to no man's land, forcing the team to trade them. I think Homer spends too much money on contracts and doesn't know how not to.

The biggest reason for the team's problems? Sure, but the only one? No way.

 I like Couts.   I like Talbot.   I don't like them on the same line.  

 

I know your stance that it's on the players.  I agree with that.  But when the coach puts the place kicker at tight end and the middle linebacker at quarterback, etc., it does hamstring the players.

 

I don't know what to expect from Berube, but I can't say I have very high expectations.    

 

I just think the players are being put in positions that make the job difficult and they're not being men enough to try.

Couturier (I hate his nickname and refuse to use it) scares me. Like I said, I know he is very young, but I don't see much from him at all.

My first reaction to Berube being named coach is to laugh.

Does anyone on this board think a trade is going to fix anything?

 

A trade or this particular trade? If you are saying this particular trade won't fix much, I agree. But if you are saying there isn't any trade that can be made to improve the team, I think that's a pretty stupid statement.

Eskin is a douche in every sense of the word. He only asks question to come across as a " Hard Nose". Asking a question like that, IMO, was stupid. What do you expect people to say when you ask them, " How come so many coaches" There going to defend themselves, right or wrong. A reporter's job is to ask questions the public wants to know, Well I know why they have hired so many coaches. Try asking Snider, How come your GM has given so many bad contracts, That's what I want to know

If he isn't going to answer a question about the coaching carousel, do you honestly think he's going to throw his current GM under the bus? Get real.

Agreed.

I know he's only 20, but Christ, can Couturier show something? I'm not worried about Voracek or Giroux right now, but I think Couturier concerns me.

Changing the GM may not do anything immediately, but changing the GM is what needs to be done.  Homer has made too many mistakes and his head should have been on the chopping block along with Lavi's.  I get that Lavi was on a short leash after a tough season last year, but to just consistently blame the failures of the Flyers on every coach that has come through is getting old.  I'm not buying it any more.  We all appreciate the willingness to spend money from the ownership and get big named players, but how can this team ever grow under a system when the players and coaches are changing every few years.

 

I'm not saying a new system may not be needed, but come on, how many times do we have to go through this?

No, changing the owner is what needs to be done. Nothing will change with the old man calling the shots. It doesn't matter if you have a great GM, horrible one, or just an ok one, they are all subject to the non-existent patience of Ed Snider.

Yip.  Just like the Phils, the real problem is above.

 

Oh, and way over-rated players playing below even what a realist should expect.

I agree and disagree. The old man has got to go. I know he is never going to willingly step down, I'm just saying that it would be for the best if he did go. He's the NHL equivalent of Al Davis or Daniel Snyder. I got good money that says this wasn't even Homer's call. There's other stuff you can pin on him during his tenure, but this move reeks of the old man's doing. Even if Homer ends up getting canned as well, nothing is going to change as long as Uncle Eddie is still around. That's not to say Homer or Clarke never made a mistake, but when you got him demanding a cup every single season, that's no way to run a team.

But when it comes down to it, players are the ones who play. They don't show up, that ain't the coach, GM, or owner's fault. I know it's only 3 games and that's way to early to form any definitive opinion, but in it's all we have to judge on right now, and based on that there's plenty of guys who have shown nothing this year. Vorack, Coots, and Giroux are a few that come to mind.

Hey, the Pens won the Cup last time it happened.

Ergo, Cup = OURS!

Victory will be ours!

Seriously...now what.  No bitchin, no complaining....  This team needs to start doing some soul searchin now or Lavy may not make it to 10 games into the season.  If Lavy goes..then Homer needs to go....make Murray interim coach ONLY until end of season and see who is available.  I know we all want fresh blood in this organization and Hexy looks like heir apparrent to the GM spot...but he was a Flyer....would he be considered one of the good ole boys?  Or because he was in LA for a bit he can look at this with a new fresh perspective.  Just thinking out loud here.

 

I've got no more answers for this team........Seriously how much more restraint and patience do we give this team????

