UPDATE 1:30 PM EST
The Flyers' outlook just got a lot bleaker today with the news that Chris Pronger will have to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery and will be out of the lineup for at least the next four weeks. He has been placed on LTIR, along with Andreas Lilja (high ankle sprain).
Yes, the club now has a lot of (temporary) cap space but Pronger is pretty much irreplaceable and other teams know the Flyers would not be trading from a position of strength if they try to acquire a minutes-eating defenseman.
In addition, Andreas Nodl has been placed on waivers today. Brayden Schenn has been recalled from the Phantoms.
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UPDATE: November in Review Part II (Forwards). Part III (defensemen and goalies) coming tomorrow morning.
Claude Giroux: There is no question that Giroux is the Flyers’ best player, and he is an early contender for the Hart Trophy. At any given time, Giroux can take over a game. He’s also human. Giroux logs a ton of ice time and showed early signs of fatigue at times. He was one of the players who was guilty of taking some shortcuts in the latter-month games against the bottom teams in the East (including his 3 assist game against Winnipeg). In many ways, the Flyers are now Giroux’s team, at least in terms of its forward corps. When he’s competing hard in all three zones, everyone follows suit.
November stats: 12 GP, 6 G, 8 A, 14 PTS, +2, 8 PIM, 0 PPG
Jaromir Jagr:The big concern with Jagr right now is the groin pull he suffered early in the first period of the game against Phoenix and then reaggravated midway through his first game back in the lineup. Given his age, previous history of groin injuries and the precarious nature of the injury in general, caution is in order.
November stats: 8 GP (left two early), 1 G, 5 A, 6 PTS, +2, 6 PIM, 1 PPG
Scott Hartnell: After a rough start to the season, Hartnell was one of the team’s better players for the balance of November. One thing you can always rely on with Hartnell: He may not always work smart, but he always works hard. Over the course of a single game (and sometimes a single shift), Hartnell can somehow manage to be both an asset and a liability to the club. He’ll keep a play alive and then take a bad penalty or he’ll fall down on an initial rush and then get up jam home a loose puck for a goal. Hartnell scored four of the seven power play goals the team managed in November.
November stats: 12 GP, 5 G, 3, A, 8 PTS, +5, 14 PIM, 4 PPG
Danny Briere: With the exception of his two-goal outburst in the third period and overtime of the Islanders game, Briere has struggled since his return from an October ribcage injury. For all the consternation in Buffalo about what a bust Ville Leino has been, Briere’s game has also not been quite the same since his linemate departed. There have been hints that Briere and James van Riemsdyk could develop chemistry together but injuries to one or the other has repeatedly disrupted the duo from getting into a groove as linemates. Individually, one or the other has had some good games but the Flyers’ second line as a unit has not been consistently effective. Briere has worked on his defensive game the last couple years to the point where he is usually adequate in that area, but he still commits too many stick penalties.
November stats: 11 GP, 3 G, 3 A, 6 PTS, 12 PIM, 0 PPG
James van Riemsdyk: Statistically, JVR is way ahead of his pace from the same juncture last season, and you can’t argue with his point-per-game average when he suited up in November. However, JVR is still in search of greater consistency. His efforts in the second period of the Flyers’ home loss to Carolina were reminiscent of his dominating performance in the first 9 games of the playoffs last year. He also has games where he’s barely noticeable. JVR’s defensive focus also needs to pick up from time to time; there are games where’s he a bit of a defensive liability and others where he is OK. When a player is as gifted as van Riemsyk and has periodically shown the ability to take over hockey games, he gets held to a higher standard. He’s also been set back by several minor injuries, and is currently out 1-to-2 weeks with an upper body ailment. He is expected to accompany the club to the west coast.
November stats: 9 GP, 4 G, 5 A, 9 PTS, +2, 4 PIM, 0 PPG
Wayne Simmonds: Despite the injuries in the lineup, Simmonds has seen his ice time drop over the last month. He averaged 16:12 per game in October but his season average has now dropped to 15:40. Much of the reduction has come in power play time, as Hartnell reclaimed top unit duties from Simmonds after losing time to the newcomer early in the season. Simmonds has been pressing for several weeks to regain the power forward form he displayed in the preseason and the opening two weeks of the regular season.
November stats: 12 GP, 2 G, 1 A, 3 PTS, -2, 16 PIM, 1 PPG
Jakub Voracek: After a rough start to the season, Voracek was quietly one of the most improved Flyers in November. There were times he struggled to finish scoring chances, but there was no questioning the hustle and playmaking ability he displayed. I think that the move down to the third line took some pressure off him, and his big game against his former Columbus teammates gave him a jolt of confidence. He has filled in for Jagr on Giroux’s line and, while not an equal replacement for the future Hall of Famer, Voracek has done OK with the added responsibilities.
