Bill Meltzer: Meltzer's Musings: Flyers at Worlds Roundup

Safe travels Sir!

Bill,

Thanks for all of your hard work! It is greatly appreciated.

Beyond Scott Laughton and possibly Taylor Leier, it is not a pretty picture right now in terms of forwards who currently project as future NHL regulars. \

/SadButTrue
/Sigh

Beyond Scott Laughton and possibly Taylor Leier, it is not a pretty picture right now in terms of forwards who currently project as future NHL regulars. \

/SadButTrue
/Sigh
- AllInForFlyers

Yup

After those 2 you have:

Cousins
Best case-3rd line agitator with some skill
Likely-4th line agitator with some skill
Worst case-career minor leaguer

Noebels
Best case-Solid 4th liner
Likely- injury call-up/AHL regular
Worst case-journeyman AHL player

Straka
Best case-borderline 2nd line scoring winger
Likely-spare NHL forward with some skill
Worst case-is back playing in Europe after next year

Nope, not pretty at all. With Morin, Ghost, Hagg and Alt already in the system and with this draft being much heavier at forward, I'm really hoping they grab the best available forward with the 17th pick.

Safe travels Sir!

Bill,

Thanks for all of your hard work! It is greatly appreciated.
- ggunky

I 2nd this motion!

The road team has won every game 7 in this years playoffs.

The road team has won every game 7 in this years playoffs.
- PLindbergh31

No they haven't.

The road team has won every game 7 in this years playoffs.
- PLindbergh31

didn't the flyers lose game 7 to the rangers as a road team?

Via Twitter:

Team Canada Lines:
Chimera Turris Read
Burrows Schenn MacKinnon
Hodgson Kadri Brouwer
Huberdeau Monahan Ward
Scheifele

I realize that lineup isn't exactly the 1985 Oilers, but I think it says something that Schenn is showing enough to remain the No. 2 center for Canada's World Championship team -- I haven't watched the games, but that is clearly a scoring line that he's on, and to me, that means he's showing enough to Dave Tippett that he can handle the responsibility of playing that role.

I choose to be positive about what Brayden Schenn's gonna do next year, and I choose to believe that the Flyers are going to give him two wingers

Beyond Scott Laughton and possibly Taylor Leier, it is not a pretty picture right now in terms of forwards who currently project as future NHL regulars. \

/SadButTrue
/Sigh
- AllInForFlyers

God, the flyers need to learn how to draft forwards already. Enough with the defensmen.

Yup

After those 2 you have:

Cousins
Best case-3rd line agitator with some skill
Likely-4th line agitator with some skill
Worst case-career minor leaguer

Noebels
Best case-Solid 4th liner
Likely- injury call-up/AHL regular
Worst case-journeyman AHL player

Straka
Best case-borderline 2nd line scoring winger
Likely-spare NHL forward with some skill
Worst case-is back playing in Europe after next year

Nope, not pretty at all. With Morin, Ghost, Hagg and Alt already in the system and with this draft being much heavier at forward, I'm really hoping they grab the best available forward with the 17th pick.
- BiggE

You're forgetting goonborn

Via Twitter:

Team Canada Lines:
Chimera Turris Read
Burrows Schenn MacKinnon
Hodgson Kadri Brouwer
Huberdeau Monahan Ward
Scheifele

I realize that lineup isn't exactly the 1985 Oilers, but I think it says something that Schenn is showing enough to remain the No. 2 center for Canada's World Championship team -- I haven't watched the games, but that is clearly a scoring line that he's on, and to me, that means he's showing enough to Dave Tippett that he can handle the responsibility of playing that role.


I choose to be positive about what Brayden Schenn's gonna do next year, and I choose to believe that the Flyers are going to give him two wingers
- AllInForFlyers

Agreed
Assuming they can unload VL and sign a guy like Jussi Jokinen and maybe Rasmussen, I would like to see something along the lines of:
Hartnell-G-Jake
Jokinen-Schenn-Simmonds
Read-Couturier-Raffl or Akeson
Raffl or Akeson-Laughton-Rasmussen or Rinaldo

You're forgetting goonborn
- funmaster18

yes, yes I am.

didn't the flyers lose game 7 to the rangers as a road team?
- 13kdub13

No. I refuse to remember that.