Fire the coach. That will fix everything. It solved the Phils' problems.

Ah, nothing like a good old-fashioned scapegoating.

What hockey cliche will we hear going forward? Did Lavy "lose the room"? Is the OrganIzation looking to go "in a different direction"? Were the "gripping the sticks too tightly under Lavy"?

I can't imagine the nightmare that is working for Ed Snider.

I think I have attended my last Flyers game (at least for awhile).  I'm sorry but I can't stand fans at the game.  The constant yelling of shoot when there is literally NO shooting lane, the bashing of refs for making/not making calls (I'd say 95% of the time they are calling the game correctly), and the overall ignorance of the game.  There are so many sensible, knowledgeable fans but those ignorant ones sure do ruin a good thing.

 

Maybe it's just because it was the home opener and most of the people there had a blood alcohol level well above the legal limit, but this was bad!

 

This picture was from a pre-season game I attended and this guy was yelling ref you suck even after awarding us a power play!!!!  

 

Sometimes they yell shoot when the player the puck is being passed to hasn't even touched it yet.

Roy didn't particularily like the knee on knee hit by Lovejoy on his new star rookie Mackinnon which then as play continued ruined the 6 - 0 shutout.

 

 

So after the game horn ended he decided to have a few frank words with Bourdreau.......

 

 

 

Obviously the league will fine Roy

1. That poor camera guy. Just doing his job and those two asses push the plexi glass on him.

2. I never really understood the whole coaches going at it over stuff like that. The player is the one who did it. You don't know what role the coach - if any - played in the player's actions. It's just dumb to start yelling at a coach because his player did something stupid.

If we could have acquired Bernier for Cooter & Homer didn't pull the trigger on that deal, he should just clean out his office right now.  That would be the bonehead move to end all boneheaded moves.

 

Cooter is basically going to be a good checking line center.  That's no insult, but he is not anything to get worked up about. 

 

Franchise goalies don't come along very often, as we all well know.

I don't know if the rumor was player-for-player or if Homer didn't pull the trigger. No idea. But if it was, I too would have done it in a second. He's young and it could always change, but I agree with you. I don't see him as anything better than a 2nd line center right now, but with Vinny on the team, he isn't going to even get that spot in the foreseeable future.

i'm in this boat.  the time for these guys to make progress is now. Schenn and Couterier both need to show improvement or this team will be going nowhere fast, if they do improve, i think people's outlooks will change drastically. 

 

personally i think Schenn is ready to take the next step , for me he just needs some confidence around the net and to start potting some goals because i feel he does put in the work , going to the scoring areas , making plays, getting open, he just needs to find "the touch" around the net, I thought he was stronger on the puck as the year went on too which was a concern for some around here.

 

Couterier is a confident kid and that comes from being good, i think there is no way he sucks this year like he did last year, i think he improves as well, i wonder if he was hiding an injury or something because damn was his skating bad especially his first step, i  think he's the type of kid that will work to improve his weak areas so i will be surprised if he plays like last year.

 

they have to do it though.

Neither one of them has really impressed me to be honest, but they are very young and still have time. That being said, they have to show something this year. They have to take a noticeable step forward.

Bernier outplayed Couturier tonight, and won the game.  But as far as comparing a goalie to a center goes, the comparison needs to be revisited after a year or many, not after a single game. 

 

But dammit, as far as tonight goes, they should have pulled that trigger.

If ever there was a time to trade one of our young guys, that would have been it. I know he's young and has plenty of time to grow, but I'm not particularly attached to Couturier at all, especially if he got us a franchise goalie.

He definitely has to earn the next contract, which is why he might be looking at a "bridge" deal because in the NHL you definitely do pay players based in part upon their age due to the RFA rules.

 

Read had a ton more leverage as a pending UFA than Schenn does as a pending RFA. I don't think the Flyers can totally lowball him, because of the threat of an offer sheet from people willing to spend on his "potential," but Schenn needs to do a lot more to put himself into a driver's seat at the negotiating table.

