:: 2014-2015 Cap Central ::

[flyersfan4706]

Vrbata yes, Seto no - Seto is too inconsistent - Vrbata's actually had some success in Phoenix

What do you think is more important for the Flyers? Finding a winger that can give speed and do a little bit of scoring or finding a second line center that can actually be the bridge between Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier? Brayden Schenn could be that guy but I'm not certain, and Vinny certainly wasn't that guy this season

Finding the #2 C is more important, but it'd be smarter to get the winger. At least Schenn has the potential to be a #2 C. Signing someone to take Schenn's spot will kill his development. We have no one that that's as close to a top line winger as Schenn is to a second line center

 

[Cobiemonster]

Finding the #2 C is more important, but it'd be smarter to get the winger. At least Schenn has the potential to be a #2 C. Signing someone to take Schenn's spot will kill his development. We have no one that that's as close to a top line winger as Schenn is to a second line center

Well that's why you could attempt to move Brayden Schenn - if you get a #2 C like Grabovski or Kesler or someone like that, you could move Brayden Schenn and get the winger - although, if you trade for Kesler, you probably end up giving up Brayden Schenn

 

[flyersfan4706]

Well that's why you could attempt to move Brayden Schenn - if you get a #2 C like Grabovski or Kesler or someone like that, you could move Brayden Schenn and get the winger - although, if you trade for Kesler, you probably end up giving up Brayden Schenn

That's true, but I am still a big believer in Schenn. Watch us trade him and he turns into a 70 point center.

 

[awaz]

I want a top 6 winger. That's my #1 need if I'm running the flyers.

 

[Cobiemonster]

I want a top 6 winger. That's my #1 need if I'm running the flyers.

Bobby Ryan on line one

 

[mall3013]

Bobby Ryan on line one

Stop getting me excited.. I've wanted Ryan for awhile now, especially w JVR gone.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Recall Bobby Ryan rumors swirling around the Flyers a couple years back. Think they'll pull the deal this time? He's only got 1 year left on his contract so he should be easier to get than last year.

 

[raptorlife4]

we need a gritty forward like rinaldo that can score

 

[JBM73]

From ESPN Insider:

So much has happened during the 2013-14 campaign in Philadelphia that the Peter Laviolette firing seems like it occurred in a different season.

There was the Claude Giroux Olympic snub, then his push for the Hart Trophy. Steve Mason carried the team for a stretch in November, and then was rewarded with a new contract. Paul Holmgren got an early jump on addressing his defensive needs with the addition and subsequent contract extension of defenseman Andrew MacDonald.

In the end, the Flyers were back in the playoffs, and the hiring of Craig Berube proved to be a strong one, with his steady improvement of the Flyers in all facets of the game, overcoming a slow start to make a playoff push.

But their elimination in seven games to the New York Rangers shows there’s still work to be done in Philadelphia. This is where the focus should shift this summer:

1. Squeeze one more season out of Kimmo Timonen

Timonen’s contract is up after this season and the Flyers would love to have him back, but at 39 years old it’s quite possible that he opts to hang up the skates. He’s lost a step, but is so smart defensively that his positioning and savvy make up for his lack of foot speed.

He had strong possession numbers this season, aided in part by starting 55.2 percent of his even-strength shifts in the offensive zone (per behindthenet.ca). The payoff is a relative Corsi of 13.9, which put him in the top five among NHL defensemen who played at least 70 games this season.

The only guys higher in that category were T.J. Brodie, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Jake Gardiner and Matt Niskanen. Even with the additions of MacDonald and Mark Streit in the past calendar year, Timonen’s contributions wouldn’t be easy to replace.

2. Get faster

The Flyers have some bangers and really didn’t have a lot of difficulty scoring goals, but teams with speed gave them trouble at times this season. That’s a problem, especially in the Eastern Conference, and sometimes a lack of speed can mean you get hemmed in your own zone, which might have contributed to the Flyers' possession struggles.

