You were grateful that he panned out with no help from the Flyers org is what you said/meant. Don't play dumb sucka.
- ClaudeFather

What I said/meant is that 2 months of AHL time in the middle of the season had no affect on how good he was going to be at the NHL level, and actually playing is what made him better. He was already playing well, just made mistakes that ended up in the back of the net and it happened at a rate that wasn't going to continue.

Every player in the Flyers organization has had help from them. That is what separates teams like the Flyers from the Oilers. The help each player gets from the organization doesn't mean they are all going to hit the ground running from Game 1 as an NHL player.

one of my favorite sixers. nice.
- hammarby31

I met him at the Apple Store once. Was shocked no one recognized him. I quietly said hi and he chatted with me for a few. Very nice guy and also one of my fave players.

I just want to get in the playoffs. I guess, with that in mind, give me a Devils loss in regulation. Best case for the Flyers is for the Devils and Panthers to lose whenever possible and for the Flyers to be the top wildcard. With Washington all but a lock to win the Metro, this puts us against the Capitals in round one and they are the only team I can see the Flyers having any chance of upsetting in the first round.
- BiggE

this.

What I said/meant is that 2 months of AHL time in the middle of the season had no affect on how good he was going to be at the NHL level, and actually playing is what made him better. He was already playing well, just made mistakes that ended up in the back of the net and it happened at a rate that wasn't going to continue.

Every player in the Flyers organization has had help from them. That is what separates teams like the Flyers from the Oilers. The help each player gets from the organization doesn't mean they are all going to hit the ground running from Game 1 as an NHL player.
- YuenglingJagr

I don't agree that he was playing well. But that is just my opinion. I felt like he was being overwhelmed mentally and to a lesser extent physically.

I am fine with deferring to the organization, but don't be silly and act like they planned it that way. Hakstol scratched the poop out of him and Hextall sent him to the AHL so he could play. He has played better once they needed to call him back up. He played at the level that was expected after seeing him develop for 3 years. For that we are grateful.

They didn't put magic seasoning on him to turn him into something he wasn't going to be. I don't think they did what was best for him or for themselves, but it will work out just fine.
- YuenglingJagr

There's no discussion that the Flyers' brass know best what makes their youngsters tick, but that's not to say they always make the best decisions when it comes to developing them.

Sanheim may be a good example. It's fair to speculate whether a two hour practice on off days with the big club was more beneficial than playing 20+ minutes a night being coached up in the "A".

Konecky is another. Some may say he was elevated to the top line exactly when he was ready. Others believe he was held back too long. Many were pounding the drums for Travis to be given an opportunity to show what he could do long before he was moved to the first line. Maybe he'd have 35 goals at this point.

Same with Coots. Many were wondering why he was never given the chance to play between productive wingers. When the line juggling carousel finally stopped with Coots' turn to play on the first line, he took off.

Would Ghost have had the brilliant rookie year had it not been for injuries to MacDonald and Coburn? The majority (or perhaps the entirety) of his, 2nd place finish for the Calder, year would been wasted with the Phantoms.

To tell when a kid is ready is not an exact science, but you can play it too conservatively and miss the mark at times also.

I understand, Gudas gets a lot of leeway n
because he is the only RH dman on the roster. He makes a lot of errors. The holding penalty at the end of the first period against Yakupov cant happen. On the PK , teams are setting up along the half boards on his side and he is not pressuring or cutting off passing lanes. The PK is better with Gudas in the box.

- ravishingone

PK GA/60 (higher is worse)

http://www.naturalstattri...=&td=&tgp=82&lines=single

Leier 14.8
Lehtera 12
Filppula 10.96
Provorov 10.66
Hagg 10.3
Couturier 10.12
Gudas 9.16
Manning 8.76
MacDonald 8.1
Laughton 7.9
Simmonds 7.57
Raffl 6.7
Giroux 6.65

Those are all the guys with 40 or more PK minutest his season. I'm still wondering why Laughton was demoted behind Lehtera in the PK rotation in early January.

I don't agree that he was playing well. But that is just my opinion. I felt like he was being overwhelmed mentally and to a lesser extent physically.
- MBFlyerfan

Exactly, he was not playing well.

the caps radio pxp guy is as bad as any in the league. brutal.