Via Twitter:

Team Canada Lines:
Chimera Turris Read
Burrows Schenn MacKinnon
Hodgson Kadri Brouwer
Huberdeau Monahan Ward
Scheifele

I realize that lineup isn't exactly the 1985 Oilers, but I think it says something that Schenn is showing enough to remain the No. 2 center for Canada's World Championship team -- I haven't watched the games, but that is clearly a scoring line that he's on, and to me, that means he's showing enough to Dave Tippett that he can handle the responsibility of playing that role.

I choose to be positive about what Brayden Schenn's gonna do next year, and I choose to believe that the Flyers are going to give him two wingers
- AllInForFlyers

Seems like hextall has a plan and if Schenn at second line center is his plan, I have no doubt he will get him the right wingers. We have a lot of good pieces, just need to figure out how they fit and get rid of the ones that belong to a different puzzle.

lets hope the organization keeps its draft picks and stops giving 5 year/5 mill contracts out.

Hextall must be incredibly excited to be in charge of a draft for the first time. I hope he keeps all six picks we have.

yes, yes I am.
- BiggE

As much as I hated them picking him in the 3rd round, I can envision Goulbourne being a decent 4th liner. Unlike that waste of space Rinaldo, most of his penalty minutes come from fighting.

Agreed
Assuming they can unload VL and sign a guy like Jussi Jokinen and maybe Rasmussen, I would like to see something along the lines of:
Hartnell-G-Jake
Jokinen-Schenn-Simmonds
Read-Couturier-Raffl or Akeson
Raffl or Akeson-Laughton-Rasmussen or Rinaldo
- BiggE

Yeah...let's do this

I 2nd this motion!

- BiggE

I 3rd it! (With a shout out to ggunk)

I am curious to see who Bill would like the Flyers to take. I would like to see if Nick Ritchie dropped to them Kid is huge and can skate. He is a natural winger and takes the puck to the net.

Hextall must be incredibly excited to be in charge of a draft for the first time. I hope he keeps all six picks we have.
shame Homer has traded this years 3 and next years 2


As much as I hated them picking him in the 3rd round, I can envision Goulbourne being a decent 4th liner. Unlike that waste of space Rinaldo, most of his penalty minutes come from fighting.
- Feanor

God, the flyers need to learn how to draft forwards already. Enough with the defensmen.
- funmaster18

Ha! I know you can't really tell via message board, but I'm one of those people who understands that you can't have everything -- a great NHL team, a great AHL team, great prospects throughout college and junior. It's simply not realistic -- drafting is too inexact a process, and no matter how much you try, if you sign players or trade players, at some point, you will lose a trade or a free agent won't work out.

At this time, the Flyers' biggest organizational weakness is, to my mind, scoring wingers. We truly only have four: Voracek, Hartnell, Simmonds and Read. We're fortunate only one of them is on the wrong side of 30.

So what I'm really saying is that, as obvious as it is that the organization needs more forwards with potential, I'm not throwing myself over a cliff. This stuff goes in cycles, but it would be nice, as I've said before, to at least maybe get Hartnell's successor into the system, either this year or next.

I am curious to see who Bill would like the Flyers to take. I would like to see if Nick Ritchie dropped to them Kid is huge and can skate. He is a natural winger and takes the puck to the net.
- J35Bacher

Who knows, maybe we can even flip him for a 3rd pairing, 6th defenseman.

[quote=vejim]

I'm too damn lazy to look; is the 3rd we're getting for Meszaros in this draft or next year's?

Ha! I know you can't really tell via message board, but I'm one of those people who understands that you can't have everything -- a great NHL team, a great AHL team, great prospects throughout college and junior. It's simply not realistic -- drafting is too inexact a process, and no matter how much you try, if you sign players or trade players, at some point, you will lose a trade or a free agent won't work out.

At this time, the Flyers' biggest organizational weakness is, to my mind, scoring wingers. We truly only have four: Voracek, Hartnell, Simmonds and Read. We're fortunate only one of them is on the wrong side of 30.

So what I'm really saying is that, as obvious as it is that the organization needs more forwards with potential, I'm not throwing myself over a cliff. This stuff goes in cycles, but it would be nice, as I've said before, to at least maybe get Hartnell's successor into the system, either this year or next.
- AllInForFlyers

The fact that the flyers have 3 quality D prospects coming up soon really helps them. They can focus on some other areas this year. I agree it goes in cycles and hopefully Hextall values picks and prospects as much as he says.