Bill Meltzer: Quick Hits: National broadcasts,Boucher, Underrated Flyers, TIFH (Watson)

Bill Meltzer: Quick Hits: National broadcasts,Boucher, Underrated Flyers, TIFH (Watson)
- bmeltzer

Thanks Bill

That letter from Keith Allen is pure class. Joe is also a class act. Great ambassador for the Flyers, as well. He and Jimmy used to be very involved with the Little Flyers program out of Aston. I'm not sure if he still is. That program had a lot of success with him running it.

Awesome blog Bill. That letter is a fantastic snap shot in time showcasing the wonderful behind the scenes and heart-felt consideration between upper management and a player. On another note, Eklund and Sinisalo, were some of my favorite Flyers players growing up. They weren't league stars but both had high end skating and edge-work ability that wasn't as widespread as it is in the league today. On any given shift you just might see some subtle amazing skill play by one of them.

That letter is so classy. How do these things happen these days? A call? Worse?

Also, an aside, I can’t stand Twitter being X. I’m constantly trying to push the X to close it. I’m so old 😂

My all time underrated Flyers team
G-Wayne Stephenson
G-Pete Peeters

D-Joe Watson
D-Jim Watson
D-Gord Murphy
D-Petr Svoboda
D-Matt Carle
D-Mark Streit

LW-Ross Lonsberry
LW-Murray Craven
LW-Derrick Smith
LW-Donald Brashear

C-Andre Lacroix
C-Orest Kindrachuk
C-Ron Sutter
C-Michal Handzus

RW-Don Saleski
RW-Ilkka Sinisalo
RW-Kevin Dineen
RW-Sami Kapanen

Two players that come to mind for me are Peter Zezel and Rod Brind'Amour. Peter was a big part of the Flyers 86-87 team that came so close to beating the Oilers in the final. Brind'Amore was iMO always in the shadow of Lindros and the Legion of Doom.

My all time underrated Flyers team
G-Wayne Stephenson
G-Pete Peeters

D-Joe Watson
D-Jim Watson
D-Gord Murphy
D-Petr Svoboda
D-Matt Carle
D-Mark Streit

LW-Ross Lonsberry
LW-Murray Craven
LW-Derrick Smith
LW-Donald Brashear

C-Andre Lacroix
C-Orest Kindrachuk
C-Ron Sutter
C-Michal Handzus

RW-Don Saleski
RW-Ilkka Sinisalo
RW-Kevin Dineen
RW-Sami Kapanen
- BiggE

Good list. I'd add Mikael Renberg. People forget how good of a player he was in his own right before the 100 percent abdominal muscle tear (after hurrying back too soon from a sports hernia) midway through his third NHL season.

Could also add Kim Johnsson, Andre Lacroix (Flyers top offensive player in the pre-Clarke era, later WHA all-time leading scorer), Mel Bridgman, Bob Froese, Steve Mason.

Mel Bridgeman
Kevin Haller - not here long though
Holmgren
Glen Cochrane

off the top of my head

Good list. I'd add Mikael Renberg. People forget how good of a player he was in his own right before the 100 percent abdominal muscle tear (after hurrying back too soon from a sports hernia) midway through his third NHL season.

Could also add Kim Johnsson, Andre Lacroix (Flyers top offensive player in the pre-Clarke era, later WHA all-time leading scorer), Mel Bridgman, Bob Froese, Steve Mason.
- bmeltzer

I was gonna say Steve Mason and Kim Johnsson. I believe Mason is up there by the numbers as one of the best goalies in this franchise’s history and for a couple seasons there, I felt like Kim Johnsson stole Eric Desjardins job as our number 1 defenseman.

I’m gonna put Daymond Langkow on my list. We shouldn’t have let him go anywhere. Dennis Seidenberg maybe as well. I never understood why we were giving young guys away.

Bill Meltzer: Quick Hits: National broadcasts,Boucher, Underrated Flyers, TIFH (Watson)
- bmeltzer

D - Jones, Randy
D - MacDonald, Andre
R - Weiss, Dale
C - LehteraJori
L - VanvdeVelde, Chris

All severely underrated and under-appreciated for their efforts

Good list. I'd add Mikael Renberg. People forget how good of a player he was in his own right before the 100 percent abdominal muscle tear (after hurrying back too soon from a sports hernia) midway through his third NHL season.

Could also add Kim Johnsson, Andre Lacroix (Flyers top offensive player in the pre-Clarke era, later WHA all-time leading scorer), Mel Bridgman, Bob Froese, Steve Mason.
- bmeltzer

Lacroix is listed, like your other choices as well.

D - Jones, Randy
D - MacDonald, Andre
R - Weiss, Dale
C - LehteraJori
L - VanvdeVelde, Chris

All severely underrated and under-appreciated for their efforts
- corduroy

Always appreciate a good bit of sarcasm.

D - Jones, Randy
D - MacDonald, Andre
R - Weiss, Dale
C - LehteraJori
L - VanvdeVelde, Chris

All severely underrated and under-appreciated for their efforts
- corduroy

top pair dman.

No Bob Corkum?

D - Jones, Randy
D - MacDonald, Andre
R - Weiss, Dale
C - LehteraJori
L - VanvdeVelde, Chris

All severely underrated and under-appreciated for their efforts
- corduroy

Ryan Parent snubbed on your list.

