Numerous people have emailed or PMed me of late to ask why Steve Downie has been a regular healthy scratch of late, and whether I think he'd have been better off playing for the Phantoms than sitting out games with the big club.
From what I gather, he's been sitting out because the coaching staff feels the rookie is still too raw and one dimensional to be an NHL regular. There may also be issues with conditioning over the course of the season. Prior to and after his concussion, he was making poor decisions with and without the puck. Just as important, although he's been told the specific things he needed to correct, he has not yet made the adjustments.
But if that's the case, I see no reason why he shouldn't have sent down at the point he was originally demoted to the fourth line (which happened prior to the concussion).
Downie wasn't just a passenger when he, Mike Richards and Scott Hartnell were the hottest line in the NHL for about two weeks in January. His forechecking presence and physical play were a definite asset to the club. He also scored a few gritty, timely goals. While he's no contender for fastest skater or a Selke candidate, his energy was a welcomed addition to the lineup.
Downie's play has unquestionably tailed off since then. And I understand why he was removed from the lineup. But if the concussion is
truly a non-issue and if the goal is to get him to elevate his game again, it would have made more sense for him to be getting game action in the AHL than watching the NHL stretch run in street clothes.
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Chuck Gormley had a
Denis Gauthier tidbit in today's Courier Post. According to Gormley, the Flyers plan to call up the veteran defenseman in the playoffs and could do so without placing Gauthier on re-entry waivers.
Here are the relevant re-entry rules from the NHL's
Collective Bargaining Agreement with the Players' Association:
13.12(l) During the period following the [trade deadline] ... preceding the final day of the regular season, no player may be recalled [from waivers] to a club of any league affiliated with the NHL, except that:
(ii) Players may recalled under [emergency recall conditions]
(iii) Players may be recalled upon completion of the regular season and playoff schedule of the club to which they were loaned.
If Gauthier were called up now, he'd be subject to another club claiming him on re-entry waivers. Although he wouldn't be playoff-eligible for another club, he'd be a bargain for next season, since the Flyers would be on hook for half of his $2 million salary.
I'm going to respectfully disagree with something Chuck wrote, however :" few would question he's capable of being one of the Flyers' top six blue liners."
I'm all in favor of bringing him up as an extra, experienced body when he becomes available. But I wouldn't pencil him in for my playoff top six or even the top seven.
Yes, Gauthier is still a viable number five or number six NHL defenseman. But the Flyers are awash in such players. That has not been the team's problem -- the issue is a lack of legitimate 3rd and 4th defensemen.
And frankly, I don't see Gauthier as an upgrade over any of the players he'd jump over in the lineup (likely Lasse Kukkonen and Ryan Parent).
He's never been positionally sound, mobile, or a reliable puck handler. Gauthier is a physical player and an agitator. He's a great guy off the ice and handled his demotion with class, but there were good reasons -- even beyond the salary cap -- why he was waived in the first place.
Here's why I'm not in favor of starting him in the playoffs, except in an emergency:
1) Yes, he's got a significant edge in NHL regular season experience over Ryan Parent and Lasse Kukkonen. But anyone who remembers the Sabres exposing Gauthier's positional liabilities shift after shift in the 2006 playoffs shouldn't be clamoring for his return. The 32-year-old Gauthier, by the way, has 12 games worth of NHL playoff experience in his career.
2) Parent makes the usual mistakes you'd expect of a rookie, but also makes plays that Gauthier could never make on his best day. I'd sooner let him start accumulating some NHL playoff minutes than take a step backwards and re-install Gauthier.
3) Gauthier blocks shots and snuffs out passes, but not as well as Lasse Kukkonen. Gauthier is more physical but is also more mistake prone in his own end of the ice. Now that his foot is healed, Kukkonen is also the better skater of the two.
4) Starting Gauthier would present a similar lineup mix problem to the one the Flyers had starting both Jason Smith and Derian Hatcher in the same lineup. He can't effectively play with Smith because neither is mobile or a good enough puck handler. He certainly shouldn't be playing with Kimmo Timonen instead of Braydon Coburn.
So that puts him in a pairing with either Randy Jones or Jaroslav Modry.
Anyone remember the games where Jones and Gauthier played together during the 2006-07 season? It wasn't pretty.
What's more, the idea of Modry defending rushes on one side and Gauthier on the other is an even scarier proposition. Gauthier gets beaten off the rush at least as often as Modry does, and he's not nearly as good at starting the rush the other way. Gauthier has tried to play within himself and not get caught out of position looking for the big hit, but doing so also limits the one thing he truly does well.
If the other club were to generate any speed at all through the neutral zone or there were to a turnover in deep, Martin Biron would have to make a great save or the next faceoff would be at center ice.
5) Next season may a different story. If Jason Smith leaves via free agency and Derian Hatcher's bad knees prevent him from being a regular, there'll be a need for a player like Guthier in the top six. But this year, I don't see what he can add.
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The Flyers apparently plan to go with Martin Biron in goal tomorrow at Madison Square Garden and then give Antero Niittymäki the start on Friday against the Devils.
Reason: The Flyers play again on Saturday, taking on the Islanders on the road. Given Biron's struggles in back-to-back games and his success against the Islanders this season, the rotation may give the Flyers the best chance at winning two of the three games.
Niittymäki cranked up a couple good games against the Devils early in his career, but has not fared well of late. Unfortunately, neither has Biron.
A look at Niitty's career games against New Jersey:
2003-04
2/10 Home ( 4-1, W): 36 shots, 35 saves
2005-06
10/7 Home (5-2, W): 28 shots, 26 saves
1/9 Away (3-0, L): 16 shots, 13 saves
3/21 Home (2-1, W): 22 shots, 21 saves
4/1 Home (4-1, L): 31 shots, 27 saves
4/16 Away (5-1, ND) : 8 shots, 6 saves (37:36 in relief of Robert Esche)
2006-07
10/16 Away (3-2, L): 32 shots, 29 saves
12/2 Home (4-3, OTL-SO): 32 shots, 29 saves (Shootout: 2 shots, 0 saves)
12/8 Away (2-0, L): 24 shots, 22 saves
1/20 Away (4-3, OTL-SO): 38 shots, 35 saves (Shootout: 2 shots, 1 save)
2/1 Home (6-5, OTL): 35 shots, 29 saves
2007-08
11/8 Away (4-1, ND): 24 shots, 24 saves (37:12 in relief of Martin Biron)
11/17 Home (6-2, ND): 2 shots, 0 saves (Third period in relief of Martin Biron)
12/16 Away (4-2, L): 37 shots, 34 goals (plus ENG)
1/22 Home (7-3, L): 20 saves, 15 shots (pulled in favor of Martin Biron after 34:33).
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Flyers forward Riley Cote and his wife, Holly are lending their support to a "Rockin Riles" t-shirt campaign to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis Association of America. The campaign was started by the
the5hole.com. The shirts depict the team's enforcer in a fighting pose.
At Riley Cote's personal request, proceeds from the sales of the shirt go to benefit the MSAA branch in Cherry Hill, NJ. Cote's older sister, Jaime, suffers from the disease.
To date, $198.00 has been raised for the benefit of the MSAA.
Here's a photo of Riley and Holly Cote modeling the shirts.
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In the next Odds and Ends blog, I'll be taking a look at how several Flyers prospects have done in their junior, NCAA or European league playoffs. It'll run on Wednesday.
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