That's fine, but now you've got Gustafsson sitting in the Jody Shelley suite every night until someone's injured.
- jmatchett383

True, but Grossmann has 2 bad knees and is coming off a concussion, plus to really be effective, Timonen should not play all 82 games, and you can almost bet that 1 or 2 others will go down with some type of injury too, so I am not really concerned with finding Gus playing time.

True, but Grossmann has 2 bad knees and is coming off a concussion, plus to really be effective, Timonen should not play all 82 games, and you can almost bet that 1 or 2 others will go down with some type of injury too, so I am not really concerned with finding Gus playing time.
- BiggE

I prefer Gus to be part of my starting 6. I never did and still don't like JayBo.

I prefer Gus to be part of my starting 6. I never did and still don't like JayBo.
- jmatchett383

Fair enough, although I think he gets a bad rap cause he was drafted so high. The pre draft comparisons to Dennis Potvin were obviously ridiculous, but he is still a pretty good defenseman and if acquired by the Flyers, he would arguably be their best all around guy.

He is a very good skater, plays positional sound, makes a very good 1st pass out of the D zone, uses his reach well to his advantage, is extremely durable and can play huge minutes without wearing out and he is at least adequate on the point and can play on the 2nd team pp. His only real drawback is a lack of physicality, but if paired with someone like Schenn or Grossmann, that is not that much of an issue.

Once again, I have some time to kill so FWIW here is how I think the 1st 10 picks will go, barring any trades.
- BiggE

I'm thinking a good number of these defensemen are going to drop... there are more question marks with them than their similarly ranked forward counterparts, and with forwards being safer to begin with, a lot of these teams will be too shy to roll the dice.

Pulock and Risto, especially. Both of them had rough ends to their seasons, and Risto is a lot like Maatta in that he doesn't do anything exceptionally well to warrant a high selection. Pulock experienced some regression to his game (some team-related, some injury-related) and his lack of grit could hurt him.

Let's not kid ourselves, though. Flyers are so going off the board and taking a two-way forward... might as well come to terms with it now.

I'm thinking a good number of these defensemen are going to drop... there are more question marks with them than their similarly ranked forward counterparts, and with forwards being safer to begin with, a lot of teams will be playing it safe.

Pulock and Risto, especially. Both of them had rough ends to their seasons, and Risto is a lot like Maatta in that he doesn't do anything exceptionally well to warrant a high selection. Pulock experienced some regression to his game (some team-related, some injury-related) and his lack of grit could hurt him.

Let's not kid ourselves, though. Flyers are so going off the board and taking a two-way forward... might as well come to terms with it now.
- Tomahawk

Wouldn't shock me, that or they trade the pick

I'm thinking a good number of these defensemen are going to drop... there are more question marks with them than their similarly ranked forward counterparts, and with forwards being safer to begin with, a lot of these teams will be too shy to roll the dice.

Pulock and Risto, especially. Both of them had rough ends to their seasons, and Risto is a lot like Maatta in that he doesn't do anything exceptionally well to warrant a high selection. Pulock experienced some regression to his game (some team-related, some injury-related) and his lack of grit could hurt him.

Let's not kid ourselves, though. Flyers are so going off the board and taking a two-way forward... might as well come to terms with it now.
- Tomahawk

Isn't it all but a lock that they take Max Domi?

Isn't it all but a lock that they take Max Domi?
- bradleyc4

scouts say his game is comparable to one Mike Richards

I don't mean to put it all on Lavi. It just seemed obvious that there was a problem with the D, and he waited until we had a bunch of injuries to adapt. I just would have wanted him to change things up earlier. And yes, no one is blameless in the situation.
- jmatchett383

Late Coaching decisions, injuries, slow starts by players who are expected to carry this team. weak defense.

None of this points to bad goaltending but I do see the reason why we need to buyout Bryzgalov.

Rookies and depth players are on a much tighter leash than the guys they replaced... they don't have the leeway to take chances with the puck. Despite Lavi's system not being blameless, that's one of the reasons why I feel like the players hold an equal share of the responsibility -- turnovers, mistakes, misreads and poor adherence to the system are going to make any coach look bad.

