Flyers need help on D, not Bobby Ryan

[jammer2]

I've never seen it, but ya, never know...they could have thrown him into the second pp at the point...he *does* have a wicked blast. Just love the way this kid drives to the net. You don't see many 20 year old 6'3 power forwards that weigh 225 that can skate like the wind. Scary question...what happens when this kid fills out totally? Columbus should have held out until the Rags included this kid in the deal. Even if was just Kreider and a first. The fact they have their entire defense intact, Nash AND Kreider, strong down the middle with Richards and Stephan (not as good as the Flyers centers, the one spot we have them at)...it's just not fair. All they have to do is find a checking line center, a lot easier to find than the stuff I just listed....NOT FAIR!!!

[radoran]

Fair enough.... although I am not assessing this from the position of 'what if somebody goes down'. I am looking at the current players, thinking these are the players who will play the entire season.

Further, I am not necessarily looking at names per se. Like Jammer noted - and I am paraphrasing - games are won on the ice. I lost count when the Flyers' roster looked as one of the most formidable in the league, only to go down in flames.

And using the same principal, I am not looking at "names" on the Florida D. All that matters to me is that they played essentially flawless D, which very much reminded me the old, oh-so-familiar Devils stifling type of defense. You seem to be overlooking that Florida was one of the better teams pretty much all season long and took the future Stanley Cup finalist to 7 games. And Game 7 was won on the OT goal by the Devils. So yes, I will say right here and right now that Florida defense is superior to the Flyers, and by a wide margin. It may be the team D that Dineen is using, but they are getting it done defensively. And that’s good enough for me.

Again, if looking purely, strictly from the roster standpoint, I don’t disagree that the Flyers top 6 look good. Not phenomenal – but OK. But you are looking the other way if you are choosing to ignore some issues:

1. Our top d-man is 37 year-old who not only has some serious mileage under him, but is coming back after surgery.

2. Grossman and Mezsaros are also coming back from serious injuries.

3.The team will likely throw a very unproven guy (MAB) into the role that he may not be quite ready for. This I am actually not complaining about, but rather stating that this is one of the potential impediments.

4. Nobody knows what to expect out of Luke Schenn. People here used to moan and complain unstoppably about JVR’s wasted potential and inconsistent work ethic. Well, based on everything we know so far, Luke has not necessarily set the world on fire in both of those departments, either.

Hey, I completely agree that there are serious concerns and questions. I just think there are similar questions and concerns on many, many teams.

You asked me about "confidence" and when I see a team with a defense that is definitely in the top half and likely at least in the top third of the league, I think that can be competitive.

I've suggested possible UFA pickups. I've probed a few trades.

Heck, why not offer sheet Del Zotto?

What do the Flyers do about the problems on the defense beyond identify them?