 

IMO, Schenn doesn't get "Read"-level compensation unless he has a stunning breakout season. He wouldn't even qualify for a Kardi-level "bridge" deal (2Y/$5.8M) for me at this point.

I completely agree. I have no problem with a bridge deal or simply holding off all-together (during the season) until he shows something. One of my biggest pet peeves in sports is overpaying and overpaying too soon. I hate it in general, but given that our GM has a habit of doing it, I want to avoid it.

I have not spoken much so far but after looking at predictions from so many sites that I lost count, I don't see anyone giving the Flyers much of a chance at all. Some even had them near last place. I know the pre-season was bad to say the least but is was just the pre-season. I might be wrong, but I think they are gonna surprise many. Maybe I'm just being optimistic but that's what I'm feeling. And no, I'm not going to panic if they lose the first 1-2 games (if 3 then I go on yellow alert)... Anyone else disagree with all the predictions? Heck, Philly.com even said they need to be stronger at center! Really? Giroux??? Vinny??? Couts??? Many teams would like that. Not saying they will win the division by any means but they are better than all the "experts" are saying. What say you?

Couturier is a nobody dude. He is very young and has plenty of time and I'm not calling him a bust, I'm just saying the kid has done virtually nothing so far. I wouldn't be throwing his name into a conversation and scoff at people's notions that they need more help at center. He has proven nothing at this level so far.

Vinny is nothing to get excited about either. I'm not saying he's terrible, but just ok. There was a short time he was an elite player, but he never sustained that for a long period of time. He's also on the latter part of his career. He's not bad, not great. He's ok.

Giroux is great, but I don't really get your confusion over someone's opinion that the team isn't very strong at center. It could be worse, but it's not exactly the kind of thing that makes you go "Wow!"

What exactly is it that you think should be acknowledged that isn't? As always, they have so-so goalies, they were a non-playoff team last year, and some of their young talent stagnated last season. I do like Giroux, Read,  Voracek, and Simmonds, and think the team could make some noise is Schenn and Couturier stepped up. But that's the thing, they have to step up. I think the team has potential, especially up front, but it's unrealized at this point.

Homer built this team (with the blessing of Ed Snider, of course).  He was the one who did not bring in a top tier goalie (sorry, Bryz) or d-man in his prime. He consistently brings in players past their prime. I'm praying that Lecavalier does not turn into Forsberg and get hurt every other game.  He should be the first one fired because he refused to get a somewhat fast, young d-man in a deal. He has a slow aging d core that is begging to have its first injury excuses coming in by mid-November (Timonen), and an overpaid stiff (Coburn) as its first d unit. He brought in Coburn and kept Timonen. Bringing in Luke Schenn was a good move but they need more than just him. Enough said.

Lavy. Snyder is quicker to fire coaches than management.

LOL!  Just look for the human pylon!

 

People think he blocks a lot of shots and he does ---  only b/c he is too slow to get out of the way... 

I used to think of Kjell Samuelsson the same exact way.

Well he's not fast, but maybe his large presence will "scare" the other team out of our zone. I'm sure that is what management is thinking.

Oooh, like a scarecrow?

Agreed...   I have no issue w/ giving schenn a bridge contract but he is not worth 3M a year at this point.    Time for him to earn what he wants...

God I hope he does this year too, because frankly I'm a little worried. I know he's not old, but I remember hearing that LA was disappointed in him and being here a little while now, he's pretty much a non-factor most of the time.

  Just how do you watch Hal Gill?  You could use the sand from an hour glass to keep track of his lap times in the warm up. Perhaps watch him while sinking in quicksand to get the optimum feel for his game? He would be just ok on the pk cutting off the passing lanes in front of the net and clearing the crease, but wow, will some of these young forwards BLOW by him on the rush!!  We need a quicker defense all round, this would not help.

Rather easily, it's not like he's going anywhere in a hurry.