November stats: 12 GP, 2 G, 9 A, 11 PTS,+3, 6 PIM, 0 PPG
Matt Read: If not for the play of the 25-year-old rookie after his return to the lineup following an injury, there is a good chance the team would posted no better than a .500 record for the month. Not only did Read put together a five-game goal scoring streak, he also did yeoman work on the forecheck. His speed gives opposing teams a lot of trouble. He was not particularly effective in the final two games of the month, but no Flyers forwards stood out in the Rangers game. Read’s season average in ice time has increased from 15:33 per game through the end of October to 17:03.
November stats: 9 GP, 6 G, 1 A, 7 PTS, +6, 0 PIM, 1 PPG, 1 SHG (PS)
Sean Couturier: Couturier has gone without a point in his last 9 games after starting off the month with a bang offensively. It’s hard to generate many points, of course, when one is confined to fourth line duty alongside energy players. I am not, however, among those who are concerned that the Flyers are hurting Couturier’s development by keeping him in the NHL. Playing on the fourth line as an 18-year-rookie last year hasn’t seemed to hurt Tyler Seguin a bit this year. It didn’t hurt Joe Thornton or Eric Staal (who spent the first half of his rookie year playing behind older vets such as Ron Francis, Rod Brind’Amour and Jeff O’Neill). As for his defensive game and penalty killing work, Couturier remains very solid. He’s gaining valuable experience in games and practice that he simply would not be getting if he were spending another year not being challenged enough in the Quebec league. That said, I would like to have seen Peter Laviolette extend Couturier’s minutes a little more when the injury bug started to bite the team.
November stats: 12 GP, 3 G, 1 A, 4 PTS, +3, 2 PIM, 1 SHG
Max Talbot: Talbot is a warrior. He takes a beating and keeps coming back for more. I would hate to think about where the club would be right now if not for the work he’s done on the ice in supporting the top line and off the ice in keeping everyone loose both during good times and times of adversity. Rather than being in the early hunt for the top spot in the East, the club could easily be down much further. It was inevitable that Talbot would cool off a bit offensively late in the month after his hot streak. I thought Talbot got a bit over-used (partially due to injury necessity and partially due to all the penalties he had to help kill) and his energy dropped a bit in the final two games. His season average ice time per game has risen to 15:04 after it was at 13:30 through October.
November stats 12 GP, 3 G, 4 A, 7 PTS, -1, 8 PIM
Zac Rinaldo: There have been times where Rinaldo has been called for undeserved penalties based primarily on the reputation he built in junior hockey and last year in the AHL. He can’t worry about those calls, because Rinaldo needs to push the envelope with his physical play in order to be effective. The penalties he needs to avoid are the ones such as a recent interference penalty for a huge hit that was delivered several seconds after the recipient dished off the puck. He’s made some rookie mistakes defensively, but also made things happen in a positive way. Taken on the whole, Rinaldo has been more of an asset to the Flyers’ fourth line than a liability so far. When he sets his mind to playing hockey, he can be a highly effective player. The rookie suffered a bruised ankle in the Rangers’ game but appears to be OK to play on the upcoming West Coast trip.
November stats: 11 GP, 1 G, 1 A, 2 PTS, -1, 54 PIM
Harry Zolnierczyk: Harry Z has the makings of a good NHL role player. While it is not ideal for a team to have too many smallish forwards, Zolnierczyk makes up for his lack of size with speed and grit. At the AHL level this season, he has played on scoring lines (and generated 5 goals and 9 points in 10 games). In the NHL, his role is to provide energy on the forecheck. There has been some inconsistency in his play over the last week to 10 days, although that had nothing to do with his one-day minor league assignment last week. Harry Z is still trying to show that he belongs as a full-time NHL player. On the whole, he’s done his job in limited ice time.
November stats: 10 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 1 PT, -1, 13 PIM
Andreas Nodl: Nodl’s job is in jeopardy. Others have stepped up while he’s missed time with injuries (and he just got hurt again on Saturday, as a result of a center ice collision with teammate Danny Briere). When he has played, he’s pressed to make things happen rather than keeping things simple. Once again, Nodl’s offensive confidence has waned to the point of being non-existent, so the only potential role for him is as a fourth-line player. From an NHL career standpoint, he can ill-afford to be sidelined again, lest he continue to lose ground to his competition. The one thing that still works in Nodl’s favor is his combination of size, speed and physical strength. Most of his competitors in the organization, such as Zolnierczyk and Eric Wellwood, lack comparable size.
