Additions: D Luke Schenn, D Bruno Gervais, LW Ruslan Fedotenko
Subtractions: RW Jaromir Jagr, D Matt Carle, LW James van Riemsdyk, G Sergei Bobrovsky
UFAs: D Pavel Kubina, C Blair Betts
Promotion candidates: LW Eric Wellwood, D Brandon Manning, D Erik Gustafsson, D Marc-Andre Bourdon, RW Jason Akeson
Luke
Schenn, acquired from the Toronto
Maple Leafs for forward James
van Riemsdyk in June , could slide into the second pairing, with
veteran Bruno
Gervais and youngsters Erik
Gustafsson, Marc-Andre
Bourdon and Brandon
Manning battling for the final spots. Andreas
Lilja would also be in the mix, but he is expected to miss the
start of the season after reportedly having hip surgery. The one
position that will stay the same is the one place the Flyers would
like to see change the most, goaltending. Ilya
Bryzgalov was brought in last summer and signed to a nine-year
contract with the hope he could solve the franchise's long-term quest
for stability in the net. While Bryzgalov played well at times, he
won his first three starts, including defeats of both 2011 Stanley
Cup finalists, and he was NHL Player of the Month in March, he was
wildly inconsistent on and off the ice. However, with a year in
Philadelphia under his belt, the organizational belief is the
Bryzgalov that earned that big deal will return in 2012-13. "I
think Ilya has learned some things from one year in Philadelphia,"
Holmgren said. "He's learned a lot of things and we'll see a
different person next year. I think we'll certainly see a different
goaltender." A better Bryzgalov could make Holmgren's fall,
winter and spring better than his summer.
No
team got a bigger contribution from its rookies last season than
the Flyers. Matt
Read led all first-year NHL players with 24 goals; Sean
Couturier, the eighth pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, was second
on the team with a plus-18 rating while playing against other
teams' top lines; and Brayden
Schenn was fourth on the team in playoff scoring with nine
points. Rookie blueliners Erik
Gustafsson and Marc-Andre
Bourdon also grew into significant roles. With the departures
of James
van Riemsdyk, Jaromir
Jagr and Matt
Carle, those young players now will be expected to provide
even more. Schenn likely will enter the season as a top-six
forward, while Couturier will see more ice time, especially on the
power play. Their performances could determine how far the Flyers
are able to go in the postseason.
Jagr
arrived after three seasons in Russia and turned his line with
Claude
Giroux and Hartnell into one of the best in the League. But
Jagr is with the Dallas Stars now, leaving a significant hole at
right wing on the top line. The front-runner to fill that spot
appears to be Jakub
Voracek. He brings more speed to the trio than Jagr, but his
18 goals last season were a career best. He'll have to perform at
a higher level to take some of the pressure off Giroux and
Hartnell.
With
Chris
Pronger's future in doubt and 37-year-old Kimmo
Timonen entering the final year of his contract, general
manager Paul
Holmgren went big after free-agent defensemen Ryan
Suter and Shea
Weber, and after missing on them, he also lost Carle, who
signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Their issues on defense
became even greater when Andrej
Meszaros tore his Achilles tendon earlier this month,
sidelining him indefinitely. Another veteran option, Andreas
Lilja, is also expected to miss the start of the season after
reportedly having hip surgery. After losing out on Weber, Holmgren
said he was happy with the makeup of his defense, pointing to the
offseason additions of Luke
Schenn and Bruno
Gervais, plus young guys Marc-Andre
Bourdon, Erik
Gustafsson and Brandon
Mannnng. Is that group enough to get the Flyers deep into the
playoffs? Or will Holmgren have to look outside the organization?
In
his third full NHL season, Giroux finished third in the League
with 93 points and second with 65 assists. He was the
fourth-leading scorer in the playoffs with 17 points despite
playing 10 games. He skated in his second NHL All-Star Game and
had the most points by a Flyer since Eric
Lindros had 93 in 1998-99. Giroux's coach memorably called him
the best player in the world, and he capped his season by earning
the cover spot on EA Sports' NHL 13 video game. Now comes the hard
part, staying at that high level. Teams will focus their best
checking lines and defense pairs on Giroux any time he's on the
ice. How he handles that level of competition could determine the
Flyers' fortunes this season.
Is
Luke Schenn
the classic example of a player who just needed a change in
scenery? The 22-year-old defenseman saw his average ice time
plummet from 22:22 per game in 2010-11 to 16:02 last season with
the Toronto Maple Leafs. His production didn't change much -- he
had 22 points and a minus-6 rating last season after scoring 22
points with a minus-7 rating the season before. Regardless of what
happened with the Maple Leafs, the Flyers are confident Schenn can
be a gritty, physical defensive-zone presence. He had 270 hits
last season, nearly 100 more than any Flyer. Playing with his
brother Brayden for the first time also should be a motivating
factor.
