Broad Street Bulletin

Flyers In Trouble - Crushed by Penguins 6-1

The struggling Flyers found a win on Monday, but apparently two-in-a-row is out of the question!

They are in trouble!  

• They have only managed three wins in their last fourteen games.
• They now trail the Capitals by 17-points in the Atlantic Division, and that margin is growing!
• They are #10 in the Eastern Conference
• They appear to be nowhere close to getting on track!

I understand the Penguins are about as good as they come, but there is no excuse for a 6-1 blowout!  The Flyers' looked terrible!  They lost all the one-on-one battles, their passes were off, they were never in a good position on the ice, and all the loose pucks were swept up by the Penguins.

The Penguins on the other hand, looked stellar!  They continually pressured the Flyers, won the battles, were always in position, their passes on the money, and were always making something happen.

Brian Boucher made some nice saves, but quite frankly, it's going to be tough for the Flyers relying on him without Emery.  The Penguins scored some nice goals, but he's got to come up with some big saves.  I won't even talk about the ones he should have stopped!

It's Getting Worse:  I'm not sure where they go from here.  They are failing at all aspects of the game, and considering their line-up, there is no reason for it.  The Penguins dominated, but they have good players.  What about our good players?  Pronger, Richards, Carter, Briere, Hartnell, Giroux?  How are these guys being dominated so easily?  

Peter Laviolette has his work cut out for him!  Their confidence is so low right now, it could be a while before they even begin to come out of it, if they do at all.  Assuming they do, how far out will they be?  They have so much potential.  To see them play at this level is flat out frustrating! 

The Winter Classic Truck Tour Arrives in Boston

After departing from Toronto - making stops at New York and Philly in between - the Winter Classic Truck Tour reached Boston.  On January 1 the Bruins will host the Flyers in the third annual Winter Classic, an outdoor hockey game that will be played in legendary Fenway Park.

The truck arrived on December 10, with roughly three weeks before the big show.  During that time crews will work to set an ice rink up and have Fenway Park ready to host an NHL game.  

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Watch the truck at it's departure in Toronto

Watch the truck make it's way to New York for the Today Show and visit to Philadelphia

Flyers Lose Again - Dropped by Devils 4-1

Saturday night would not be the night the Flyers would start scoring again.  It would not be a night they would start winning games either.  

They have now lost ten of their last twelve games.  After dropping consecutive games three games and losing 6-of-7, the Flyers canned John Stevens.  Peter Laviolette was brought in to straighten everything out.  He is 1-4 since taking over.  I'm not so sure their troubles can be attributed to coaching!

It was evident they were in for another long night by the end of the first period.  They left the ice trailing 3-0.  They came out strong in the second, out-shooting the Devils 12-5.  That doesn't help, however, when you can't get the puck in the net.  Despite the lopsided difference in shots on goal in the second, each team came out with a goal.  

• Special Teams: Taking penalties...a never ending saga in Philadelphia.  Laviolette says he will not tolerate penalties, and has already punished the team during a practice as a result.  It doesn't matter!  They're still taking penalties!!!
• Flyers gave the Devils 6 power-play opportunities.  The Devils were 2-for-6.
• Devils gave the Flyers just 2 power-play opportunities.  The Flyers were 1-2.
• Claude Giroux scored the lone Flyers goal.  

Get use to losing!  This team looks like they are just flat out incapable of winning!  I have confidence that Laviolette will discipline this team, but it is beginning to look like it could take a very long time.  Penalties are killing them!  They allowed just as many short-handed goals (2) as the Devils allowed us power play opportunities.  Those numbers just don't work!  If they are going to continue to play more time short-handed than their opponents, they're never going to be a winning team.  The sooner they learn this, the sooner they will start winning again.  Don't hold your breath!

Winter Classic Truck Tour Comes to Philly

The Winter Classic Truck Tour began in Toronto, and would visit New York and Philadelphia on it's way to Boston.  

In New York, at the Today Show...

December 5, The Tour Comes to Philly...

