Thanks Bill. The players say the right things, but when it comes to execution, they fall flat. It's nice to talk, but to show the walk is another thing. I wonder if they really believe in what they are saying, or are just going through the motions? This is where a real leader would try to wake the team up. Hmmm....where to find a true captain.
Never thought I would see a Flyer player get hit, and nobody responds. They all skate around, or look the other way. For shame. Where is the pride, and dignity? Make the other team pay or work hard for their win. At least a loss that way would make a loss more easy to digest.
Playoff team? Not right now.

Toronto is more expensive than NYC I think. Should be an interesting tilt Saturday evening. HNIC. Leafs have been playing very well, had an awful loss last night though.
- PLindbergh31

My kids are going tomorrow night ( free tickets) so they will be my sacrificial lambs at the AIr Canada Centre. I will just sit at home with 2 friggin buddies who are Leaf fans.

My kids are going tomorrow night ( free tickets) so they will be my sacrificial lambs at the AIr Canada Centre. I will just sit at home with 2 friggin buddies who are Leaf fans.
- 3flyerkids

If they start giving you the business just start chanting 1967!!!!

Thanks Bill. The players say the right things, but when it comes to execution, they fall flat. It's nice to talk, but to show the walk is another thing. I wonder if they really believe in what they are saying, or are just going through the motions? This is where a real leader would try to wake the team up. Hmmm....where to find a true captain.
Never thought I would see a Flyer player get hit, and nobody responds. They all skate around, or look the other way. For shame. Where is the pride, and dignity? Make the other team pay or work hard for their win. At least a loss that way would make a loss more easy to digest.
Playoff team? Not right now.
- OrangeAndBlack1

So it's that simple.

Are you in the locker room when he is talking to the team? Are you on the bench when he tries to get them going? Sometimes players need to take it upon themselves to change things. Giroux and Voracek have been the two best players. They have been probably our most consistant players. I see that as leadership.

And what hit are you talking about? The Raffl hit? It was clean. There was no reason to go after him. You can't respond to every clean hit especially in a 1-1 game.

If they start giving you the business just start chanting 1967!!!!
- PLindbergh31

December 18th and the Flyers have yet to "find their game". Speaks volumes.

so chief doesn't think they skated hard enough all the time, in particular vinny.
Vinny thinks everyone skated hard.

Bet he gets benched again.

The Flyers problem is less a lack of heart than it is a lack of size and strength up front and talent throughout the lineup.

Raffl is a solid player, but he is NOT a 1st or 2nd line LW
Umberger, VLC, VDV, and Rinaldo are borderline NHL players at best.
Bellemare is a solid 4th liner
Couturier is an excellent 3rd line center, but lacks the speed to be effective in a scoring role and Read is another strong 3rd line player who is borderline as a 2nd liner. And Laughton, while he has played well, is no more than a 3rd liner at this point.

That leaves the Flyers with basically 4 guys; Giroux, Voracek, Schenn and Simmonds who have any business playing in their top 6.

On D it's worse. Streit and the scratched MDZ are the only 2 Flyers dmen with above average skill and both are suspect defensively. Also MDZ and Coburn are the only 2 with above average speed and Coburn, as expected, is badly struggling in the role of #1 dman, a role he simply lacks the ability to play.

Now when you couple all of that with average coaching, you get what we've had here all season, which is the way Hextall most likely planned it. LOTTERY TEAM.

December 18th and the Flyers have yet to "find their game". Speaks volumes.
- flyguy12

Oh, they've found their game. The problem is that their game is poop.

Thanks Bill. The players say the right things, but when it comes to execution, they fall flat. It's nice to talk, but to show the walk is another thing. I wonder if they really believe in what they are saying, or are just going through the motions? This is where a real leader would try to wake the team up. Hmmm....where to find a true captain.
Never thought I would see a Flyer player get hit, and nobody responds. They all skate around, or look the other way. For shame. Where is the pride, and dignity? Make the other team pay or work hard for their win. At least a loss that way would make a loss more easy to digest.
Playoff team? Not right now.
- OrangeAndBlack1

Sorry bud.. this isn't a captain or leadership problem.. it's a personnel problem. No captain in the history of the NHL could make this current roster a cup-contending team.