The
Philadelphia
Flyers entered last season with what was believed to be a
franchise goaltender and a questionable offense. They ended the
season as one of the highest-scoring teams in the NHL backed by a
goaltender who appeared at times to be, in his words, "lost
in the woods." Ilya
Bryzgalov had an up-and-down first season with the Flyers, and
his performance in Year Two of the nine-year contract he signed
with the Flyers last summer is just one question facing the team
in its quest to win the franchise's first Stanley Cup since 1975.
Bryzgalov signed a long-term deal after two excellent seasons with
the Phoenix Coyotes, but failed to meet expectations last season.
However, the belief around the organization is that Bryzgalov will
be more comfortable with a year's experience in Philadelphia under
his belt. Scott
Hartnell said he saw Bryzgalov struggle in his first season
the way he did in his first season with the Flyers. Arriving from
a non-traditional market with a long-term contract, Hartnell said
he felt far better in his second season with the Flyers, and the
same should happen for Bryzgalov. "Once you get to know the
guys and you feel more comfortable in your house, in your life,
all that kind of stuff, definitely you get more confidence as the
year goes on," Hartnell said. "Next year he'll come back
from Russia in the summer and his house is all set up, he'll be
ready to play." Ilya
Bryzgalov's first season with the Philadelphia Flyers could
best be described as interesting. The mercurial goalie had extreme
highs and lows, on and off the ice, and it ended with the Flyers
losing in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. "Did
he play as good as I expected? I would say no," Flyers
general manager Paul
Holmgren said of Bryzgalov's first season in Philadelphia. As
Bryzgalov enters his second year with the team, however, the
belief is he'll be more comfortable and return to being the player
who was a Vezina Trophy finalist for the Phoenix Coyotes in 2010.
Bryzgalov was 10th in the League last season with 33 wins, but had
a 2.48 goals-against average that was 21st and a .909 save
percentage that ranked 33rd. Those numbers went further in the
wrong direction in the playoffs. He was the Player of the Month in
March, going 10-2-1 with a 1.43 goals-against average, .947 save
percentage and four shutouts. He tied the club record with three
straight shutouts from March 8-13, and set the franchise mark for
longest shutout streak with a run of 249:43. Compare that to a
stretch in October in which he allowed 18 goals in four games,
including four goals on 10 shots in a game against the Winnipeg
Jets that led Bryzgalov to say he had "zero confidence"
in himself and add, "I am lost in the woods right now."
He became the star of the HBO "24/7" show leading into
the 2012 Winter Classic for his dissertations on the size of the
universe, among other topics. But the day before the game, he told
reporters, "I have great news and even better news. OK, great
news is I'm not playing [in the Classic], and better news is we
have a chance to win the game." He said he would be sitting
on the bench sipping hot tea, and hours later posted a picture of
a mug to his Twitter account. Teammates reportedly told Bryzgalov
to tone down his act, which he did, but Bryzgalov never seemed
comfortable muting his oversized personality. The key for
Bryzgalov will be finding a middle ground that allows him to be
himself on and off the ice. "His job is to stop pucks and
help us win games. It's not Comedy Central. There's probably a
middle-of-the-road scenario there. He's a funny guy to talk to,
there's no question about that. He's got some interesting concepts
of life and how to walk down the road of life." Finding that
middle ground, however, is the key. It could come simply from
having a year of experience in Philadelphia. Teammate Scott
Hartnell compared Bryzgalov's first-season struggles to his
first year in Philadelphia. Both players arrived from
non-traditional hockey markets with big contracts and expectations
to match. "Once you get to know the guys and you feel more
comfortable in your house, in your life, all that kind of stuff,
definitely you get more confidence as the year goes on,"
Hartnell said. "Next year he'll come back from Russia in the
summer and his house is all set up, he'll be ready to play."
Holmgren agreed, saying he's positive Bryzgalov will be far better
in his second season with the Flyers. "I think Ilya has
learned some things from one year in Philadelphia," Holmgren
said. "He's learned a lot of things and we'll see a different
person next year. I think we'll certainly see a different
goaltender."
