In basketball you can improve quickness significantly. Quickness is much more important than straight line speed.
- PhillySportsGuy

Either way, you've got to get your in-season legs back first before any of the extra speed/quickness stuff you did in the offseason begins to pay dividends.

That's where some of the Flyers are right now. The offseason was so long that I'm sure more than a few guys who aren't used to long summers just went about their summer routines as usual, when they should have probably gotten back on the ice a lot sooner than normal instead.

The boys win tonight, convincingly. I'm going with...5-1.

Giroux scores, Couturier scores. The power play gets two.

Most importantly, they will look like an honest-to-gosh NHL team tonight, with cohesion and fluidity and offensive flow.

Man, the Bruins look like absolute morons. If they had a goon in their lineup last night, Scott wouldn't have knocked Eriksson into next week.

Apparently the drinking started this afternoon.
- mayorofangrytown

Just you wait...

Man, the Bruins look like absolute morons. If they had a goon in their lineup last night, Scott wouldn't have knocked Eriksson into next week.
- PLindbergh31

I sense sarcasm

The Multiple of Four Line?
- jmatchett383

We need a better name

In basketball you can improve quickness significantly. Quickness is much more important than straight line speed.
- PhillySportsGuy

Both are important.

Both are important in hockey as well. And both can be improved upon. That's why there are power skating camps.

Agreed, you may not evolve from Ken Daneyko to Pavel Bure, but your speed and quickness can definitely improve.

The boys win tonight, convincingly. I'm going with...5-1.

Giroux scores, Couturier scores. The power play gets two.

Most importantly, they will look like an honest-to-gosh NHL team tonight, with cohesion and fluidity and offensive flow.
- AllInForFlyers

Im gonna be more realistic..

It ends up being a much closer game than any think... Flyers lost 5-3 (empty netter for the 5th) after Talbot stands on his head in his first game. The Flyers thoroughly out play the Rags, but have two costly breakdowns (a trip on a breakaway by Timonen results in a shootout goal, shot misses the net (thanks Coby) and ends up in an odd man rush goal) that end up turning the game around. G finally breaks through, but leaves the game with an injury. Grossmann blocks a shot, and another, and another, and... you get the point... and then hurts his knee climbing over the boards for a line change.

The boys win tonight, convincingly. I'm going with...5-1.

Giroux scores, Couturier scores. The power play gets two.

Most importantly, they will look like an honest-to-gosh NHL team tonight, with cohesion and fluidity and offensive flow.
- AllInForFlyers

Meh... 1-1 game late into the third period... Mason's standing on his head, Flyers make Cam Talbot look like Cam Ward.

Toss up between which team blows the game late.

Meh... 1-1 game late into the third period... Mason's standing on his head, Flyers make Cam Talbot look like Cam Ward.

Toss up between which team blows the game late.
- Tomahawk

That sounds very depressing, yet, much more realistic.

Meh... 1-1 game late into the third period... Mason's standing on his head, Flyers make Cam Talbot look like Cam Ward.

Toss up between which team blows the game late.
- Tomahawk

Ha! You guys realize that if they don't look good tonight, don't score goals tonight, this season moves from "bad start and it sucks, but we can recover" to "this smells like 2006, where no amount of practice will help," right?

I think they're better than '06. They're gonna look good tonight.

Raffl (Young, European import)-G (Young Captain/stud center)- Vinny (Big bodied goal scorer)

Remind you of any line??? hmmmmmmmm?????

Ha! You guys realize that if they don't look good tonight, don't score goals tonight, this season moves from "bad start and it sucks, but we can recover" to "this smells like 2006, where no amount of practice will help," right?

I think they're better than '06. They're gonna look good tonight.
- AllInForFlyers

They won't lose at the rate of '06. They were the worst team in hockey by 9 points. They also have much better forwards. Maybe not the right fit together, but they do have more individual talent than '06.

The defenses look fairly similar. At least now we have some decent defensive prospects.

Raffl (Young, European import)-G (Young Captain/stud center)- Vinny (Big bodied goal scorer)

Remind you of any line??? hmmmmmmmm?????
- PhillySportsGuy

Wouldn't be the Legion of Doom would it? Too bad those guys, outside of Vinny, don't have the size or physicality of Big E, Renberg or Leclair!