Case in point, Bylsma's a darned good coach... his players just almost got him fired. Luckily, Shero's got enough sense to realize that his coaches are only part of the problem. Luckily, Homer reached that same conclusion earlier as well.
- Tomahawk

The issues that the team had in the way they played last year, was not limited to the veterans, or the players that were replaced. The same symptoms and style of play was prevalent with every player on the ice. That tells you that it's not the players that are choosing to play that way. But it's the players trying to play the way they're Coached to play.

If it goes like this, then I see the Flyers either trading down or picking Ristolainen at #11.
I could certainly see someone like Columbus trading up. They could really use help at center as could Phoenix and Winnipeg. If there is a center that they are really high on, be it Wennberg, Domi or Horvat, perhaps the Flyers swap the 11th pick and the 41st for the 14th and 27th picks. If that happens I could see the following beginning at #11

- BiggE

If COlumbus wants a center so much how about Laughton for Erixon?

If COlumbus wants a center so much how about Laughton for Erixon?
- youarewrong

im not ready to give up on Laughton. Scouts say his game is comparable to one Mike Richards.

scouts say his game is comparable to one Mike Richards
- Crimsoninja

Well, it's been decided then.... Max Domi it is!

(wait, but does he remind scouts of Bob Clarke, too?)

Saw some great quotes from Dallas Eakins at his EDM press conference about how he wants Edmonton to play multiple systems since not all opponents are the same, and because teams are so heavily scouted.
- bradleyc4

I talked about this a lot during the past Season. The best coached teams are capable of playing effectively with multiple schemes on the ice.

Pronger skates like he's stuck in molasses, I don't recall him ever being asked to pinch deep enough to get caught. And Lavi's had guys like O'Donnell, Tollefsen, Walker, Bourdon, & Kubina that were just as slow-footed, yet the team never looked this bad in previous years.

I chalk a lot of it up to youthful exuberance and inexperience, compounded by a defense wracked by injuries. Laying it all on Lavi's doorstep is a bit unfair.
- Tomahawk

It's not 100% on Laviolette. But he deserves the overwhelming amount of blame for the way the team played. By the time he adjusted, it was too late. And when the adjustment was made late in the Season, was the youthful exuberance and inexperience not present? With the likes of Lauridsen, Manning, and Konan making up half the defense?

im not ready to give up on Laughton. Scouts say his game is comparable to one Mike Richards.
- Crimsoninja

He needs to be traded. For pretty much any defenseman they can get their hands on.

scouts say his game is comparable to one Mike Richards
- Crimsoninja

He needs to be traded. For pretty much any defenseman they can get their hands on.
- MJL

i'd be interested in a Mike Richardsesque defenseman actually

i'd be interested in a Mike Richardsesque defenseman actually
- Crimsoninja

That's what needs to happen. A defenseman needs to be compared to Mike Richards. Then the Flyers will draft him for sure!

Wouldnt it be cool if the team just did the two buyouts, brought in a veteran goaltender and attempted to bring some size into the forward ranks?

Draft a good young player, hopefully a D-man, and be done with it?

He needs to be traded. For pretty much any defenseman they can get their hands on.
- MJL

We have a log-jam at center. Much like my toilet after a night trying to eat the ol' 76er.... Even the grissel.

We have a log-jam at center. Much like my toilet after a night trying to eat the ol' 76er.... Even the grissel.
- youarewrong

No such thing as a log jam at Center, or any other position. As for the analogy, thanks a lot.

Log-jam :/

im not ready to give up on Laughton. Scouts say his game is comparable to one Mike Richards.
- Crimsoninja

LOL

Wouldnt it be cool if the team just did the two buyouts, brought in a veteran goaltender and attempted to bring some size into the forward ranks?

Draft a good young player, hopefully a D-man, and be done with it?
- flyer_nutter

Stalberg is so tempting. He has all the tools to be much better than he is. Don't know if he'll ever get more physical. But the speed and size on the wing...