The Flyers problem is less a lack of heart than it is a lack of size and strength up front and talent throughout the lineup.

Raffl is a solid player, but he is NOT a 1st or 2nd line LW
Umberger, VLC, VDV, and Rinaldo are borderline NHL players at best.
Bellemare is a solid 4th liner
Couturier is an excellent 3rd line center, but lacks the speed to be effective in a scoring role and Read is another strong 3rd line player who is borderline as a 2nd liner. And Laughton, while he has played well, is no more than a 3rd liner at this point.

That leaves the Flyers with basically 4 guys; Giroux, Voracek, Schenn and Simmonds who have any business playing in their top 6.

On D it's worse. Streit and the scratched MDZ are the only 2 Flyers dmen with above average skill and both are suspect defensively. Also MDZ and Coburn are the only 2 with above average speed and Coburn, as expected, is badly struggling in the role of #1 dman, a role he simply lacks the ability to play.

Now when you couple all of that with average coaching, you get what we've had here all season, which is the way Hextall most likely planned it. LOTTERY TEAM.
- BiggE

Sorry bud.. this isn't a captain or leadership problem.. it's a personnel problem. No captain in the history of the NHL could make this current roster a cup-contending team.
- WarriorHockey21

Maybe it is time to adapt the style of play/lines to the players you have and not try to fit the square players into the round style/lines.

Sorry bud.. this isn't a captain or leadership problem.. it's a personnel problem. No captain in the history of the NHL could make this current roster a cup-contending team.
- WarriorHockey21

This.

Constantly bashing Giroux for this mess is a simple (and wrong) answer to a complex problem. If it were that simple, Giroux would not be captain right now. SMH

December 18th and the Flyers have yet to "find their game". Speaks volumes.
- flyguy12

To be fair, their game chose a great hiding spot

Maybe it is time to adapt the style of play/lines to the players you have and not try to fit the square players into the round style/lines.
- nails

One of the biggest issues with this team though is that there are not an equal amount of round pegs and round holes and square pegs and square holes. I haven't liked all of Berube's lineup decisions but I do believe he doesn't have a choice but to force square pegs into round holes at times.

Plus Umberger and Lecavalier are essentially dead weight.

Maybe it is time to adapt the style of play/lines to the players you have and not try to fit the square players into the round style/lines.
- nails

One problem is there is a couple of players who should adapt to the " retirement" style of play. I believe they take up almost 10M. Just an all out S Show

Maybe it is time to adapt the style of play/lines to the players you have and not try to fit the square players into the round style/lines.
- nails

I agree... I, like many others have lost complete faith in Berube.. And there's things he could and should be doing better... but at the same time, even a HoF coach couldn't win the cup with this team... I honestly believe that. They just don't have the personnel throughout the roster to do it. One line can't carry you through, and you certainly need a more solid D core than Philly has...

The Flyers problem is less a lack of heart than it is a lack of size and strength up front and talent throughout the lineup.

Raffl is a solid player, but he is NOT a 1st or 2nd line LW
Umberger, VLC, VDV, and Rinaldo are borderline NHL players at best.
Bellemare is a solid 4th liner
Couturier is an excellent 3rd line center, but lacks the speed to be effective in a scoring role and Read is another strong 3rd line player who is borderline as a 2nd liner. And Laughton, while he has played well, is no more than a 3rd liner at this point.

That leaves the Flyers with basically 4 guys; Giroux, Voracek, Schenn and Simmonds who have any business playing in their top 6.

On D it's worse. Streit and the scratched MDZ are the only 2 Flyers dmen with above average skill and both are suspect defensively. Also MDZ and Coburn are the only 2 with above average speed and Coburn, as expected, is badly struggling in the role of #1 dman, a role he simply lacks the ability to play.

