It gets you nothing I agree but it gives you a fresh start with hope. Maybe you are right and Hakstol will get fired at the end of the season but I think his fate is sealed on way or the other. If he is coaching this team next fall and the same shat is happening I will be finding a new team. Life it too short to cheer for a bunch of frigging moronic losers.
- joegreif17

the last thing any Flyers fan should want right now is making any move that gets them meaningless wins simply because of the impact it would have on any possible draft position in an already weak draft.

Stop living in the past like Hextall. Julien won a Stanley Cup. If your not getting the job done no matter who you are you should be replaced. It
- joegreif17

So there should be 29 coach firings at the end of every season?

Vandevelde and Bellemare have played almost twice as much ice time as Couturier and Simmonds have, which means they almost undoubtedly see more of the oppositions top PP. Bellemare has never been as strong faceoff guy SH. That's a legit criticism.
- MJL

I knew you'd say this. They're better PKers end of discussion. Couturier is a better player all-around and especially defensively than PEB. It's inarguable, and it's not close. The gap is oceanic and always has been for years. It is fair to say that they get more zone starts (to lose more face-offs), and that their stats would dip a bit, but I don't want to hear that the difference is 30 shots and league best numbers go to bottom third numbers if their usage was switched. They still see top units too, if ideally a change is made every 20-30 seconds. But so often the top unit can't even get out of their own zone, so that's their own fault too. Giroux has an almost 70% PK face-off percentage in the d zone. PEB should literally never take a face-off or start. But he does almost every single time.

Probably because all it is to this point is prospects and promises.
- landros 2

Fair. If Sanheim, Morin, and a few of the others don't become difference makers there is going to be a lot of nothing.

Did you know that Coots-Simmer are both top 5 in the league in shot suppressing on the PK? The PEB-VDV unit is bottom third in the league. They actually yield over 30 more shots per 60 than Coots-Simmer. Surprisingly enough, the Coots-Simmer pair creates twice the shots for too. It's always noticeable how many SH chances they get in comparison to the guys who are among league worst 5v5 scoring. Small wonder we're the (first or second, I forget) worst team in SH goals for over the last few years. If you even care about face-offs, PEB is the lowest of all centers in d-zone starts at 42% and 37% on the PK. It's amazing how they use them on the PK.
- Mononoke

Couter should be the #3 center and main penalty killer. To use him on the pp or top six is like playing the whole game short handed. He had way more value three years ago and has been regressing at a steady pace. I like PEB better than Couts, lol

I don't disagree and understand what you mean about more skill.

I would like to see a comparison of the Flyers' 4th line compared to others around the league. Much like they did in this article: http://www.stanleycupofch...ng-to-change-nhl-thinking

When you look at the Flyers' 4th line compared to other teams (at least in that article), they seem right in the middle of the pack, on average.
- johndewar

Not to speak for PSG or change his point, but I just wanted to respond to what you said. The reason I specifically would prefer more skill, especially on the 4th line, is because of the rest of the Flyers lines. Depth from the forwards is a serious issue, and when the Flyers don't have a top 6-9 that can cover for it, the glaring issues we have seen come to the forefront. I see it as a benefit to the 4th line itself as well as the other lines. They've been a 1-2 line team for so long now without any obvious action being taken to change

Stop living in the past like Hextall. Julien won a Stanley Cup. If your not getting the job done no matter who you are you should be replaced. It is all about what you are doing now for the team now. I imagine you are still gloating about going to the finals in 2010 but this is now MJL.
I see Giroux being like Eric Staal, stagnant in Carolina and a change of scenery has revived him in Minny.
- joegreif17

Stop living in the past yet the next line you used is living in the past.

So basically you are saying that every year a team doesnt wint the cup the coach and GM should be changed.

No, but off the top of my head has a "goon" ever been a successful head coach? I'm drawing a blank. Retreads is pretty much what the NHL does. It recycles the same guys for a long time. Those guys have experience and NHL resumes. Would you rather have Babcock or Hakstol? I think I know the answer to that. I guess the Flyers just couldn't compete with the Leafs tradition over the last 50 years.
- PLindbergh31

I didn't have a problem going out of the box with a guy like Hakstol. they did it with Keenan back in the 80's. the jury is still out on Hakstol for me. I'm not in the fire Hakstol camp yet. there have been lineup decisions I don't like but not enough to fire him over.

Now last night I thought Konecny had a very uneven game. Two goals and generated offense, drew a penalty. Also had several bad turnovers that resulted in Columbus quickly transitioning and the penalty. that said, if he is scratched I won't like that decision.

Fair. If Sanheim, Morin, and a few of the others don't become difference makers there is going to be a lot of nothing.
- PLindbergh31

You can literally say that about every draft pick every team has ever made and you can also say that if they do become difference makers the Flyers have a position of str..