Still to come, the Tour reaches Boston for 3-weeks of preparation.

Watch the Winter Classic Truck in Toronto as the tour begins!

Winter Classic Truck Tour Begins in Toronto

A little over a week ago, the Winter Classic Truck - a mobile rink refrigeration unit - departed Toronto en route to Boston, making stops in New York and Philadelphia in between.  Have a look at the truck...

Still to come, the truck stops in Philly, then off to Boston for preparations!

Flyers Shut-Out - Unacceptable!!!

It looked like the Flyers were going to turn things around Tuesday night following their 6-2 victory over the Islanders.  You would expect to see less penalties following an intense practice Wednesday, a punishment for taking too many penalties on Tuesday.  Unfortunately, that was not the case!

They were shut-out for the third time in six games!  They gave the Senators six power-play opportunities!  They failed to score on seven power-play opportunities of their own!  They allowed an empty net goal on a turnover with a 2-man advantage!  Unacceptable!!!

They have to figure out a way to score.  There is absolutely no excuse for being shut-out!  Carter, Richards, Briere, Hartnell; the list goes on.  These are goal scorers, and the Flyers have enough of them to not get shut-out...frequently no less!

They had their chances.  They were getting into the offensive zone, but failed to find the net.  On seven power-play opportunities - including almost two minutes with a 2-man advantage - they failed to score.  It became even more frustrating as the clock wound down.  It was clear they could get into the offensive zone, but couldn't set anything up once in.  Ottawa was extremely disruptive, conveniently poking the puck away from Flyers players and getting it back out to the neutral zone.  Just enough to keep them from scoring.

If failing on all their power=play opportunities wasn't enough...

With just over two minutes remaining, the Senators gave the Flyers a power-play.  It was the perfect opportunity to get into the game.  Halfway through, Boucher was pulled for an extra attacker.  They now had a two-man advantage!  Sure enough, they would turn the puck over, leading to an empty-net goal.  Flyers lose 2-0!     

Laviolette Holds Players Accountable - Punishes for Penalties

Peter Laviolette has a reputation for being tough on his players.  He is an advocate of discipline, and will not tolerate bad penalties that put the team at a disadvantage.  Taking the reigns of the most penalized team in the NHL, Laviolette has taken action, and has started to hold his players accountable for their actions! 

The Flyers won 6-2 in Tuesday's game against the Islanders, but took nine penalties in the process.  This has been a problem for the Flyers for quite some time now.  Not only are they the most penalized team in hockey now, but they have been one of the top five most penalized teams for years.  

Laviolette came to town with the reputation as somebody that won't stand for this.  The big question was, how will he hold them accountable?

Bag Skate:  It would generally be uncommon to hold practice on a day of following back-to-back games, but Laviolette had them on the ice.  Their practice was over 70-minutes, with an intense 15-minute "bag skate" in the middle.  A "bag skate" is when the players just skate; no pucks!  The pucks stay in the bag.  It was a punishment for taking too many penalties in Tuesday's game, resulting in two goals that allowed the Islanders to jump into the game.

Team Punishment:  When you think of bad penalties, certain names come to mind - Carcillo and Hartnell - but it was the entire team that paid the price.     

It may not happen over night, but expect the Flyers to dramatically improve in this area!

Ray Emery Has Surgery; Will Miss At Least Six Weeks

Ray Emery had a promising start to the season but found himself struggling lately.  In his last five games, his goals-against average was 5.31.  It turns out he wasn't slumping.  He was injured!

Emery underwent surgery Wednesday to repair a torn muscle in his lower abdominal wall, and will miss at least six weeks according to the Flyers.  According to Flyers General Manager Paul Holmgren, Emery has been playing injured for more than three weeks.  He has also stated that the injury has played a major factor in Emery's struggles.

According to Emery, he felt a "little pop" during a 3-2 loss to Buffalo on November 14, saying "I didn't realize what it was at first.  Normally, I kind of heal pretty quick, and I thought it was just in my head and I could battle through it."  He said that he "wasn't able to contribute, and if you can't contribute, the you've got to get it fixed."

