Can you believe that, under his reign, we only had our best run to the Stanley Cup in over a quarter of a decade? Man, that dude sucked at assembling a team.
- jmatchett383

someone shop a crown on his head please...S2TP!!!! Help!!!!

I like the way he played the 2 on 1 in OT. He didn't go leaving his feet wildly, sliding across. He was patient and then when the pass across was made he was able to slide and block the shot. That was a savvy play.

He just looks smooth out there. Even when he makes mistakes he doesn't look out of place. He looks like a number one. With more time and experience I don't doubt he will be a top pairing all situations defenseman.
- J35Bacher

on the flyers he already is

on the flyers he already is
- YuenglingJagr

I read this in Yoda's voice in my mind and thought you were making an obvious remark. Yes, he is already on the Flyers' roster.

The Kings should fold up shop after making that trade. It's crippled their franchise.
- PLindbergh31

LA got their cup(s) so obviously they are happy but you don't think they wouldn't love to have Schenn and Simmonds back now at this point? Part of doing business.

No one can argue that both trades weren't good ones for the Flyers and smart ones. you aren't being objective if you are saying they were bad trades. the Flyers hit a reset and moved on from both guys and got a great haul in return.

Holmgren made a lot of bad moves: Amac, Bryz, Kubina, Eminger, etc. But for every bad move and more, he made a great move: Coburn, Read, Leino, Richards/Carter trades, etc. But no, let's just focus on the bad moves and call him a terrible GM.
- jmatchett383

You left out the JVR for Luke Schenn trade in the list of great moves.

Holmgren made a lot of bad moves: Amac, Bryz, Kubina, Eminger, etc. But for every bad move and more, he made a great move: Coburn, Read, Leino, Richards/Carter trades, etc. But no, let's just focus on the bad moves and call him a terrible GM.
- jmatchett383

He left the team in better shape then when he took it over and gave us a wild ride while he was in charge. He was definitely a bit of a wild card as a GM but the team remained competitive and exciting with the exception of his first and second last half season.

LA got their cup(s) so obviously they are happy but you don't think they wouldn't love to have Schenn and Simmonds back now at this point? Part of doing business.

No one can argue that both trades weren't good ones for the Flyers and smart ones. you aren't being objective if you are saying they were bad trades. the Flyers hit a reset and moved on from both guys and got a great haul in return.
- nastyflyergirl

There's the issue.

LA got their cup(s) so obviously they are happy but you don't think they wouldn't love to have Schenn and Simmonds back now at this point? Part of doing business.

No one can argue that both trades weren't good ones for the Flyers and smart ones. you aren't being objective if you are saying they were bad trades. the Flyers hit a reset and moved on from both guys and got a great haul in return.
- nastyflyergirl

The Carter and Richards trades worked out well for both sides. I never said otherwise.

The wild part is that he might not be half the player now, that he will be in 2-3 years. He's an inexperienced 19 year old defenseman playing at a high level in the NHL. Pretty special.
- MJL

That is the part that gets me most excited about him..
At 19 in his first season, he doesnt look out of place at all.

You left out the JVR for Luke Schenn trade in the list of great moves.
- PLindbergh31

No, that was also a bad trade. I did, however, leave out the Matt Carle trade, the acquisition of Bobrovsky, signing Forsberg, the Forsberg trade, the Hartnell/Timonen trade, the Giroux extension...off the top of my head.

I didn't list the Pronger trade because people are split on that.

The Carter and Richards trades worked out well for both sides. I never said otherwise.
- PLindbergh31

not sure how well it worked out for Columbus.

not sure how well it worked out for Columbus.
- nastyflyergirl

What? We traded them both to LA. Gagne and Justin Williams, too.

You left out the JVR for Luke Schenn trade in the list of great moves.
- PLindbergh31

To me that is a bit of hindsight thought...

I think we would all take it back now but at the time you were basically trading a struggling 2 overall pick for a struggling 5th overall pick in a position that the team really needed.

You left out the JVR for Luke Schenn trade in the list of great moves.
- PLindbergh31

Also left out:

Timonen, Hartnell, Upshall and Parent for Forsberg with 1 foot.

Paying the price for Pronger, a move that got them over the hump to the cup.

Wait sorry... I have to speak your language....Didn't get enough for Forsberg, Parent was a bust. Mortgaged the future for Pronger.

How are the Flyers 6th in SOG/game? I thought they missed the net all of the time.
- jmatchett383

Flyers lead the NHL in missed shots. They have 52 more missed shots then the next team. To be fair, they have played a few more games than most teams.

Flyers lead the NHL in missed shots. They have 52 more missed shots then the next team. To be fair, they have played a few more games than most teams.
- MJL

Sure, they miss the net, as do most teams. They also put more shots on net per game than all but 5 teams. Would it be nice if they put more on net? Would I like that? Of course. But right now, they're putting more on net than most teams. I'll take that.