I can agree with you on a lot but Im not going to blame the Flyers because they drafted players that havent had their shot in the NHL yet.

Stop living in the past like Hextall. Julien won a Stanley Cup. If your not getting the job done no matter who you are you should be replaced. It is all about what you are doing now for the team now. I imagine you are still gloating about going to the finals in 2010 but this is now MJL.
I see Giroux being like Eric Staal, stagnant in Carolina and a change of scenery has revived him in Minny.
- joegreif17

A coach in his first TWO Seasons:

1) Makes Playoffs by leading a team to overachieve
2) Misses playoffs because of some underachieving players and players who came back to earth from unrepeatable seasons (Ghost).

FIRE HIM!

I'd love to see you as the boss of a company. Your employee morale and turnover would be astronomical.

Did you know that Coots-Simmer are both top 5 in the league in shot suppressing on the PK? The PEB-VDV unit is bottom third in the league. They actually yield over 30 more shots per 60 than Coots-Simmer. Surprisingly enough, the Coots-Simmer pair creates twice the shots for too. It's always noticeable how many SH chances they get in comparison to the guys who are among league worst 5v5 scoring. Small wonder we're the (first or second, I forget) worst team in SH goals for over the last few years. If you even care about face-offs, PEB is the lowest of all centers in d-zone starts at 42% and 37% on the PK. It's amazing how they use them on the PK.
- Mononoke

I'm sure the Simmonds/Couts numbers are inflated due to facing 2nd units, but it still makes no sense to use them as the 2nd pair. I just don't understand what the team sees in Vandevelde and Bellemare to keep using them as the top unit on the PK. It makes no sense.

So there should be 29 coach firings at the end of every season?
- Scoob

No! The Flyers are a fairly talented team and are far behind teams with less talent in the standings. That is why the coach should be accountable for the team not making the playoffs. I am sure every ref in the league just laughs at him and never gives him a break. Bacbcock, Torts, and many others have respect from the refs and get some breaks. Philly gets screwed regularly on penalty calls and coaches challenges.

So everyone was thrilled when Hextall was hired because he was going to bring over team building philosophies from his experience in LA. Now he's being criticized for not having enough skill on his 4th line. Does someone want to tell me where all the skill has been on the King's 4th line over the years?

Not to speak for PSG or change his point, but I just wanted to respond to what you said. The reason I specifically would prefer more skill, especially on the 4th line, is because of the rest of the Flyers lines. Depth from the forwards is a serious issue, and when the Flyers don't have a top 6-9 that can cover for it, the glaring issues we have seen come to the forefront. I see it as a benefit to the 4th line itself as well as the other lines. They've been a 1-2 line team for so long now without any obvious action being taken to change
- YuenglingJagr

I'm not even sure if they've been a one or two line team THIS year. At least at ES.

They seem to live and die on the PP.

I knew you'd say this. They're better PKers end of discussion. Couturier is a better player all-around and especially defensively than PEB. It's inarguable, and it's not close. The gap is oceanic. It is fair to say that they get more zone starts (to lose more face-offs), and that their stats would dip a bit, but I don't want to hear that the difference is 30 shots and league best numbers go to bottom third numbers if their usage was switched. They still see top units too, if ideally a change is made every 20-30 seconds. But so often the top unit can't even get out of their own zone, so that's their own fault too. Giroux has an almost 70% PK face-off percentage in the d zone. PEB should literally never take a face-off or start. But he does every single time.
- Mononoke

The Flyers ran Giroux into the ground with defensive zone draws in past seasons, and I think it is a large contributor to him wearing down. I know what you're going to say also, that's irrelevant. Here is what I know, and I don't care if you know what I'm going to say. It should be what you should be saying also. There are most times, 4 skaters and a goaltender out on the ice when shorthanded. All playing as a unit that contribute to a team's PK success. I don't think the Flyers defenseman are good PKers. I don't think the Flyers goaltending has been that good while shorthanded. It's all intertwined to make up the Flyers success rate on the PK. I think it's about far more than Bellemare. I think he is a decent 4th line center, and I have no issue bringing him back.

Did you know that Coots-Simmer are both top 5 in the league in shot suppressing on the PK? The PEB-VDV unit is bottom third in the league. They actually yield over 30 more shots per 60 than Coots-Simmer. Surprisingly enough, the Coots-Simmer pair creates twice the shots for too. It's always noticeable how many SH chances they get in comparison to the guys who are among league worst 5v5 scoring. Small wonder we're the (first or second, I forget) worst team in SH goals for over the last few years. If you even care about face-offs, PEB is the lowest of all centers in d-zone starts at 42% and 37% on the PK. It's amazing how they use them on the PK.
- Mononoke

This is nonsense!

The team has access to the things we dont see! To the things we will never know!