No
team last season got a bigger contribution from its rookies than
the Philadelphia
Flyers. Matt
Read led all first-year NHL players in goals, Sean
Couturier provided lock-down play in the middle, and Brayden
Schenn developed into a solid top-six forward. With that much
youth, the Flyers don't have to be in a hurry with their next
prospect group. While some will have the chance to earn playing
time during the season, there won't be any kind of a rush, which
will allow the players' full skill sets to develop at the proper
speed.
Philadelphia's
top prospects:
1.
Scott
Laughton, C:
The Flyers chose Laughton with the 20th pick of the 2012 NHL Draft
after a season that saw him total 21 goals and 53 points in 64
games with the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League. He
also had seven points in seven games to help Canada win the bronze
medal at the 2012 IIHF World Under-18 Championship. Flyers
director of hockey operations Chris Pryor told NHL.com the biggest
thing the organization needs to see from the 6-foot-1, 177-pound
forward is for him to get bigger and stronger. "He plays the
game the right way," Pryor said. "He plays both ends,
he's competitive. He's got some offense in his game, got a lot of
compete in his game. He plays a good two-way game. And he works
and he's competitive."
2.
Brandon
Manning, D:
The only question about Manning entering last season was his
health, and once he got some nagging issues taken care of, the
undrafted blueliner blossomed with the Adirondack Phantoms of the
American Hockey League. He had 19 points in 46 games, but 16 of
those points came in his final 28 games, and he earned a four-game
NHL call-up in March. Manning will complete with Erik
Gustafsson, Marc-Andre
Bourdon and Bruno
Gervais in training camp for a spot as the sixth or seventh
defenseman with the Flyers. "I think when he started to feel
healthy, we saw his progress," Pryor said of Manning.
"Especially the second half of last year, you started to see
the results in his game. … Going forward, we expect, as Brandon
does, to contribute at [the NHL] level. He's very competitive, he
can play both ends of the rink, and for a young guy, he's got a
lot of character and compete in his game."
3.
Niko
Hovinen, G:
The 6-7, 200-pounder originally was drafted by Minnesota in 2006
but never came to North America. The 24-year-old signed with the
Flyers in May 2011 and likely will start the 2012-13 season in the
AHL. He had a 2.26 goals-against average and a .920 save
percentage with Pelicans in the top Finnish league last season --
and was just as good in the playoffs, posting a 2.30 GAA and .925
save percentage in eight games to help Pelicans advance to the
league finals. "Our guys over there saw a lot of him and they
really liked him," Pryor said. "Number- and
performance-wise he did very well. We feel like he should be able
to come over here and continue on with his development. … He
looks like he's going to be able to give himself a good
opportunity to have a good career over here."
4.
Nick
Cousins, C:
The 2011 third-round pick has been compared to former NHL player
Ken
Linseman for his ability to create offense and draw the ire of
the other team. While skating with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds
of the OHL last season, he was fifth in the league with 88 points
and sixth with 53 assists. He also was an effective pest, goading
teams into unnecessary penalties while only earning 88 penalty
minutes himself. "Not only does he have a good head and a
good stick on the ice, he can make plays, he brings that element
of offense, but he's got a persona, a knack … he's got a bit of
irritability and gets under people's skin," Pryor said. "He's
got a knack for being a pesty guy to play against. And he can play
the game. … Those are attractive traits."
5.
Cal Heeter, G:
The Flyers signed the undrafted free-agent in March after he went
13-11-5 with a 2.45 GAA and .918 save percentage as a senior at
Ohio State last season. "Neil
Little [scout] liked him, athletically and fundamentally,"
Pryor said. "Neil saw him extensively. … We thought it was
a good situation for Cal. We're happy with him. He's going to go
onto the American league right now and battle for ice time. Both
him and Hovinen will give us a nice tandem [in Adirondack]."
6.
Matt
Mangene, C:
The undrafted 23-year-old will start his first full season in the
AHL after going scoreless in five games there following the end of
his season at the University of Maine . The 5-11, 190-pounder had
16 goals and 34 points in 40 games with the Black Bears last
season. Mangene signed with the Flyers in April and is listed as a
center, but skated as a forward and a defenseman in his three
college seasons. "That's one of his strongest attributes,
that he can skate and to be able to play forward and defense is a
compliment in itself," Pryor said. "He has good speed,
he competes and is versatile to go along with having some skill."
7.
Tye McGinn,
LW
: A 2010 fourth-round pick, McGinn had 12 goals and six assists in
63 games in his first AHL season in 2011-12. "Like the other
guys coming out of junior, Tye progressed as the year went on,"
Pryor said. "He's a big body [6-2, 205] with good hands and
can play with some edge. He's good down low and around the net. He
needs to continue where he left off last season."
8.