To me that is a bit of hindsight thought...

I think we would all take it back now but at the time you were basically trading a struggling 2 overall pick at a position we were stocked at for a struggling 5th overall pick in a position that the team really needed.
- opeth_pa

added a little more to that equation.

Sure, they miss the net, as do most teams. They also put more shots on net per game than all but 5 teams. Would it be nice if they put more on net? Would I like that? Of course. But right now, they're putting more on net than most teams. I'll take that.
- jmatchett383

Flyers miss the net far too many times, in my opinion, and it's an area that they need to clean up, especially on quality chances.

not sure how well it worked out for Columbus.
- nastyflyergirl

It didn't work out well for them at all. Jack Johnson? Yikes. Carter was an uber douche and forced their hands though.

I'm surprised how well C-Bus is playing right now. It usually starts that way under Tortorella, and then a mutiny takes place. I suspect it will happen in this instance as well. Bobrovsky is playing lights out. To be fair, the trade of Bobrovsky is equally if not more on Laviolette then it is on Holmgren.

To me that is a bit of hindsight thought...

I think we would all take it back now but at the time you were basically trading a struggling 2 overall pick for a struggling 5th overall pick in a position that the team really needed.
- opeth_pa

I hear you. The trade addressed a need. Dealing from a strength, to sure up a weakness. I get that. I just think because he was coming off injuries JVR was traded when his stock was the lowest.

That is the part that gets me most excited about him..
At 19 in his first season, he doesnt look out of place at all.
- opeth_pa

Leads the team in shifts/g and 2nd in avg toi per game while playing over 2 minutes of PK a game and about 1.75 minutes of PP time per game. Totally not what your normal 19 year old defenseman would be doing in the NHL.

Flyers miss the net far too many times, in my opinion, and it's an area that they need to clean up, especially on quality chances.
- MJL

I agree on the second half.

Edit: If you read the blog, the Flyers did have a healthy 925 shots on net last night.

I think it could get ugly pretty soon without Couts and Read.

If Mase doesn't stand on his head, this whole winning streak doesn't happen.

Can't wait to see 76/78 check McDavid's line.

Voracek has been a beast, he seems to have real chemistry with Raffl even more then with G. While I see some merit in moving Raffl to a center temporarily, I am loathe to see this line broken up.

I love when Simmonds is on a hot streak. I love him when he's not scoring, but this is so much fun.

Agree with everything said about Ivan. So collected for his age.
Hanafin, Werenski and Provorov all from 2015 draft. Amazing. All three will likely be number one D guys, and seem like they are almost there already. I guess Hanafin has someone ahead of him on his team, but he is the real deal.

Someone said Schenn has been poison on every line he has been on.
I liked him best the two games he played center with Lyuby and CVV. Go figure.

Cannot figure out why Hak is scratching MDZ. I really see a lot of benefit from giving Streit a night or two off.

Amac has been pretty good overall the last few games. Seems to be picking his spots to step up into the play well, and is doing it more often. It is good to see.

It didn't work out well for them at all. Jack Johnson? Yikes. Carter was an uber douche and forced their hands though.

I'm surprised how well C-Bus is playing right now. It usually starts that way under Tortorella, and then a mutiny takes place. I suspect it will happen in this instance as well. Bobrovsky is playing lights out. To be fair, the trade of Bobrovsky is equally if not more on Laviolette then it is on Holmgren.
- PLindbergh31

I'm not a fan of Johnson at all

I picked Columbus to make the playoffs last year and they sucked (they did have a poop load of injuries). so of course this year I say they will miss and they are playing very well.

Lavy handled the goaltenders HORRIBLY. I loved Lavy but I blame him.

I think it could get ugly pretty soon without Couts and Read.

If Mase doesn't stand on his head, this whole winning streak doesn't happen.

Can't wait to see 76/78 check McDavid's line.

Voracek has been a beast, he seems to have real chemistry with Raffl even more then with G. While I see some merit in moving Raffl to a center temporarily, I am loathe to see this line broken up.

I love when Simmonds is on a hot streak. I love him when he's not scoring, but this is so much fun.

Agree with everything said about Ivan. So collected for his age.
Hanafin, Werenski and Provorov all from 2015 draft. Amazing. All three will likely be number one D guys, and seem like they are almost there already. I guess Hanafin has someone ahead of him on his team, but he is the real deal.

Someone said Schenn has been poison on every line he has been on.
I liked him best the two games he played center with Lyuby and CVV. Go figure.

Cannot figure out why Hak is scratching MDZ. I really see a lot of benefit from giving Streit a night or two off.

Amac has been pretty good overall the last few games. Seems to be picking his spots to step up into the play well, and is doing it more often. It is good to see.
- Marc D

That worries me.

I don't want my new 5million dollar man playing on essentially the 4th line. He'll eventually get another shot on the top line but I need a little more out of Schenn. He needs to be more of an impact player not just a role player.