November stats: 5 GP, 0 PTS, -1, 2 PIM
Jody Shelley: There is no doubting the work ethic at practice and his positive presence in the locker room. But the argument in favor of keeping Shelley on the roster has grown mighty thin. He’s a heavyweight enforcer who makes $1.1 million on the cap for a cap-strapped team, plays barely 4:30 per game, and has not yet had a fight this season (largely because many other clubs have shed their heavyweights in favor of more versatile role players). Shelley’s presence alone is not a deterrent to other teams; it’s not like he’s a Bob Probert, Dave Brown, Tony Twist or even Stu Grimson type that can scare other teams straight simply by being in the lineup. Shelley tries his hardest to help the team in the other ways, but his lack of speed really hurts him in trying to provide puck support. In an effort to avoid a repeat of the suspensions he drew last season and in the preseason last year, Shelley has also done less hitting. It’s becoming harder and harder for a player like Shelley to justify his spot in an NHL lineup because the rules and style of the game have increasingly passed him by.
November stats:6 GP, 0 PTS, -1, 10 PIM
Brayden Schenn: Schenn has had miserable luck with injuries this year. He was starting to get his NHL legs under him last month when he suffered a broken foot. Schenn has since recovered and was assigned to the Phantoms. He has three points in two November games with the Phantoms. Right now, the Flyers do not have sufficient cap space to recall Schenn but that can be rectified. More important, he needs to show the dominant AHL form he displayed prior to his initial recall and then gain some confidence when he gets his next crack at the big club.
November stats: 0 GP
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PART I
OVERVIEW
Historically, the Flyers have been a strong November team. Many seasons, in fact, November has been the month of the season in which the team has posted its single best record. This year, the Flyers experienced a lot of ups and downs, playing some truly inspired hockey at times and truly horrific hockey at others.
All in all, the team's 7-3-2 record during the month was moderately satisfying when you consider the fact that Chris Pronger was limited to five games by an October eye injury and a later November illness, while the team as a whole was beset with injury-related absences.
Even so, the month also could have been a lot better. On paper, November should have been one of the team's "easiest" months of the season, with a heavy concentration of games against opponents who rank at or near the bottom of the standings. The Flyers lost consecutive games in regulation to the 13th-place (Winnipeg) and 14th-place (Carolina) teams in the Eastern Conference and fell behind the last-place New York Islanders, 3-1, before rallying late to tie the game and win in overtime.
WHAT WENT RIGHT
1) Offensive depth: Despite all the injuries in the lineup, the Flyers averaged 3.25 goals per game (39 in 12 games) in the month of November. Although the Claude Giroux line is the backbone of the attack, Philadelphia got strong support from the third line (Matt Read and Max Talbot) in particular. The team was shut out by the New York Rangers in its final game of the month, but that does not take away from a strong overall performance in the offensive zone.
2) Penalty killing: The Flyers' penalty kill dropped off in the latter part of the month but was a major roll in the early to middle portion. Overall, the PK performed at a success rate of 85.5 percent (47 for 55), raising the club from 18th in the NHL (81.5 percent) at the end of October to 13th overall (83.5 percent) now.
3) Successful southern road trip: The Flyers took 5 of 6 possible points during their three-game road swing through Tampa Bay, Sunrise and Raleigh. The club played some of its best hockey of the young season in those games. However, the single best 60 minutes of all-around hockey the team played this month came in a 2-1 home win over Dave Tippett's Phoenix Coyotes. In that game, the team matched Phoenix's renowned work ethic and also got a stellar game in goal from ex-Coyote Ilya Bryzgalov.
WHAT WENT WRONG
1) Inconsistent team defense and goaltending: Some games, the Flyers were just fine on defense and/or in goal. Other times, they were in utter disarray. The team allowed 32 goals this month (2.67 per game), which included six games in which the Flyers held opponents to one or two goals and six in which they yielded three or more (with a high of 6 goals allowed to Winnipeg). Injuries and inconsistency were both factors. Bryzgalov and Sergei Bobrovsky both had a couple stellar games and a couple forgettable ones.
2) Too many penalties: This has been a problem all year. The Flyers have had to kill more disadvantages (109) than any team in the NHL. Even when the club has been successful on the PK, there is a wear-down effect. For example, at the rate Peter Laviolette has had to assign tough minutes to Kimmo Timonen, the aging defenseman will have nothing left in the gas tank by the stretch run. The team has talked endlessly about cutting down some of the needless stick infractions and lazy restraining penalties but has not done so.
3). Power play woes: Although the Flyers were very successful putting the puck in the net at 5-on-5, the man advantage really struggled without Pronger. Things picked up a bit over a three-game stretch in the latter part of the month but the club scuffled again in the final game. Overall, the Flyers went just 7 for 54 (13.0 percent) for the month, and saw their overall rank drop from 6th in the league (22.2 percent in October) to 13th (17.6 percent) over the course of the last month.
Later today, I will update the month in review with a look at the individual performances of each of the players on the team during November.
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