Bill Meltzer: Flyers Blanked Again in 4-0 Loss to Canucks

This is slow and painful.

Bill Meltzer: Flyers Blanked Again in 4-0 Loss to Canucks
- bmeltzer

when does berube get the long term extension?

I find it hard to believe you have the first and third highest scorers in the league and you're not in a playoff spot.

Back end definitely needs work aswell as between the pipes.

Not trolling, simply identifying a problem im sure you're aware of.

Curious to see what you guys do at the deadline if anything. In order to get anything back for a quality dman or tender you will likely have to give up some young talented forward.

Good luck fellas

I find it hard to believe you have the first and third highest scorers in the league and you're not in a playoff spot.

Back end definitely needs work aswell as between the pipes.

Not trolling, simply identifying a problem im sure you're aware of.

Curious to see what you guys do at the deadline if anything. In order to get anything back for a quality dman or tender you will likely have to give up some young talented forward.

Good luck fellas
- vancity787

the team is horrid, all philadelphia teams are horrid and non playoff caliber in 2015

Bill Meltzer: Flyers Blanked Again in 4-0 Loss to Canucks
- bmeltzer

I guess that's what happens when 2 NHL top 5 in points have less ice time than others...

the team is horrid, all philadelphia teams are horrid and non playoff caliber in 2015
- penguininnevada

well considering you're a Pens fan im going to take this comment with a grain of salt. Not that its possibly incorrect, but simply because I think you're speaking more emotionally than logically.

well considering you're a Pens fan im going to take this comment with a grain of salt. Not that its possibly incorrect, but simply because I think you're speaking more emotionally than logically.
- vancity787

no Philadelphia based team will make the playoffs in 2015

Phillies✓
76ers✓
Flyers✓
Eagles✓

I find it hard to believe you have the first and third highest scorers in the league and you're not in a playoff spot.

Back end definitely needs work aswell as between the pipes.

Not trolling, simply identifying a problem im sure you're aware of.

Curious to see what you guys do at the deadline if anything. In order to get anything back for a quality dman or tender you will likely have to give up some young talented forward.

Good luck fellas
- vancity787

They have a goalie, trouble is he's hurt so they're playing a washed up Emery & a 33 year old journeyman while he's out. Steve Mason gets shredded, but he's been a plus starter since joining the Flyers and was their best playoff player and biggest reason they took the Rangers to 7 games in the playoff last season.

Defense is a far bigger area of concern, as is getting consistent secondary scoring. Part of that secondary scoring could be helped by adding a decent playmaking winger or center and freeing Sean Couturier, instead of burying him in D-Zone start situations

It's too bad the NHL hates us and will never allow us to get McDavid or Eichel.

Mourning for Marner.

They have a goalie, trouble is he's hurt so they're playing a washed up Emery & a 33 year old journeyman while he's out. Steve Mason gets shredded, but he's been a plus starter since joining the Flyers and was their best playoff player and biggest reason they took the Rangers to 7 games in the playoff last season.

Defense is a far bigger area of concern, as is getting consistent secondary scoring. Part of that secondary scoring could be helped by adding a decent playmaking winger or center and freeing Sean Couturier, instead of burying him in D-Zone start situations
- Jsaquella

exactly. mason is rock solid. its criminal the amount of flak he gets. i guess if you just look at the box score, then yeah. it doesnt look great. but to judge a goalie you really need to watch them. for all the stats they can cook up, nothing adequately conveys the quality of shot a goalie is consistently facing. mason doesnt get the benefit of padding his save percentage via 15 to 20 harmless flicks from the outside per night that guys like lundqvist get to.

The Flyers will not practice on Friday. This was expected as the team played three games in four nights and on back-to-back nights. On Saturday, the team is in Buffalo.

Finally a team the Flyers can look square in the eye and convincingly say "We might be better than you."

I find it hard to believe you have the first and third highest scorers in the league and you're not in a playoff spot.

Back end definitely needs work aswell as between the pipes.

Not trolling, simply identifying a problem im sure you're aware of.

Curious to see what you guys do at the deadline if anything. In order to get anything back for a quality dman or tender you will likely have to give up some young talented forward.

Good luck fellas
- vancity787

Mason is fine. Though injured. Would love a better back up. Feel bad that Mase left Columbus only to return

Mason is fine. Though injured. Would love a better back up. Feel bad that Mase left Columbus only to return
- wilsonecho91

How do people not look up stats before commenting on Mason? Of goalies with at least 20 starts (a modest workload considering teams have played 40+ games), Mason is 12th in Save %. And the difference between him and #1, Pekke Rinne - who is (was) having a ridiculously good season - is 1.1%. Not bad considering the Flyers standing.

Are we talking about the same team that destroyed Tampa just the other night...

How do people not look up stats before commenting on Mason? Of goalies with at least 20 starts (a modest workload considering teams have played 40+ games), Mason is 12th in Save %. And the difference between him and #1, Pekke Rinne - who is (was) having a ridiculously good season - is 1.1%. Not bad considering the Flyers standing.
- wolfhounds

Mason is cursed. No long term success other than his first year.

Mason is cursed. No long term success other than his first year.
- Beatle_john

Mason has played very well as a Flyer from day one since his arrival from Columbus at the 2013 trade deadline. His Flyers' stats to date over nearly two calendar years:

RS: 97 GP, 5,495 MIN, 2.45 GAA, .920 SV%, 5 SO
PO: 5 GP, 244 MIN, 1.97 GAA, .939 SV%, 0 SO

Starting goaltending is not the Flyers problem. Mason has matured into a real solid goalie.

