The Truth Is No One Really Knows What the Philadelphia Flyers Will Be This Season
General Manager Paul Holmgren and Hall of Fame owner Ed Snider have been very bold this offseason. They have made a whirlwind of offseason moves that appear to have the Philadelphia Flyers poised for another Stanley Cup Run. But all of the movement on the Flyers' roster gives way to a number of questions. Can this team gel and develop chemistry? Will the Flyers be able to ride their first premier goaltender in years in Ilya Bryzgalov?
Ilya Bryzgalov is a solid top level goaltender. Unlike in years past when the Flyers had to hope for the best and ride the hot hand in net, they will be able to ride Bryzgalov all the way to the finish line. The real question between the pipes is more or less who is going to back Breeze up? There have been rumors that the Flyers are still trying to shop 23-year old Sergei Bobrovsky, the rookie who played so well for most of last year. The Flyers also have Michael Leighton, the waver wire raider who led them to within 2 games of the Stanley Cup a little more than a year ago. Leighton inked a 2-year $3.1 million contract last offseason. While Bobrovsky has a bright future ahead of him, the other Russian net minder Bryzgalov now has 9-year, $51 million contract. Bobrovsky’s bright future might have to shine someplace else.
The bigger concern for the new look Philadelphia Flyers should be the chemistry of their team. The truth is that chemistry plays a much bigger role on a championship team than most people think. If players don't get along and learn to anticipate a fellow linemate's moves in hockey, than playmaking gets harder and harder. That's part of the reason that the Ville Leino-Scott Hartnell-Danny Briere line worked so well for so long. Those players were able to develop a chemistry, and they learned how each member of the line played the game. Leino knew that Briere would be behind the net looking to wreak some havoc, and consequently worked to get the puck there for Briere. It worked well. Chemistry doesn't just work that way on offense either, it can also be applied to defense where each member of your pairings need to learn how to anticipate their partner.
So what happens when you have a bunch of players that have never played together before? Well there is an 82 game schedule and plenty of pre-season games to build that chemistry, but there is no secret formula. On a roster that boasts 6 significant additions, there really is no telling how and if this team will bond. The talent is undoubtedly there, or at least the potential talent is there. Brayden Schenn has all of the upside in the world, but has very little NHL experience. Flyers’ draft pick Sean Couturier is also a bright upcoming star, though he may be a year or so away from contributing to this team. Jakub Voracek and Wayne Simmonds are also talented young players. The Flyers will need the players who have been with the team for a while to step up some. Players like Danny Briere, Claude Giroux, James Van Riemsdyk and Scott Hartnell will become even more important than ever.
If the Philadelphia Flyers can put this all together and somehow get a decent level of production out of 39-year old Jaromir Jagr, they could be a dangerous team. The truth is, however, that no one really knows how this will all work out. Whether you liked Mike Richards and Jeff Carter or not, they were solid, consistent and productive players. That production will be hard to replace. But they weren’t traded because of their lack of production, were they? They were likely traded because of the effect they had on the team’s chemistry and the perceived lack of leadership they brought to the team.
Whether the Flyers gamble will pay off, remains to be seen, but the question will begin to be answered very soon. The Flyers play their first pre-season game on September 20th… less than one month from today.