Marcel
Noebels, LW:
The 2011 fourth-round pick had 34 points in 31 games with the
Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League after arriving
there in a trade last season. He added 23 points in 22 playoff
games while playing a new position, center, and playing
through a wrist injury that needed offseason surgery. At age 20,
he'll have a chance at training camp to earn an AHL spot, rather
than return to the WHL for his over-age season of junior hockey.
"He's a bigger kid [6-3, 200]," Pryor said. "He's
had a pretty good career out west. They were very happy when they
acquired him in Portland last year, he was a big part of that team
down the stretch. We liked that he was able to play wing, and when
he got to Portland he played center. That tells you something
about the kid, that he's able to play a couple positions like
that. He's a big body. We think he's got a promising future."
9.
Tyler
Brown, LW:
The undrafted forward had eight goals and nine assists in 71 games
last season for Adirondack, his first in the AHL after four
seasons with the Plymouth Whalers of the OHL. "One thing
about Tyler
Brown is he's got some size [6-1, 185], and he can really
skate," Pryor said. "If you look at the game now and
you've got some speed and some size like that, you're going to
give yourself a chance. Last year was a big transition year for
him, took a while for him to figure the game out, but then he
started showing people what he showed in junior. He's an exciting
guy to watch because he can skate."
10.
Anthony
Stolarz, G:
The Flyers' 2012 second-round pick had 23 wins, a 2.84 GAA and
.902 save percentage in 50 games with Corpus Christi of the North
American Hockey League last season. The 6-5, 210-pound goalie will
continue his development in the fall at the University of
Nebraska-Omaha. He also was invited to USA Hockey's National
Junior Evaluation camp, which could put him in the running for a
spot on the team the United States fields for the 2013 IIHF World
Junior Championship. "He's in a good situation going to
college," Pryor said. "He's a big, athletic kid who just
needs to play. Coming out of the [NAHL], the WCHA is going to be a
bit of a jump for him [but] he's a big athletic kid. The more ice
time, the more games he's going to get, he's only going to get
better. He's going to get quality coaching in a quality program
and he can just go play."
For
all of the plaudits earned from dismantling their rivals in the first
round of the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Philadelphia
Flyers are likely still smarting from a second-round defeat just
days later. Claude
Giroux became a superstar and Scott
Hartnell one of the top power forwards in the League, but the New
Jersey Devils ended the Flyers' potential Stanley Cup run, and
the offseason in Philadelphia brought more questions than answers.
Jaromir Jagr
and Matt Carle
are gone after signing elsewhere as free agents. James
van Riemsdyk was traded for Luke
Schenn to help bolster the depth on defense, but the deal has
also left the forwards a little thin if there are injuries. There are
already injuries to deal with on the back end.
Ruslan
Fedotenko was added, like Max Talbot the year before, he brings
with him a strong postseason pedigree. Bruno
Gervais was signed and could earn a spot on the team's third
defense pairing. Then there is Ilya
Bryzgalov. He was brought in as the final piece on a potentially
great team last season, but now he's going to be counted on to help
keep an elite team from slipping backwards. He makes the Flyers'
destiny a wide range of possibilities, both good and bad.
Forwards
Scott
Hartnell - Claude
Giroux - Jakub
Voracek
Wayne
Simmonds - Brayden
Schenn - Danny
Briere
Ruslan
Fedotenko - Sean
Couturier - Matt
Read
Eric
Wellwood - Maxime
Talbot - Zac
Rinaldo
Jody
Shelley
Defensemen
Kimmo
Timonen - Nicklas
Grossmann
Braydon
Coburn - Luke
Schenn
Erik
Gustafsson - Bruno
Gervais
Marc-Andre
Bourdon.
Goaltenders
Ilya
Bryzgalov
Michael
Leighton
NOTES:
The forward group could be set, provided all the guys who are set for
increased roles take to them. Read or Fedotenko could end up in the
top six if Voracek or Simmonds slump, and Talbot could end up on the
third line if needed. There's not a lot of NHL-caliber depth beyond
those first 12 forwards, though. With Andrej
Meszaros and Andreas
Lilja injured and Chris
Pronger's availability in serious doubt, the Flyers could still
be looking to add another defenseman. Brandon
Manning will also be among those trying to earn a spot at the
back end of Philadelphia's depth chart. Plenty has already been said
about Bryzgalov's turbulent first season in Philadelphia, but he
could mask some other issues with a better campaign. He'll likely get
plenty of work, because the Flyers decided against upgrading behind
him -- instead dealing Sergei
Bobrovsky to the Columbus Blue Jackets and retaining Leighton to
be the backup.
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