Brian Boucher will take over as the Flyers starting Goalie.  Boucher has played in nine games - started seven - with a current 2.53 GAA and .903 SV%.

Boucher will be backed up by Johan Backlund.  The 28-year old Goalie has played in 15-games for the Phantoms.  He is 6-8, with a 2.81 GAA and .903 SV%.  Backlund will be the backup for now, but it is very possible the Flyers will look to acquire another goalie.

Laviolette Wins First Game as Flyers Head Coach

The Flyers headed into Tuesday's game against the Islanders on a five-game losing streak, having lost eight of their last nine.  Their drought cost John Stevens his job as the Head Coach.  
 His replacement, Peter Laviolette, had lost his first two games as the new Coach and was looking to put an end to their losing streak.  

If things weren't tough enough, they were going to have to climb out of this slump without their starting goalie.  It was revealed that Ray Emery was suffering from a torn muscle in his lower abdominal wall, and will miss at least six weeks.

The Islanders were the right opponent to get the Flyers back on track.  They are right there with the Flyers at the bottom of the division, having struggled lately, losing six of their last ten.  They beat the Islanders 6-2.

Scoring:  The Flyers have struggled to find the net in recent games, scoring just seven goals in their last six games.  It was time for their leaders to come out, and sure enough, they did!

• Captain Mike Richards took charge, scoring 2-goals (one short-handed) and 1-assist for a 3-point night.
• Jeff Carter and Claude Giroux each scored 2-goals
• Scott Hartnell, Danny Briere, and Kimmo Timonen each had 2-assists

Special Teams:  The Flyers power-play was ranked #1 for much of the season, but hit a huge drought, dropping them down to #9.

• The Power-Play got back on track, going 3-for-5
• The Penalty-Kill looked fine.  They allowed 2-goals on 8-attempts.  Richards scored a short-handed goal.  I would like to see less penalties!

The Flyers looked good in their 6-2 victory over the struggling Islanders.  Hopefully this is a sign that things are beginning to turn around!

Frustrating Flyers - Start Strong, But Fizzle Away - Lose 3-1

The influence of Peter Laviolette could be seen during the first period of Monday's game against Montreal.  
 The energy was visible!  They were winning the one-on-one battles, forcing turnovers, applying offensive pressure, and circulating the puck very well with clean crisp passes.  They were in control!  The first period would end with the Flyers winning 1-0, holding the Canadiens to just 1-shot.

That would all change!  It is tough to tell if the Flyers looked good in the first period, or if the Canadiens just looked bad.  What was clear, however, was that Montreal turned it on from that point forward.  They became the faster team, applying offensive pressure, and creating scoring chances.  The Flyers looked a step behind.  They could no longer circulate the puck in the same manner in which they began the game.  They looked pressured, forcing them to make bad passes and turn the puck over.  They were unable to get anything going, and it was plain frustrating!

• There were a total of 28-shots on goal between both teams: 15 for the Flyers; 13 for the Canadiens.
• Special Teams: The Flyers went 0-for-4; The Canadiens were 1-for-3. 
• The Flyers Power-Play continues to struggle!  They were ranked #1 for most of the season, but have now dropped down to #9.
• Danny Briere looked great!  He scored the lone Flyers goal on a break-away while being dragged down.  He played a physical game filled with hitting and good fore-checking, while his dazzling moves created good scoring opportunities. 
• Franchise records were set for both team for fewest combination shots with 28.
• The Flyers have now lost 5-consecutive games, losing 8 of their last 9.

The Flyers came out strong, playing at a high level.  Unfortunately, that level fell off!  Laviolette's style is based on offensive pressure, using Defenseman to press into the offensive zone along with good fore-checking to make things happen.  This is how the Flyers played early on, and it was exciting!  That level of play faded away as the game went on.

Hopefully, the Flyers slowed down because they were unable to maintain the level of play Laviolette demands of them.  If so, they will get in shape, and maintain that level throughout the game.  If not, we are still a long way of figuring out the Flyers' problems!