Gary Dornhoefer - scored the biggest goal in early Flyer history. Overtime against Caesar Maniago and the North Stars in '73 PP. Had a statue erected in his honor.

Sami Kapanen - A swiss (Finnish?) army knife. Played forward, defense in a pinch. 170 lbs. of all heart. Could take a hit too.

Brad Marsh - true defensive defenseman. Rock solid.

Chris Therien - played parts of 11 seasons. Best years riding shotgun alongside Desjardins. Jagr would agree with this selection.

Good list. I'd add Mikael Renberg. People forget how good of a player he was in his own right before the 100 percent abdominal muscle tear (after hurrying back too soon from a sports hernia) midway through his third NHL season.

Could also add Kim Johnsson, Andre Lacroix (Flyers top offensive player in the pre-Clarke era, later WHA all-time leading scorer), Mel Bridgman, Bob Froese, Steve Mason.
- bmeltzer

Is this underrated or under appreciated? Wasn’t Bridgman the first pick in the draft and captain of the Flyers? That doesn’t seem like a player that was underrated. I don’t think Giroux was underrated, but he was and still is under appreciated by flyers fans.

Is this underrated or under appreciated? Wasn’t Bridgman the first pick in the draft and captain of the Flyers? That doesn’t seem like a player that was underrated. I don’t think Giroux was underrated, but he was and still is under appreciated by flyers fans.
- Dkos

I think any player who was drafted here and traded within three years just to go on to bigger and better things with their career falls under both categories. A lot of this happened under the Clarke/Hitch era.

Bill Meltzer: Quick Hits: National broadcasts,Boucher, Underrated Flyers, TIFH (Watson)
- bmeltzer

How awful/sad is it that I totally forgot about the Stadium Series this season?... Not sure if it's due to my age, Flyers in Franchise Dead-Era, the watering down of Outdoor Hockey in the NHL, my current personal private life situation... or maybe/probably a combination of all of the above. Doesn't seem like all that long ago that I not only would've known right away what the game was... but that I would've been chomping at the bit in anticipation of it. 😖

Good list. I'd add Mikael Renberg. People forget how good of a player he was in his own right before the 100 percent abdominal muscle tear (after hurrying back too soon from a sports hernia) midway through his third NHL season.

Could also add Kim Johnsson, Andre Lacroix (Flyers top offensive player in the pre-Clarke era, later WHA all-time leading scorer), Mel Bridgman, Bob Froese, Steve Mason.
- bmeltzer

before their hip issues Nittymaki and Emery.

For what his role was always wish we kept Aaron Asham as well. Jason Smith was a warrior. Prospal, but he enjoyed playing in florida more. Carcillo

before their hip issues Nittymaki and Emery.

For what his role was always wish we kept Aaron Asham as well. Jason Smith was a warrior. Prospal, but he enjoyed playing in florida more. Carcillo
- Peter Richards

Niittymaki is a good one

Gary Dornhoefer - scored the biggest goal in early Flyer history. Overtime against Caesar Maniago and the North Stars in '73 PP. Had a statue erected in his honor.

Sami Kapanen - A swiss (Finnish?) army knife. Played forward, defense in a pinch. 170 lbs. of all heart. Could take a hit too.

Brad Marsh - true defensive defenseman. Rock solid.

Chris Therien - played parts of 11 seasons. Best years riding shotgun alongside Desjardins. Jagr would agree with this selection.
- 77rams

Will always remember the play where Sami got buried by Farcy Smucker of the Laffs in game 6 of overtime in the 2004 playoffs. He somehow made it back to the bench with some help and allowed the Flyers to score the winning goal (JR)! He also ended up playing defense in the next series against Tampa cause they had no one left to play defense with all the injuries.

Sami kapanen. Hands down. Him getting concussed but still making it to the bench so that JR can score that goal

That's stuff that movies are made of!

I won't ever forget that shift.

It's up there with gjroux dumping Crosby then scoring and also when Mike Richards had his he-man shift.
Those were good times

Sami kapanen. Hands down. Him getting concussed but still making it to the bench so that JR can score that goal

That's stuff that movies are made of!

I won't ever forget that shift.

It's up there with gjroux dumping Crosby then scoring and also when Mike Richards had his he-man shift.
Those were good times
- Bob Habib

Honestly. I see a lot of people dropping Sami Kapanen’s name as unappreciated but I feel like he was plenty appropriated in his time here. I think he got plenty of recognition for absorbing that hit. Playing defense in the 2004 playoffs when we were down defensemen. Not much different from Ian Laperriere blocking two shots with his face in one season that saw us reach a Stanley Cup Final.

I think of guys who played well for us but get zero love or aren’t even remembered. Jeff Carter, Michal Handzus, Daymond Langkow, Marty Murray, Brayden Schenn, Darell Powe, Mark Recchi, Michael Renberg, Matt Read, Steve Downie, Kim Johnsson, Ivan Provorov, Nicolas Grossmann, Robert Hagg, Justin Braun, Steve Mason and Antero Niittymaki.

Like Jeff Carter I wasn’t a big fan of but he was good for us and it’s not brought up often.

What a lovely morning.