The Flyers have to sit at home and on the golf course and watch the remaining teams play for this year's Stanley Cup. The team wants so badly to be able to make a longer run into the playoffs, but in order to do so must make some changes this offseason. Here's a positional breakdown of how the Flyers can improve for next season.
GOALIE:
For the first time since Ron Hextall was patrolling the pipes, Philadelphia seems to have found their guy in net. Steve Mason, who signed a contract extension with the Flyers last season, will return as the number one goalie. Mason proved to be very solid in net for the orange and black last year and in the games he played in the playoffs against the Rangers, looked really sharp. Who knows, if Mason started the whole series against New York, perhaps it would be the Flyers still alive and a New York sports blog that's being written right now. Finally the problem with the Flyers is not who is playing in net. While the starting job is clearly taken, the backup position is still up for grabs. Ray Emery, who played well last season as a backup, may not return. While Emery provided solid net play last season, his age seemed to have caught up to him a bit. While they Flyers would like to have him back, it seems as though he won't resign with the team. If that is the case, look for Cal Heeter, who made a few guest appearances last season, to be the backup.
FORWARD:
Expect the same core group of guys back in the mix for the Flyers. Giroux, Hartnell, Voracek, Simmonds, Read, Couturier, Lacavalier, and Brayden Schenn will all likely be back next season. Look at young guys like Rinaldo, Raffl, Akeson, McGinn, and Scott Laughton to possibly make more of an impact to the team. The big concern coming after last season seemed to be a lack of scoring. The Flyers would like to get another scoring threat at left wing to compliment Claude Giroux and Jake Voracek. No disrespect to Scott Hartnell, but he has a better chance of talking Teemu Selanne out of retirement than he does at being a liable top line winger. Michael Raffl showed great play-making ability at times, but doesn't seem ready to be a first line starter just yet. Some notable free agents available this offseason that may tickle the Flyers' fancy are; Matt Moulson, Thomas Vanek, Milan Michalek, Jussi Jokinen, and Mason Raymond. Look for the Flyers to try to find someone with speed and skill to insert into the top unit and make their top line one of the scariest in the league.
DEFENSE:
Where do we begin? The Flyers defense from a year ago showed ups and downs, but ultimately needs to improve greatly. Expect Coburn, Grossmann, McDonald, Schenn, and Mark Streit all to be back. The huge question regarding defense is whether Kimmo Timonen will retire or not. Timonen is the Flyers' alternante captain and their best defenseman. If he chooses to retire, he will leave a gaping hole that need to be filled. Andy McDonald could possibly play the role as puck moving defenseman that Timonen has played for the past seven seasons. In addition, the Flyers will lose Erik Gustafsson who signed with a Russian team in the KHL. That makes two holes needed to be fixed on D. Philadelphia does have some younger players in the system who have tons of potential. Guys like Samuel Morin, Robert Hagg, Oliver Lauridsen, and Shayne Gostisbehere could all help improve the Flyers defense, but all seem too young to be full time NHLers just yet. One possible Free Agent the Flyers could take a look at is Dan Boyle who was just released by the Sharks. Whoever they bring in, the Flyers need a fast, puck moving defenseman who can help on the power play.
GOALIE:
For the first time since Ron Hextall was patrolling the pipes, Philadelphia seems to have found their guy in net. Steve Mason, who signed a contract extension with the Flyers last season, will return as the number one goalie. Mason proved to be very solid in net for the orange and black last year and in the games he played in the playoffs against the Rangers, looked really sharp. Who knows, if Mason started the whole series against New York, perhaps it would be the Flyers still alive and a New York sports blog that's being written right now. Finally the problem with the Flyers is not who is playing in net. While the starting job is clearly taken, the backup position is still up for grabs. Ray Emery, who played well last season as a backup, may not return. While Emery provided solid net play last season, his age seemed to have caught up to him a bit. While they Flyers would like to have him back, it seems as though he won't resign with the team. If that is the case, look for Cal Heeter, who made a few guest appearances last season, to be the backup.
FORWARD:
Expect the same core group of guys back in the mix for the Flyers. Giroux, Hartnell, Voracek, Simmonds, Read, Couturier, Lacavalier, and Brayden Schenn will all likely be back next season. Look at young guys like Rinaldo, Raffl, Akeson, McGinn, and Scott Laughton to possibly make more of an impact to the team. The big concern coming after last season seemed to be a lack of scoring. The Flyers would like to get another scoring threat at left wing to compliment Claude Giroux and Jake Voracek. No disrespect to Scott Hartnell, but he has a better chance of talking Teemu Selanne out of retirement than he does at being a liable top line winger. Michael Raffl showed great play-making ability at times, but doesn't seem ready to be a first line starter just yet. Some notable free agents available this offseason that may tickle the Flyers' fancy are; Matt Moulson, Thomas Vanek, Milan Michalek, Jussi Jokinen, and Mason Raymond. Look for the Flyers to try to find someone with speed and skill to insert into the top unit and make their top line one of the scariest in the league.
DEFENSE:
Where do we begin? The Flyers defense from a year ago showed ups and downs, but ultimately needs to improve greatly. Expect Coburn, Grossmann, McDonald, Schenn, and Mark Streit all to be back. The huge question regarding defense is whether Kimmo Timonen will retire or not. Timonen is the Flyers' alternante captain and their best defenseman. If he chooses to retire, he will leave a gaping hole that need to be filled. Andy McDonald could possibly play the role as puck moving defenseman that Timonen has played for the past seven seasons. In addition, the Flyers will lose Erik Gustafsson who signed with a Russian team in the KHL. That makes two holes needed to be fixed on D. Philadelphia does have some younger players in the system who have tons of potential. Guys like Samuel Morin, Robert Hagg, Oliver Lauridsen, and Shayne Gostisbehere could all help improve the Flyers defense, but all seem too young to be full time NHLers just yet. One possible Free Agent the Flyers could take a look at is Dan Boyle who was just released by the Sharks. Whoever they bring in, the Flyers need a fast, puck moving defenseman who can help on the power play.