Now when you couple all of that with average coaching, you get what we've had here all season, which is the way Hextall most likely planned it. LOTTERY TEAM.
- BiggE

This is the only thing i don't really agree with. I think if he mad more skilled wingers he would be fine. He is not a burner but his skating is not atrocious. I think once all is said and done Laughton will slide into the 3rd line center spot and you'll see Couturier get more offensive situations.

BUt other then that I agree. That is why I hope a guy like Taylor Leirer can make the team next season. Laughton - Leirer and say raffl could be a nice shutdown line that uses their speed to cause problems. The old Devils teams did that with Pandolfo - Madden and Begin. They would create offensive off their strong d.

The Flyers problem is less a lack of heart than it is a lack of size and strength up front and talent throughout the lineup.

Raffl is a solid player, but he is NOT a 1st or 2nd line LW
Umberger, VLC, VDV, and Rinaldo are borderline NHL players at best.
Bellemare is a solid 4th liner
Couturier is an excellent 3rd line center, but lacks the speed to be effective in a scoring role and Read is another strong 3rd line player who is borderline as a 2nd liner. And Laughton, while he has played well, is no more than a 3rd liner at this point.

That leaves the Flyers with basically 4 guys; Giroux, Voracek, Schenn and Simmonds who have any business playing in their top 6.

On D it's worse. Streit and the scratched MDZ are the only 2 Flyers dmen with above average skill and both are suspect defensively. Also MDZ and Coburn are the only 2 with above average speed and Coburn, as expected, is badly struggling in the role of #1 dman, a role he simply lacks the ability to play.

Now when you couple all of that with average coaching, you get what we've had here all season, which is the way Hextall most likely planned it. LOTTERY TEAM.
- BiggE

And that is what the league has turned into: Having to be bad. Hoping that your luck gets you through a draft process where Shea Weber gets passed over 40-plus times while Zach Hamill gets picked in the top 10.

Because no one trades, and no one risks losing an asset they value in free agency unless they absolutely have to.

I hate this. What made the NHL great was the player movement, the fact that there were different ways to build teams. Now, with the cap, the NHL is just like the NBA, where a bunch of flawed, poopty teams hope to be so (frank)ing bad so they can start selling hope to fans instead of quality play.

One of the biggest issues with this team though is that there are not an equal amount of round pegs and round holes and square pegs and square holes. I haven't liked all of Berube's lineup decisions but I do believe he doesn't have a choice but to force square pegs into round holes at times.

Plus Umberger and Lecavalier are essentially dead weight.
- NickTheKid87

OK, but at this point, what do you have to lose?

put Vinny as the 2nd line center with Jake as a wing to feed him pucks.
Put G with Schenn and Simmonds
Keep the 3rd line.

Brobby Ryam is the captain we need

This.

Constantly bashing Giroux for this mess is a simple (and wrong) answer to a complex problem. If it were that simple, Giroux would not be captain right now. SMH
- NickTheKid87

Its the same lazy tired crap as the flyers need a goalie.

Flyers basically have to go 4-1-1 or better for the rest of the month to even have a shot at the playoffs. When the trade freeze ends in a week or so, Hextall may well be in sell mode
- Jsaquella

Left just watch Lawson Crouse & Matthew Spencer on the NHL Network tonight

And that is what the league has turned into: Having to be bad. Hoping that your luck gets you through a draft process where Shea Weber gets passed over 40-plus times while Zach Hamill gets picked in the top 10.

Because no one trades, and no one risks losing an asset they value in free agency unless they absolutely have to.

I hate this. What made the NHL great was the player movement, the fact that there were different ways to build teams. Now, with the cap, the NHL is just like the NBA, where a bunch of flawed, poopty teams hope to be so (frank)ing bad so they can start selling hope to fans instead of quality play.
- AllInForFlyers

My kids are going tomorrow night ( free tickets) so they will be my sacrificial lambs at the AIr Canada Centre. I will just sit at home with 2 friggin buddies who are Leaf fans.
- 3flyerkids

I will be there as well....Company tickets....I haven't been going to Flyer games in TO a lot.......of late.....To many Leaf fans!!!