About the Other Night...

What a disapointing way to end a cinderella post-season for the Philadelphia Flyers.

This writer is conficted at the current moment, mainly because of a horrific goal let in by netminder Michael Leighton to win the Stanley Cup.

I don't know whether or not to feel misery for yet another failure, or a bust of joy due to the incredible success of the team?

There are two sides to this coin. The first side consists of everyone being ashamed that their Flyers have failed after being pegged favorites to win the Stanley Cup, particularly after mortaging their future in order to acquire blueliner, Chris Pronger. The playoff loss isn't even the half of it; the Flyers barely made it into the playoffs. Free agent Mike Knuble and then-traded Joffrey Lupul were gone, with youngster Claude Giroux expected to fill the void. Ray Emery was brought in as a "low risk, high reward" band-aid at the goaltending position. Both of those issues blew up in the Flyers' face, as Giroux didn't shine in the regular season and Emery was riddled with injuries.

It took the orange and black a shootout on the final day of the season to clinch their spot in the post-season. That sounds awful, doesn't it? But wait...

The other side of this story hasn't been heard yet.

Only 30 or so games into the season, the Flyers were heading towards an ugly fate early on in the season. Goaltender Ray Emery had been injury-plagued early, youngsters Claude Giroux and James VanRiemsdyk, as well as veteran forward Scott Hartnell, had not produced as hoped by fans or management. Head Coach John Stevens was also ineffective in aiding the team. On December 4, 2009, Peter Laviolette replaced Stevens has head coach.

Everything seemed to change from that point on.

Although a shaky start, Laviolette's system began to have an effect on the team as a whole. Energetic forward Daniel Carcillo began to refine his game under the new head coach, playing with new found discpline and contributing on the Flyers' top line. The team began to bond on another level, picking up their pace as the season went on. None of this would have been possible if not for the Flyers' best waiver pick-up in a decade...Michael Leighton.




On December 15, 2009, the 6'3 goaltender was claimed for the 3rd time during the 2009-10 season to back-up Brian Boucher while the injuried Ray Emery was recovering. Shortly after being claimed by Philadelphia, Leighton was thrown into the starting role for the Flyers. He made the most of it, finishing the season (as a Flyer) with a .920 save percentage and a 2.48 GAA, earning him the starting job in the Winter Classic over New England-born Brian Boucher.

Here's an astonishing scenario...the Philadelphia Flyers are one win away from going to the playoffs on the last day of the NHL regular season. They are playing the dreaded New York Rangers, a division rival and team that is also fighting for its playoff life. Regulation isn't enough to do it. Overtime can't decide this game. Only a shootout. Not just any shootout...it's a shootout against arguably the game's best goaltender, Henrik Lundqvist. Who would've thought that Philadelphia, a team who hadn't put their foot on the throat of any important game this season, would win their ticket to an amazing Stanley Cup Finals run against such a skilled goaltender?

The joy radiating from Brian Boucher after stopping a Olli Jokinen shot lit up the hearts of all Flyers fans viewing the game. One can only imagine how the players themselves felt.



From that point on, the Flyers continued to roll through the playoffs, brutalizing the arch-rival New Jersey Devils in a series that ended 4-1. In that series, however, the Flyers took two large casualties; Ian Laperriere and Jeff Carter. Both players would remain out of the playoffs for some time. In the second round, the Flyers came out in a disappointing way, losing the first three games to the burly Boston Bruins. Somehow, this miraculous machine of a hockey team barreled back to win the series 4-3 in a historic series.After dispatching the Bruins, the Flyers made short work of Jaroslav Halak and the giant-killing Montreal Canadiens.

Setting the scene here: Daniel Briere has not been useless, Ville Leino has now started a run that will see him to set a Flyers' rookie record for most points in a playoff season. Braydon Coburn is playing like a man thirsty for blood (I wish he always would) and Scott Hartnell is producing far beyond his numbers in the regular season. Nothing can be more perfect for the Flyers. Especially Michael Leighton gaining 3 shutouts at this point in a limited amount of time in the post-season.



