He's been ok, but last night he really broke out offensively. I think it's up in the air whether or not he sticks or goes to the A.
- Hextall271

Thanks...

The team hasn't even tried to hide the fact that none of them will be playing in the nhl this season.

That said I would be ok with Moran getting a few games at the nhl level since he has to go back to jrs. As has been said, I think he could use some regular season practice time with the flyers.

I hate the chl under 20 rule so much, I don't understand why the nhl doesn't change it to 19..... overage seasons are such a waste.
- flyers4487

Because junior teams are not a non-profit business. They need to sell tickets and generate revenue.

Imagine if you own a team in London, and you have a kid drafted 15th overall. You have a good OHL team, who should sell lots of tickets and make the playoffs. But the NHL team that drafts your player takes him away and plays him in the AHL. Your season is hurt and so is your bottom line. You're selling less tickets and jerseys.

That's why the under 20 rule exists.

I think Ghost is making it hard for the Flyers to send him to LV. He has such a smooth sense about him, great vision and a helluva shot. I know he will probably start the year down in LV but for how long, the kid just reeks NHL all over him.
- Pyzik

He also has extreme trouble winning loose puck battles along the wall. His puck skills are top-pair NHL level, puck the other parts of being an NHL-caliber defenseman are missing.

It's worth mentioning that Bellemare got injured in the first game against Toronto.

http://www.csnphilly.com/...d-bellemare-little-banged

“He’s a little banged up,” said general manager Ron Hextall. “He got nicked up in Game 1 [at London] and we thought he would play in Game 2 [at Toronto].”

Bellemare will skate Friday morning at Skate Zone either by himself or with the team. How he feels afterward will determine whether he plays Sunday against the Devils in Newark, or Monday in New York against the Rangers.

Hextall does not believe his injury is serious.

“We expect him to play in the next few days,” he said.

Because junior teams are not a non-profit business. They need to sell tickets and generate revenue.

Imagine if you own a team in London, and you have a kid drafted 15th overall. You have a good OHL team, who should sell lots of tickets and make the playoffs. But the NHL team that drafts your player takes him away and plays him in the AHL. Your season is hurt and so is your bottom line. You're selling less tickets and jerseys.

That's why the under 20 rule exists.
- Jsaquella

I understand, doesn't mean I hate it. I am sure the owners of the chl have established proof it would hurt the bottom line if the nhl scooped up all their best players to play in the minors, or the Nhl would have just abolished the rule.

The one good thing is it may allow us to get an extended early look at Moran at the NHL level in real game time situations.

Because junior teams are not a non-profit business. They need to sell tickets and generate revenue.

Imagine if you own a team in London, and you have a kid drafted 15th overall. You have a good OHL team, who should sell lots of tickets and make the playoffs. But the NHL team that drafts your player takes him away and plays him in the AHL. Your season is hurt and so is your bottom line. You're selling less tickets and jerseys.

That's why the under 20 rule exists.
- Jsaquella

I may not like it, but at least there is no pretense of protecting the "integrity" of amateur athletics with this rationale as there is when discussing age rules in other sports.

From the highlights and score sheet, looks like Laughton had a breakout game offensively. Very happy for him and well see if he can keep it up. I've been very impressed by ghost as well. That shot is killer. He's a free roamer but if Murray can instill some d responsibility in him, he could be fantastic. This is the best I've felt about the team direction in a long time. Maybe not a contender this year, but I have confidence in Hexy. Could you imagine if say 3 of the d prospects turn into top 6 nhl dmen and by chance one is a 1 or 2 stud? We'd be golden. I also trust hexys judgement on drafting d as he got to watch doughty grow into the monster he now is.
- Hextall271

I haven't seen a lot of Gostibehere, but from what I've seen, he's not a player that is careless offensively to the point of taking him out of position from gambling. I think he is already responsible defensively from what I've seen. Just needs some time to grow and adjust to the pro game. He's very talented, and not sure how he slipped to the 3rd round.
Let's keep in mind that the majority of the prospects were watching play, were drafted by Holmgren.

Yes

At the time, a good number of people realized Voracek was better. I don't think there's even question now. Voracek isn't the natural shooter that Ryan is but Jake does pretty much everything else better and still scores plenty of goals.

Edit: Not even mentioning those other guys.
- NickTheKid87

Poor man's Jagr

Jake is vastly underrated IMO. I don't think I'd do that trade straight up.
- Hextall271

Hell to the no! I think he might end up being the crown jewel of the rapture.