But yet he coaches a passive kill WTF!
- dragonoffrost

Don't get it at all

I didn't have a problem going out of the box with a guy like Hakstol. they did it with Keenan back in the 80's. the jury is still out on Hakstol for me. I'm not in the fire Hakstol camp yet. there have been lineup decisions I don't like but not enough to fire him over.

Now last night I thought Konecny had a very uneven game. Two goals and generated offense, drew a penalty. Also had several bad turnovers that resulted in Columbus quickly transitioning and the penalty. that said, if he is scratched I won't like that decision.
- nastyflyergirl

Agree about Konecny.

I'd prefer to see him play his way out of what he did wrong last night. Especially now, when they have playoff odds at less than 1% (http://www.sportsclubstat...politan/Philadelphia.html).

So there should be 29 coach firings at the end of every season?
- Scoob

we are going to shuffle coaches every year between the 29 losing teams. should make for lots of fun

Well, you said he changed so yeah, some examples of how he changed would be nice.



But you gave no support for your opinion. That's what I asked for.



Fine examples, despite not being your insight gained from the couple handfuls of games you've seen.

And for the record, I was sincerely asking about how he's changed. I loved when he was the NYR coach if for no other reason than his post-game scrums. They were fantastic. I would've loved for him to be the Flyers coach.
- Scoob

Oh no you di-in't. Broke it down for me haha. TBH some of those comments were for previous responses. I didn't recognize it as a sincere request, so my bad. Cheers, bru.

The BJs are obviously a different team from the Rags or Canucks, but I think he let's them play more open and it is less of a stubborn "you listen to exactly what I say" type of coaching attitude he seemed to have. I think he did do that a bit when he first took over, but at the risk of sounding cliche I think he is just less hands on now. Calmer from what I have seen

No! The Flyers are a fairly talented team and are far behind teams with less talent in the standings. That is why the coach should be accountable for the team not making the playoffs. I am sure every ref in the league just laughs at him and never gives him a break. Bacbcock, Torts, and many others have respect from the refs and get some breaks. Philly gets screwed regularly on penalty calls and coaches challenges.
- joegreif17

How many of those teams that are ahead of the Flyers, have their star #1 Center struggling at 5 on 5, and ranked 299th in the league in 5 on 5 scoring, tied with his teammate Matt Read and tied with players such as Deryk Engelland, Matt Hunwick,Derek Forbert, and Tim Schaller?

I guess I should have explained my thoughts better in that section. I don't necessarily mean this as Hexy not valuing skill. I meant it more in terms of mis-evaluating team needs this past offseason. He wanted to add grit and size when the team needed more skill.

I guess I feel like a team ALWAYS could use more skill.
- PhillySportsGuy

Isn't that really that root of it all? If they had signed a top 6 guy last year, the bottom 6 would have been upgraded immediately by someone from the top 6 moving down. However, signing a top 6 in FA is a huge risk/reward. They are just getting out of years of having cap issues. I get they didn't want to sign a guy that is 30+ to a 5+ year contract for 6+ a year. That's why I keep saying they will do that when they are ready to compete.

On the other hand, what I think shouild be criticized more, is that they carried 8 D this year. Not until the trade deadline did they fix that and when they did, they got a top 9 forward. While he may not be what everyone wanted in the top 6, would having Filppula (or another top 9 player) earlier in the year been better than carrying 8 defensemen. Especially, when there may be guys on the Phantoms that could have come up if a defensemen was hurt?

I don't disagree and understand what you mean about more skill.

I would like to see a comparison of the Flyers' 4th line compared to others around the league. Much like they did in this article: http://www.stanleycupofch...ng-to-change-nhl-thinking

When you look at the Flyers' 4th line compared to other teams (at least in that article), they seem right in the middle of the pack, on average.
- johndewar

I'd say the Flyers 4th line is probably below average. PEB has a GF% of 40% and VDV is at 38% for the last two seasons.

Over the last 2 seasons, for every 2 goals they score, the opponent scores 3.

I look at a team like the Rangers and the competitive advantage they've had for years by simply icing a 4th line that continually outplays their opponents'. It's helped mask the fact that they don't really have an elite level top 6.

Stop living in the past yet the next line you used is living in the past.

So basically you are saying that every year a team doesnt wint the cup the coach and GM should be changed.
- opeth_pa

I never said that at all. My only concern is with the Philadelphia Flyers and as a fan who has not missed a game in years I am close to an all time low with what is happening on the ice and that is the responsibility of the head coach and gm. Stop drinking the orange and black Koolaid and you may see that our team is a joke at present. The coach is the biggest problem to my eyes and the coach is the guy that motivates his players. Konecny and Provorov are the only two players that appear to be motivated. Put it this way if you owned a car dealership and you top dog went into a slump and sold nothing would you keep him very long. Poor example maybe but performance at any job is what you are paid for.