Then the finals came about. The clock finally struck midnight for the resilient Flyers, ending their Stanley Cup hopes when Patrick Kane score during a Game 6 overtime to win the Stanley Cup for the Blackhawks, ending a winless-drought that has spanned almost half a decade. The city of Philadelphia's pride hurts to this day, but nevertheless...the city that was the setting for "Rocky" respects this team for never giving up, never making excuses and never forgetting that they respresent "us" and not just themselves.

Now, I know there will be several moves made this off-season...players traded, rookies drafted and inevitable retirements, but it is important to rememember that this team was one of tenacity and terror...everything we love. I can't wait for next year.

Good night, good hockey.

Philadelphia Flyers All-Decade Man. Oh Yes.

Alright, seeing as the Flyers continue to roll and perform amazingly well, I've decided that I'm going to take the time and create an All-Decade Flyers Team.

One blog created an All-Decade team that I particularly wasn't a fan of...some names were left off and it upset me.

So, I've decided that I am going to make my own. I'm going to make 3 teams, 18 players total.


Let's see if you agree:

Team 1:

At Left Wing.... Simon Gagne.



No one can even touch Simon Gagne in this arena, seeing as he is the only player on the current Flyers left and is still producing at a very good level. Natural goal scoring ability, decent leadership ability and his place on the PK make him an obvious pick.


Next, at Right Wing...Mark Recchi.



I know many will argue with me on this pick, but simply...Mark Recchi is too good. He was on some of the best teams the Flyers have ever had during this decade and played extremely well throughout for us, despite not being here as long as a Simon Gagne had. The “Recching Ball” gets my vote for 1st team.


Next forward, at Center...Mike Richards.



I swear, if I have one person comment or e-mail me saying that Keith Primeau should be in this slot, I will stab their eyes out. Look, I like Keith Primeau too, but he did nothing for Philadelphia that Mike Richards hasn't/can't do. Mike Richards is an NHL All-Star, defensive stud on PK, and another good captain. He hasn't hit his peak yet and frankly, I'm excited for when he does. Regardless, Primeau showing up for one playoff year doesn't impress me.


First up on defense is...Eric Desjardins.



Although I was never particularly a fan of Rico, it is undeniable that he is the best defenseman the Flyers had this decade. He really started his decline once 2000 hit, but he still earns the top spot on my list as Timonen and Pronger haven't been here long enough for me to think otherwise.


And lastly on defense...Kimmo Timonen.



Well, what can I say about Kimmo...the little man is an incredible defender for his size, just standing at roughly 5 foot 10. He is incredible with his stick work when being backed up into his zone and has been solid offensively, although not very impressive.

He is head and shoulders above any other Flyer during this decade (once again, Pronger does not count). Kimmo is a 6.3 million dollar cap hit I am proud to be the owner of.



Now to finish Team 1, I present to you my goalie choice of the decade...Roman Cechmanek!



Yes, I picked Roman “I like to stop pucks with my face” Cechmanek as my goalie over Esche, Biron, Boucher, Michael (Jesus) Leighton, but with what I think is obvious reasoning.

Roman Cechmanek is the only Flyer goalie this decade to be a nominee for the Vezina Trophy. He was also a recipient of the William M. Jennings Trophy (along with Esche) in '03. Also, in his three seasons with the Flyers, he had a very good save percentage, being .921, .921 and .925, respectively, despite collapsing in the playoffs (then again, that's the same story every year for any of our goalies).

Now that Team 1 is done, I'll give a quick run-down of my Team 2 and 3 choices.

Team 2...

Hartnell-Primeau-Roenick

Johnsson - Hatcher

Esche


Last team....Team 3

Kapanen-Carter-Knuble (NOTICE: Forsberg would be on this team if Foppa wasn't hurt constantly. On pure talent, he's better than anyone this decade. Oh, Swedish Man...you could've been awesome here...)

Therien-Markov (Say what you will about his troubles he may or may not have had over in Russia...I love him.)

Biron


If you can give me a good argument against those choices, just try. I will thwart whatever your answer is and best you.


Love, Kevin.

Daniel Carcillo fine? BULLS*#@!

Daniel Carcillo has been fined for making a "throat-slashing" gesture towards the Toronto Maple Leafs bench on 1/6/2010.

NHL...Really? Are you kidding me?