NHL players generally don't hit the ice for weeks during the offseason, and it can stretch out to months if they've missed the PO's. The skating muscles might be strong from land training, but they aren't used to being fired in tandem and in sequence... it takes a few weeks for most guys to get their full stride back.

Assuming Schenn is still out of skating shape right now, he actually will be faster than he is right now if he continues to skate skate skate up until the point where his stride is at 100% again. Of course, he's not suddenly going to turn into Pavel Bure or anything.
- Tomahawk

I wasn't discussing dry land training, I was discussing skating shape. I think we're both saying the same thing. Schenn is not moving his feet out on the ice. I think it has to do with skating conditioning. Or at least hoping that's the issue. If he increases his skating conditioning, he will move his feet more, and he will be quicker simply due to skating more. But I doubt that he's ever going to increase his full skating speed, or suddently develop a quicker first stride.

Raffl (Young, European import)-G (Young Captain/stud center)- Vinny (Big bodied goal scorer)

Remind you of any line??? hmmmmmmmm?????
- PhillySportsGuy

The Diet Coke version of...

Either way, you've got to get your in-season legs back first before any of the extra speed/quickness stuff you did in the offseason begins to pay dividends.

That's where some of the Flyers are right now. The offseason was so long that I'm sure more than a few guys who aren't used to long summers just went about their summer routines as usual, when they should have probably gotten back on the ice a lot sooner than normal instead.
- Tomahawk

At the risk of sounding like I'm just piling on here, JVR spent the summer working on improving the explosiveness of his skating:

James van Riemsdyk has given Maple Leafs fans an ongoing demonstration of how a single player’s devotion to improving himself can help a team become a true contender.

Van Riemsdyk’s two goals in Saturday night’s overtime win over Edmonton included a tip-in of a point shot and a wraparound, both reflections of a summer’s worth of refinements to his game the Leafs had asked him to make.

“I’ve always prided myself on skating, and the two biggest things for me were, after my first year, I started training with Ben Prentiss in Connecticut,” van Riemsdyk said, referring to Prentiss Hockey Performance in Darien, Conn., which has trained Olympic hockey players for more than 14 years.

“And coming here early (prior to camp) this year with (Leafs skating consultant and former world champion figure skater) Barb Underhill. She helped get me working on a lot of things that make you better, make you more explosive.”

http://www.thestar.com/sp..._riemsdyks_hard_work.html

I'm not going to ask what Schenn did all summer, because MJL has already determined his footspeed is fine.

Either way, you've got to get your in-season legs back first before any of the extra speed/quickness stuff you did in the offseason begins to pay dividends.

That's where some of the Flyers are right now. The offseason was so long that I'm sure more than a few guys who aren't used to long summers just went about their summer routines as usual, when they should have probably gotten back on the ice a lot sooner than normal instead.
- Tomahawk

I don't think it had anything to do with a longer Summer. I think that training camp was inadequate in getting the players in top skating shape.

Wouldn't be the Legion of Doom would it? Too bad those guys, outside of Vinny, don't have the size or physicality of Big E, Renberg or Leclair!
- aantny88

This is more like the Legion of OOM....(Warcraft reference)

The Diet Coke version of...


- Tomahawk

I know. I'm not going to lie though, I do like these combos tonight.

I don't think it had anything to do with a longer Summer. I think that training camp was inadequate in getting the players in top skating shape.
- MJL

They're supposed to show up to camp in skating shape...

I don't think it had anything to do with a longer Summer. I think that training camp was inadequate in getting the players in top skating shape.
- MJL

That's on the GM. Sitting there and watching what the owner called the worst Flyers Camp in 40 years. It's a crime Holmgren allowed that to happen.

I know. I'm not going to lie though, I do like these combos tonight.
- PhillySportsGuy

It's like the poor-man's, Diet Coke, non-alcoholic, Gluten-free, vegan, no sugar, low-fat version of the LOD...

They're supposed to show up to camp in skating shape...
- Tomahawk

They're supposed to show up in good off season shape. Playing games is what get's you in game skating shape. Flyers kept too many players around in training camp, and didn't do enough hard skating.

That's on the GM. Sitting there and watching what the owner called the worst Flyers Camp in 40 years. It's a crime Holmgren allowed that to happen.
- PLindbergh31

I'd put in on both the GM and the Coach.