I haven't seen a lot of Gostibehere, but from what I've seen, he's not a player that is careless offensively to the point of taking him out of position from gambling. I think he is already responsible defensively from what I've seen. Just needs some time to grow and adjust to the pro game. He's very talented, and not sure how he slipped to the 3rd round.
Let's keep in mind that the majority of the prospects were watching play, were drafted by Holmgren.
- MJL

I don't think ppl had a big issue with how homer drafted, more like how he used picks in trades and overpaid ufa's

A decent amount of blame for last year's slow start can probably be put on conditioning. Hartnell, Voracek, et al were not ready for the season which is unacceptable. I'm not Berube's biggest fan but I like that he's demanding everyone be in tip top shape.
- NickTheKid87

I don't know if you watched last night's game or not, but if you did. Did you notice the puck pressure the Flyers had in all 3 zones? The consistent back pressure through the neutral zone, and solid d zone coverage? Did the Devils have a single odd man rush all game?

I understand, doesn't mean I hate it. I am sure the owners of the chl have established proof it would hurt the bottom line if the nhl scooped up all their best players to play in the minors, or the Nhl would have just abolished the rule.

The one good thing is it may allow us to get an extended early look at Moran at the NHL level in real game time situations.
- flyers4487

What I'm saying is, it's not the NHL's decision to eliminate the rule, there's an agreement between the CHL, AHL & NHL. The other leagues would need to agree with the NHL eliminating the rule.

Looking at every game Morin has played, I would not even bother with the 9 game try out. I don't think he's ready. He had a good game against a Devils team that didn't give a rat's ass. He had a solid game in Toronto. He had an up and down game in London. Let him play a bunch in the pre-season and send him back to Rimouski when camp ends.

I may not like it, but at least there is no pretense of protecting the "integrity" of amateur athletics with this rationale as there is when discussing age rules in other sports.
- johndewar

Oh, yeah, it's purely based on making cash and it's very explicit about that.

I don't think ppl had a big issue with how homer drafted, more like how he used picks in trades and overpaid ufa's
- JoeRussomanno

You can basically look at Holmgren's tenure as a GM and break it down into two distinct periods. One where he was wheeling and dealing, moving picks and trying to win now. And the period where he reversed course, made a bigger commitment to drafting and building a core of young players.

Hard not to like last nights game, but, as always in the preseason, you can't read too much from it. That being said though, here are some observations.

Zepp-looked pretty solid, especially in the 3rd when he was actually tested a bit. Seems more than capable to be #3 on the depth chart going into the season and it looks like Zepp/Stolarz should be an excellent AHL tandem this season.

Morin-Been impressed with both his mobility and positioning. I think he his going to push very hard for a spot in the top 6 next year.

Laughton-Good wheels, got some nice sandpaper in his game and some pretty solid skills and hockey sense. He will likely start the season in the AHL but I think he's on the main roster by mid season or so.

Leier-kid can fly and has a nice nose for the puck. At worst he will be a solid 4th line/PK guy. Will be interesting to watch his development in Lehigh Valley this year.

Ghost-He already has above average NHL skills, but he does need to get stronger and work on his play away from the puck before he will be ready to play in the NHL. However, should Streit go down at any point during this season, he is already more than capable of coming up and being the #1 pp qb.

Voracek-Looks to be in excellent shape and mid season form. I think he is going to have a huge season, 30 goals and 70+ points are not out of the realm of possibility

VLC-He is going to excel on the top pp unit. If he stays healthy, 30 goals (15+ on the pp) is not out of the question

What I'm saying is, it's not the NHL's decision to eliminate the rule, there's an agreement between the CHL, AHL & NHL. The other leagues would need to agree with the NHL eliminating the rule.

Looking at every game Morin has played, I would not even bother with the 9 game try out. I don't think he's ready. He had a good game against a Devils team that didn't give a rat's ass. He had a solid game in Toronto. He had an up and down game in London. Let him play a bunch in the pre-season and send him back to Rimouski when camp ends.
- Jsaquella

I honestly dont think it can hurt, even if you carry him as your 7th and make him sit in the pressbox, I think the extra time with the team would help.