Let me tell you something about this fine...It is garbage. Daniel Carcillo received this fine because Daniel Carcillo is a Flyer and because his name is Daniel Carcillo. If James vanRiemsdyk did it, there'd be no fine probably. If Illya Kovalchuk did this, there'd definitely be no fine.

It is madness and I think the NHL needs to get their act together and STOP penalizing a team/player based off of reputation and rather, the singular event that is being judged.

But in the mean time... keep on rocking, Danny.

Update 1/9/2010

Flyers fans!

Happy New Years bitches! It's been a very long time since I have updated this blog, mainly because I have gotten a life of my own recently. I have been on a break from school, so I decided to visit the old blog and hopefully see enough games where I can continue to give my to the masses.

As my first comment in a while,I'd like to say: HAH Pittsburgh!

I was lucky enough to attend the beat-down of the Penguins at the Mellon Arena on the 7th. Being the only Flyers fan in a 30-foot radius, it was hilarious to start my insane laughing as the Flyers piled on the goals. No one said anything, no one even looked at me.



One thing I did learn from the experience: Penguins fans hate Scott Hartnell more than any other Flyer and it isn't even close. Why? I don't get it. Maybe he runs into goalies, maybe he has amazing hair, and maybe he's a bit of a jerk...but why? I'd be targeting Richards or Carcillo maybe instead of Hartnell.

Oh and guess what? After the game, me and my lovely friend Ashley stood outside in the freezing cold for two hours to see DUN DUN DUN...Sid "The Kid" Crosby and possibly receive his autograph. Why two hours? Sid apparently contractually does many interviews after games. We stood outside and shook with frost bite down to our bones to meet this guy. What's great is, I dislike Sidney Crosby the hockey player; infact, he's everything I dislike about the Pittsburgh Penguins. I was able to put that aside, as my friend was obsessed with meeting him.

The Pittsburgh center rolled out of the gate and pulled up to the little group we had and signed our items. Here's a photo of my friend having her jersey signed:



I got a card signed as well, but that's beside the point. Sidney Crosby, although I hate you as a hockey player, you are a nice man for signing for your fans like this. I'm happy with you.


Well, I really hope I keep up to date with this blog for my sake, and for whoever likes to read it. I really love Flyers hockey and I AM a Comm/Journ major at my university, so it is probably good for me to write.

Vinny Prospal A Ranger...

Well Flyer fans....

I'm sure many of you, like myself, are sad to hear that the New York Rangers have signed former-Flyer Vaclav Prospal to a 1-year, 1.1 Million dollar deal.



This, ofcourse, is a big deal to me because I want the Rangers to be a miserable team for many years to come, and they just signed a player who is pegged to have a 70-80 point season, but for the kind of money a 3rd line winger makes.

If you look at Vinny's statistics over his career, he's been a pretty up-down player. Take a look at these beauties:

1996-97 PHI 18 5 10 15
1997-98 PHI 41 5 13 18
1997-98 OTT 15 1 6 7
1998-99 OTT 79 10 26 36
1999-00 OTT 79 22 33 55
2000-01 OTT 40 1 12 13
2000-01 FLA 34 4 12 16
2001-02 TB 81 18 37 55
2002-03 TB 80 22 57 79
2003-04 ANH 82 19 35 54
2005-06 TB 81 25 55 80
2006-07 TB 82 14 41 55
2007-08 TB 62 29 28 57
2007-08 PHI 18 4 10 14
2008-09 TB 82 19 26 45


Basically, his career is a game of chutes-and-latters. He had a bad year last season, and this is the next good year in the rotation. Why couldn't the Flyers have signed this guy? He had amazing chemsitry with Briere for a long time, and cost' less than what we had to work with. We need a tad bit more firepower anyway to replace the losses of Knuble and Lupul.

Either way, Joffrey Lupul is no longer a Flyer: The offseason is still a huge victory of epic proportions.


One last thing....

I'd love for someone to try and convince me that Vinny Prospal DOESN'T practice smiling in front of a mirror.

My evidence to this claim? Look no further than this:



Andddddd






What.A.Narcissist. Perhaps, this is the reason why he decides to disapear every other season... He is lost in his own reflection on the ice.