The qualifier for Mrazek is a bit above 4 million, so yeah, please let him walk.

I'd also do my best to move Neuvirth prior to the start of next season, if he can get healthy. Even if they have to retain 50% of his cap hit to do so. Neuvirth healthy (God willing) and at a cap hit of 1.25 million should be marketable. Then you can let Lyon and Stolarz battle it out for the backup spot.
- BiggE

and when Mrazek leads them to a cup?

Id feel really good going into a caps series. I know we can skate with them

Cmon boys 4 more OT losses

There's no discussion that the Flyers' brass know best what makes their youngsters tick, but that's not to say they always make the best decisions when it comes to developing them.

-snip-

Would Ghost have had the brilliant rookie year had it not been for injuries to MacDonald and Coburn? The majority (or perhaps the entirety) of his, 2nd place finish for the Calder, year would been wasted with the Phantoms.
- 77rams

They called Ghost up when Streit was injured, and Hextall was on record as saying that he didn't want to do it but didn't have many options. So they only called him up when they were effectively forced into it, and I would say that he was ready for the big show.

Clearly that's not the case for every player, but there's a line between letting a player develop and holding a player back when he is ready. I know that Hexy would rather have a player play too long in the AHL than too little, but at some point, if they're playing well, they need to jump into at least the edge of the fire.

I don't agree that he was playing well. But that is just my opinion. I felt like he was being overwhelmed mentally and to a lesser extent physically.
- MBFlyerfan

From the mental aspect, I thought he was focusing on defense a bit more than just defending, if that makes any sense. That was more towards the end when he played less and less often. I think he was still doing the things he is good at, just not as often as I wanted. His breakouts were good, he showed ability to pressure the blueline. I saw the good stuff, which was important to me.

I think Hakstol saw the bad stuff more, and wanted fewer mistakes (and ironically chose to replace him with Manning), but that is where the discussion becomes less about Sanheim's development and more about what the coach wanted.

Sanheim has been a slow starter at all 3 levels I have watched him at. He is smart and he is skilled. I trust that he would've developed at the NHL level had they decided to keep him there. I will also maintain that there is absolutely no chance in hell Ron Hextall would've started Sanheim at the NHL level if he didn't think he was ready for it.

Id feel really good going into a caps series. I know we can skate with them
- Just5

they have a goalie question in my opinion.

what's our magic number?

I hate both of these terms, but God dammit Ryan Wilson is such a 1) Millenial and 2) snowflake when it comes to hockey and player development.

PK GA/60 (higher is worse)

http://www.naturalstattri...=&td=&tgp=82&lines=single

Leier 14.8
Lehtera 12
Filppula 10.96
Provorov 10.66
Hagg 10.3
Couturier 10.12
Gudas 9.16
Manning 8.76
MacDonald 8.1
Laughton 7.9
Simmonds 7.57
Raffl 6.7
Giroux 6.65

Those are all the guys with 40 or more PK minutest his season. I'm still wondering why Laughton was demoted behind Lehtera in the PK rotation in early January.
- Feanor

what's our magic number?
- hammarby31

It is 8. Florida has the lowest potential points, and they could have 99.

what's our magic number?
- hammarby31

8

I hate both of these terms, but God dammit Ryan Wilson is such a 1) Millenial and 2) snowflake when it comes to hockey and player development.
- jmatchett383

Guarantee you that he’s one of those “I apologize on behalf of my gender” guys

Who do we want to win tomorrow the Devils or the Pens in that game? Either way a 3 point game is not what we want.
- Buzzo

I will NEVER route for the Pens or NYR!

- YuenglingJagr

Bump.

I will NEVER route for the Pens or NYR!
- coffee junkie

everyone of us should be rooting for the NYR right now

I will NEVER route for the Pens or NYR!
- coffee junkie

But would you interstate for them?

I will only root for NYR/NJ if it is of critical benefit to the Flyers. Since the Rangers are irrelevant except as a spoiler and NJ poses a threat to the Flyers' playoff chances, it's an easy call for me.

they have a goalie question in my opinion.
- hammarby31

Capitals: We do have a goalie question. We're wondering who is going to be the Flyers goalie because it looks like they may be our opponent in the playoffs.

Flyers: We have no updates on that.