I haven't seen a lot of Gostibehere, but from what I've seen, he's not a player that is careless offensively to the point of taking him out of position from gambling. I think he is already responsible defensively from what I've seen. Just needs some time to grow and adjust to the pro game. He's very talented, and not sure how he slipped to the 3rd round.
Let's keep in mind that the majority of the prospects were watching play, were drafted by Holmgren.
- MJL

I think he slipped to the 3rd round simply due to size. He was only around 160 lbs in his draft year and teams were most likely leery about using a 1st or 2nd rounder on a dman that small.

Their loss, our gain!

I haven't seen a lot of Gostibehere, but from what I've seen, he's not a player that is careless offensively to the point of taking him out of position from gambling. I think he is already responsible defensively from what I've seen. Just needs some time to grow and adjust to the pro game. He's very talented, and not sure how he slipped to the 3rd round.
Let's keep in mind that the majority of the prospects were watching play, were drafted by Holmgren.
- MJL

I can defintely see Ghost being a call up this year eventually. Also if he does get called up..... I dont think he ever goes back. He has great skill. Will fuel the 2nd PP unit.

I don't know if you watched last night's game or not, but if you did. Did you notice the puck pressure the Flyers had in all 3 zones? The consistent back pressure through the neutral zone, and solid d zone coverage? Did the Devils have a single odd man rush all game?
- MJL

I only saw half the game (half the first and all of the second) and the Flyers had total control the entire time. There was on play where a devils forward dangled the puck between a Flyers' leg ( not sure who it was) but then someone else ended up sealing him off and a weak, errant pass ended up being intercepted by the Flyers. That was a microcosm of the game (that I saw): no space for the Devils and constant pressure so space couldn't be created.

I don't know if you watched last night's game or not, but if you did. Did you notice the puck pressure the Flyers had in all 3 zones? The consistent back pressure through the neutral zone, and solid d zone coverage? Did the Devils have a single odd man rush all game?
- MJL

The overall play in all 3 zones was excellent. Gaps were small, forwards backchecked responsibly, dmen move the puck quickly and crisply and everyone played their positions properly. If they can play like that on a consistent basis, they will be a very solid, playoff team.

I honestly dont think it can hurt, even if you carry him as your 7th and make him sit in the pressbox, I think the extra time with the team would help.
- flyers4487

I do. He's still pretty raw. Sitting in the pressbox would be the absolute wrong path. He needs to play and play a lot of minutes. Ideally it would be at the AHL level, but I'd rather him playing 20 minutes a night in Rimouski than sitting in the NHL

I think he slipped to the 3rd round simply due to size. He was only around 160 lbs in his draft year and teams were most likely leery about using a 1st or 2nd rounder on a dman that small.

Their loss, our gain!

- BiggE

That's the only thing that I can think of. He is small, but he's not that small. And he is competitive down low. Just needs to adjust to the pro game and get a little stronger. He can already move the puck at an NHL level.

I think he slipped to the 3rd round simply due to size. He was only around 160 lbs in his draft year and teams were most likely leery about using a 1st or 2nd rounder on a dman that small.

Their loss, our gain!

- BiggE

Absolutely. Teams are generally very leery of smaller defensemen. If Gostisbehere had another couple inches and 15 extra lbs when he was drafted, he's a late first rounder.

I only saw half the game (half the first and all of the second) and the Flyers had total control the entire time. There was on play where a devils forward dangled the puck between a Flyers' leg ( not sure who it was) but then someone else ended up sealing him off and a weak, errant pass ended up being intercepted by the Flyers. That was a microcosm of the game (that I saw): no space for the Devils and constant pressure so space couldn't be created.
- NickTheKid87

Even though it was a pre season game, that's a reflection on the coach. And how he has the team playng the right way, and has them sharp in their systems play. At least last night showed that. That's how the Flyers have to play, and if they can do that consistently, they'll be a pretty good team.

I haven't seen a lot of Gostibehere, but from what I've seen, he's not a player that is careless offensively to the point of taking him out of position from gambling. I think he is already responsible defensively from what I've seen. Just needs some time to grow and adjust to the pro game. He's very talented, and not sure how he slipped to the 3rd round.
Let's keep in mind that the majority of the prospects were watching play, were drafted by Holmgren.
- MJL

Some were drafted when Hextall came on board. Also, the philosophy has changed as far as I can tell. Not as much emphasis on trading picks for vets or signing UFAs. I have no hate for Homer, but I think Hextall is bringing of his experience from LA and helping to build a really strong team.