The Flyers controlled just 45 percent of shot attempts at even strength, which was No. 22 in the league according to ExtraSkater.com. The best teams have defensemen who can pressure the puck in the neutral zone, force a dump-in and then use their speed to quickly retrieve it and start the transition the other way, with forwards who use their speed in support. That’s currently not a strength of this iteration of the Flyers.

3. Make a call on Brayden Schenn

Schenn is a restricted free agent, and scored a career-high 20 goals this season (though he was held goalless in the series with the Rangers). Still 22 years old, Schenn has played in nearly 200 career regular-season NHL games and is a guy who could be an asset that GM Paul Holmgren uses to upgrade his team.

Only Giroux and Sean Couturier took more faceoffs than Schenn this season, but he won only 43.2 percent of them. He’s one of a few Flyers forwards who aren’t playing on long-term deals, and this may be the summer the Flyers either commit to him with a long-term pact or use him to improve their roster via trade.

 

[JBM73]

Related to the previous post:

HockeyBuzz.com - Bill Meltzer - Meltzer's Musings: The Brayden Schenn Dilemma

 

[awaz]

1. Bobby Ryan - i don't think they'll make a play for him this summer. If the sens are out of the race by the TDL though, i bet they make a big push. and try for him next summer for sure.

2. On BSchenn - as i've mentioned before, i'd like to see them really give him a shot. let him be the 2C with no competition and a competant winger (aka, not briere or lecavalier).

 

[JBM73]

"The best option the Flyers may have this offseason is to ask Lecavalier if he's willing to waive his no-movement clause and try to find a trade partner even if the team has to absorb a portion of his cap hit and/or take on another team's problematic contract."

HockeyBuzz.com - Bill Meltzer - Meltzer's Musings: Finding a Fit for Lecavalier

 

[mall3013]

"The best option the Flyers may have this offseason is to ask Lecavalier if he's willing to waive his no-movement clause and try to find a trade partner even if the team has to absorb a portion of his cap hit and/or take on another team's problematic contract."

HockeyBuzz.com - Bill Meltzer - Meltzer's Musings: Finding a Fit for Lecavalier

Yep, another great article by Bill. I bet Vinny would be willing to waive his NTC if he had the option of going back to TB or possibly the Leafs? I just hope Schenn does not get traded.

 

[JBM73]

Inside the Flyers: How can the Flyers improve? - Philly.com

 

[mall3013]

The Shea Webber part is very interesting. I still think about him wearing the orange and black jersey one day.. I don't think I'd make that deal both Schenn's, Morin, and a pick for him, even if the Preds wanted to make the deal? I like the direction we are going. Give the young guys a chance.

 

[JBM73]

The Shea Webber part is very interesting. I still think about him wearing the orange and black jersey one day.. I don't think I'd make that deal both Schenn's, Morin, and a pick for him, even if the Preds wanted to make the deal? I like the direction we are going. Give the young guys a chance.

Hopefully Homer has learned his lesson about the risks of trading a ton of assets for one player...

 

[lasgop8]

Hopefully Homer has learned his lesson about the risks of trading a ton of assets for one player...

Which trade is this referring to?

 

[awaz]

Which trade is this referring to?

good ole pronger

(i assume?)

 

[lasgop8]

good ole pronger

(i assume?)

If so then here's my take.

If Pronger doesn't get hurt we are cup contenders for years
If we had the players we traded for him we are in the exact same position as now.

 

[Cobiemonster]

If so then here's my take.

If Pronger doesn't get hurt we are cup contenders for years
If we had the players we traded for him we are in the exact same position as now.

I agree with this - Joffrey Lupul's a good player but he's not a difference maker - Luca Sbisa has been in and out of the lineup in Anaheim, he wouldn't have made a big difference here - and the two first round picks(one of them I think was Kyle Palmieri) are not bad but not difference makers - I would have made this trade any day of the week - who could have predicted when the Flyers made this move that Chris Pronger would have gotten hi-sticked and it would end his career effectively? Nobody saw that coming, it wasn't as if he had chronic issues(he had some issues off and on but before his career ended a few years ago, he started off that season really good and looked like the Chris Pronger of old again