Hey from the Flyers press box.

We are currently midway through a 1-1 game between Columbus and Philly and it does indeed look very odd to see coach Hitchcock in this building behind the visitors bench. But the one thing that has really struck me so far is the play of Rostislav Klesla. The guy can flat out crush people. Actually, I have to say that I haven't witnessed a better hitting D than Columbus.

Word is that Hitch has picked his core leadership group.

The names include some of the obvious.

Adam Foote and Rick Nash, and the always under-rated Fred Modin,

But then you have a couple of suprise picks in Fedorov and Jody Shelley.

In Fedorov, this is obviously a case of Hitch trying some reverse psychology out to motivate the one time Russian sniper. In Shelley, you have a tough guy who can help sell the system. Hitch's success has always been tied to getting the right players to sell the system. In Philly, that guy was Primeau, and once he was done, the team never fully bought in.

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