They have a goalie, trouble is he's hurt so they're playing a washed up Emery & a 33 year old journeyman while he's out. Steve Mason gets shredded, but he's been a plus starter since joining the Flyers and was their best playoff player and biggest reason they took the Rangers to 7 games in the playoff last season.

Defense is a far bigger area of concern, as is getting consistent secondary scoring. Part of that secondary scoring could be helped by adding a decent playmaking winger or center and freeing Sean Couturier, instead of burying him in D-Zone start situations
- Jsaquella

It's time they free him regardless if they have anyone equipped to do his job. They haven't addressed that his entire tenure here and it's hurting his development longterm. The coaching staff needs to stop trying to save their jobs this year and think about the long term. Easy for me to say since it's not my job on the line but it's what needs to be done.

Embrace the suck and if it results in a better draft spot, all the better.

It's time they free him regardless if they have anyone equipped to do his job. They haven't addressed that his entire tenure here and it's hurting his development longterm. The coaching staff needs to stop trying to save their jobs this year and think about the long term. Easy for me to say since it's not my job on the line but it's what needs to be done.

Embrace the suck and if it results in a better draft spot, all the better.
- Flyers_01

Couturier would help his case to be "freed"as an offensive player if he produced something with his power play time. Also, he remains far and away the team's best defensive center and, as such, should be the one drawing the toughest defensive assignments. There's nothing wrong with that role, and if he scores 20 goals on top of that (which is still a possibility, so much the better).

In recent games, his line has been spending a lot of time in the offensive zone. He hasn't put up points -- after posting 13 points in 15 games in December -- but he hasn't been part of the problem. He's done his job very well at even strength for the last seven weeks.

The over-arching problem is the Flyers really have no one to put around him with Read having the worst season of his career by far and a host of other players in funks for the better part of the last month. However, Couturier also gets into the perimeter mindset in the offensive zone and that's when those long dry spells of his tend to happen.

I find it hard to believe you have the first and third highest scorers in the league and you're not in a playoff spot.

Back end definitely needs work aswell as between the pipes.

Not trolling, simply identifying a problem im sure you're aware of.

Curious to see what you guys do at the deadline if anything. In order to get anything back for a quality dman or tender you will likely have to give up some young talented forward.

Good luck fellas
- vancity787

Scoring leaders r not top D men say no more

Couturier would help his case to be "freed"as an offensive player if he produced something with his power play time. Also, he remains far and away the team's best defensive center and, as such, should be the one drawing the toughest defensive assignments. There's nothing wrong with that role, and if he scores 20 goals on top of that (which is still a possibility, so much the better).

In recent games, his line has been spending a lot of time in the offensive zone. He hasn't put up points -- after posting 13 points in 15 games in December -- but he hasn't been part of the problem. He's done his job very well at even strength for the last seven weeks.

The over-arching problem is the Flyers really have no one to put around him with Read having the worst season of his career by far and a host of other players in funks for the better part of the last month. However, Couturier also gets into the perimeter mindset in the offensive zone and that's when those long dry spells of his tend to happen.
- bmeltzer

The second PP unit that features such offensive weapons as RJ Umberger?

I agree Couturier has to be better, but at the same time he's routinely getting buried with DZ starts, against the other team's best lines with linemates who are either underperforming (Read) or who are in decline (Umberger).

Couturier's production and usage vs guys like Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds is very encouraging.

It's too bad the NHL hates us and will never allow us to get McDavid or Eichel.

Mourning for Marner.
- KGBflyers10

U make no sense at all bro
Teams gotta totally suck for those picks.
The NHL has nothing to do with it.
Question is how bad do want the Flyers to get.

Couturier would help his case to be "freed"as an offensive player if he produced something with his power play time. Also, he remains far and away the team's best defensive center and, as such, should be the one drawing the toughest defensive assignments. There's nothing wrong with that role, and if he scores 20 goals on top of that (which is still a possibility, so much the better).

In recent games, his line has been spending a lot of time in the offensive zone. He hasn't put up points -- after posting 13 points in 15 games in December -- but he hasn't been part of the problem. He's done his job very well at even strength for the last seven weeks.

The over-arching problem is the Flyers really have no one to put around him with Read having the worst season of his career by far and a host of other players in funks for the better part of the last month. However, Couturier also gets into the perimeter mindset in the offensive zone and that's when those long dry spells of his tend to happen.
- bmeltzer

It sounds like, if they had someone able to take on his defensive responsibilities, that he'd be best suited on the second line surrounded by better line mates?

I also think that he knows his primary duty on this team is to be a defensive forward. The Flyers don't count on him to score, they count on him to do something the other forwards either can't or won't do. No matter how much Berube tells him to shoot, the defensive responsibilities are always at the front of his thoughts. IMO.

The second PP unit that features such offensive weapons as RJ Umberger?

I agree Couturier has to be better, but at the same time he's routinely getting buried with DZ starts, against the other team's best lines with linemates who are either underperforming (Read) or who are in decline (Umberger).

Couturier's production and usage vs guys like Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds is very encouraging.
- Jsaquella

I agree with most of this.

Umberger has actually played a bit better in the last six weeks or so. Mind you, he had nowhere to go but up from his play in the first eight weeks of the season, but he's been OK for most part since then. As for him on the power play, his history even as recently as last year in Columbus was that he could score PPGs in close to the net.
So I don't blame Berube for trying that out.

This is slow and painful.
- hereticpride

I'm generally positive about things, but this is turning into a mess. We're going to gestuck in Leafs zone where we're not good enough for the playoffs but don't get a top pick.

The worst part is, I normally make every effort to watch the Flyers games, but of late, the team is so boring and lifelss to watch, I want no part of it. Not a good thing.