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Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •
Forget that the Flyers rolled over in a 5-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs, who played with a sense of urgency you see in teams trying to make the playoffs.
The buzz is about the post-game trade of Alexei Zhitnik to Atlanta for defenseman Braydon Coburn.
This is where the Atlanta Thrashers - desperate to make the playoffs _ have to bite the bullet and hope someone of Zhitnik's ability and character can make a difference.
The Thrashers are in free fall having lost 7 of their last 11 games.
Coburn is a stud. A 6-5, 220-pound stud. But one who can skate.
“He’s a got tremendous size, he skates well and moves the puck well,” said Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren, announcing the deal about 30 minutes after the game.
“He won’t be a high point scorer, but one of those middle of the road guys. For a big man, he really moves well … He’s a guy we liked a long time who never found his niche in Atlanta which has an older group of defenseman.”
Homer says he will play right away. He and Atlanta GM Don Waddell discussed Coburn a few times this year.
“Don asked me if we would consider trading Zhitnik and I said, ‘geez, I don’t know,’ ” Holmgren said. “Two days later, he asked would we consider Coburn for Zhitnik and that caught my attention. We talked about Coburn a number of times before and potential deals and he didn’t want to part with him.”
Hard to believe, Harry, but those Thrashers were leading the Southeast Division before all hell broke loose.
“This was a hard deal for Don, too,” Holmgren said. “They’re trying to secure a playoff spot. Alexei is a guy who can bring a lot to their team. Alexei was a tremendous player for us and a good man.”
Zhitnik, 34, said he understood.
Zhitnik's reaction:
“I liked being here and I appreciated that the organization was very good to me," he said. “I had no complaints. Close to the deadline, anything can happen. I feel some teams would be interested in me. They got a good defensive prospect … it’s part of the business.”
BTW: Cap junkies: Zhitnik had two years left on his deal at $3.5 million each. Coburn earned $471,200 this season and has one year left at $942,400.
The buzz is about the post-game trade of Alexei Zhitnik to Atlanta for defenseman Braydon Coburn.
This is where the Atlanta Thrashers - desperate to make the playoffs _ have to bite the bullet and hope someone of Zhitnik's ability and character can make a difference.
The Thrashers are in free fall having lost 7 of their last 11 games.
Coburn is a stud. A 6-5, 220-pound stud. But one who can skate.
“He’s a got tremendous size, he skates well and moves the puck well,” said Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren, announcing the deal about 30 minutes after the game.
“He won’t be a high point scorer, but one of those middle of the road guys. For a big man, he really moves well … He’s a guy we liked a long time who never found his niche in Atlanta which has an older group of defenseman.”
Homer says he will play right away. He and Atlanta GM Don Waddell discussed Coburn a few times this year.
“Don asked me if we would consider trading Zhitnik and I said, ‘geez, I don’t know,’ ” Holmgren said. “Two days later, he asked would we consider Coburn for Zhitnik and that caught my attention. We talked about Coburn a number of times before and potential deals and he didn’t want to part with him.”
Hard to believe, Harry, but those Thrashers were leading the Southeast Division before all hell broke loose.
“This was a hard deal for Don, too,” Holmgren said. “They’re trying to secure a playoff spot. Alexei is a guy who can bring a lot to their team. Alexei was a tremendous player for us and a good man.”
Zhitnik, 34, said he understood.
Zhitnik's reaction:
“I liked being here and I appreciated that the organization was very good to me," he said. “I had no complaints. Close to the deadline, anything can happen. I feel some teams would be interested in me. They got a good defensive prospect … it’s part of the business.”
BTW: Cap junkies: Zhitnik had two years left on his deal at $3.5 million each. Coburn earned $471,200 this season and has one year left at $942,400.
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