Five Big Questions for 2024-25: A Mid-Summer Take

[Howie58]

Greetings:

 

I thought it would be worthwhile to put this forward for amusement or whatever.  I don't see any big trades or FA acquisitions on the horizon.  This is food-for-thought (dementia).

 

Q.1:  Can We Improve the Power Play?  Some would argue it can't get worse.  Seriously--it is hard to see us improve in standings with the PP we've had the last few years.

 

Q.2:  Which Sean Couturier Do We See?  Paying 8 million for a player who scored 38 points and went -10 isn't a value proposition.  He started well and got worse over time. Does the hernia fix help?  Does a better supporting cast help?  One way or the other, his performance and cap hit can't be ignored. 

 

Q.3:  Whither Goaltending?  Ersson and the Fedotov may be hot, cold, or indifferent.  This will be interesting.  And I am not sure if we have a fill-in on tap.

 

Q.4:  Will a Cam York-Jamie Drysdale First Pairing Live Up to Potential?  On the upside, this could be a good pairing, if a bit undersized.   Until Bonk or "other" join us, I don't see another first D pairing among the current crew.  

 

Q.5:  Will We Have a Surprise Upside (50+ Plus) Scoring From a Young Gun, Including MM?  I hope so.  We need the scoring.  

 

Honorable Mention:

 

Q.6:  Do We See a "Big" Cap Clearing Trade?  In essence, does one a usual suspect (Risto, Farabee, or Laughton) or even a re-signed Konecny go?  It seems like the right thing to do if under-25 is the desired player age.  

 

 

 

 

[flyercanuck]

Hiring a basketball coach would improve the powerplay. Seriously, it's hard to image the reasoning for keeping someone who has that thought process to throw that dreck out their continuously. So, ya, it shouldn't be hard to improve on it, just get anyone else to run it.

 

I think Couturier will be better. Hopefully Tortsie learned (ya, right) from running him into the ground last year. But I don't think he's ever going to be worth that contract. 

 

We're stuck with mediocre goaltending until they do something about it. 

 

I still think Sanheim is our best dman and belongs on the first pair. York is coming on, but there's no way you can have him and Drysdale as a pairing. 

 

Michkov could be a 50 goal scorer...but he needs a centre who's on his talent level for that to happen.

 

Risto can go for anything, anytime. Farabee is only 24, but unless Tortorella goes he's likely not a Flyer for long. It's too bad, because he can be a good player. Laughton appears to be in line for the lifetime Flyer deal. We'll see. Love Konecny, but really hope somebody loves him more and makes us an offer we can't refuse. And I don't mean a Gauthier for Drysdale offer. 

[flyer4ever]

PP doesn't have the tools in the tool box. It's a few years away.

Coots is a withering asset, and the contract makes him of little value. 

The goaltending is our ace in the whole, hopefully it can get us into a top 3 pick in the draft.

Drysdale if healthy could be the guy to get the puck to Michkov. 

I hope and pray that Torts is gone before he ruins MM. 

I also hope and pray that Danny B gets plenty more draft capital in the next couple of drafts (cough cough McKenna).

[OccamsRazor]

1 hour ago, flyercanuck said:

Michkov could be a 50 goal scorer

 

I can see him matching Bure first year of production 34 goals 60 points. They were also 20 their first year.

 

He reminds me of a blend of Bure and OA. Will see if he can carve out his own identity.

 

I now will be sucker and buy the season package so i can watch it or watch it later.

[OccamsRazor]

2 minutes ago, flyer4ever said:

The goaltending is our ace in the whole, hopefully it can get us into a top 3 pick in the draft.

 

Yep Fedotov leaves some big ass holes to shot into he will have to much quicker than what we saw last year or this 2 year deal will look ugly.

 

Was hoping Fedotov could bridge the gap till Kolosov was ready but now well he may never even come back.

[flyercanuck]

9 hours ago, OccamsRazor said:

I can see him matching Bure first year of production 34 goals 60 points.

 

I could too if he had prime Trevor Linden, Cliff Ronning and Igor Larionov as his centres. Don't think he's going to get that quality in Philly. We'll see...I'll be happy with 25 his first year.

[ctid]

13 hours ago, flyercanuck said:

But I don't think he's ever going to be worth that contract

I'm ok with Coots' contract, only because I've tried to be positive and changed my perspective. He was underpaid on his previous contract, and overpaid on this contract. So somewhere in the grand scheme of things it evens out? I'm trying here...

[mojo1917]

13 hours ago, flyer4ever said:

The goaltending is our ace in the whole, hopefully it can get us into a top 3 pick in the draft.

this was a good one. 

[OccamsRazor]

9 hours ago, flyercanuck said:

 

I could too if he had prime Trevor Linden, Cliff Ronning and Igor Larionov as his centres. Don't think he's going to get that quality in Philly. We'll see...I'll be happy with 25 his first year.

 

Frost and Coots are pretty decent centers and MM can only play with once center at a time.

 

Bure didn't play with Ronning Linden was on his RW

 

Bure played on the BIG line centered by Larionov (13 goals 34 points yeah not hard to duplicate) and Greg Adams.

 

 

 

 

[flyercanuck]

1 hour ago, OccamsRazor said:

 

Frost and Coots are pretty decent centers and MM can only play with once center at a time.

 

Bure didn't play with Ronning Linden was on his RW

 

Bure played on the BIG line centered by Larionov (13 goals 34 points yeah not hard to duplicate) and Greg Adams.

 

 

 

 

 

The more depth you have the less pressure on one guy. Vancouver had a lot better team than Michkov is walking into...he'll likely be getting more attention. 

 

Who knows, maybe he does score 34...but I certainly won't knock him if he only pops in 25...that would make him our 3rd leading scorer last year, as a rookie. 

[OccamsRazor]

1 hour ago, flyercanuck said:

 

The more depth you have the less pressure on one guy. Vancouver had a lot better team than Michkov is walking into...he'll likely be getting more attention. 

 

Who knows, maybe he does score 34...but I certainly won't knock him if he only pops in 25...that would make him our 3rd leading scorer last year, as a rookie. 

 

Yeah noone is endorsing putting him on blast if he produces less that team was in a different place than this Flyers team and Bure missed the first month of the season too IIRC.

 

But the center situation will have to be eventually worked out in time i can see Frost as a #2 C and Coots #3 center by the time Luch is ready to be shoehorned into the #1 overall role (we know it's coming in about 3 years).

 

This whole thing is fluid with nothing at all set in stone.

 

We'll know more of what their plan is when they decide what they are going to do with Konecny.

[flyer4ever]

Let's just cut the kid some slack and see how he responds to Torts' bag skate and all the other egomaniacal bullcrap Torts is famous for. If he scores 10 goals with this lineup I would call that a success for a first year in a new country with a new team and a type of coach he has probably never experienced before. 

[mojo1917]

@Howie58

thanks, this is fun. 

 

Q.1:  Can We Improve the Power Play?  Some would argue it can't get worse.  Seriously--it is hard to see us improve in standings with the PP we've had the last few years.

I think it can improve. I mean it could improve 15 % points and still be next to last in league. There is kind of no way to go but up.  

I wonder if healthy Drysdale and new Michkov will act as rocket fuel for that group and all of the sudden Rocky Thompson is just a guy with a bad haircut and no longer a terrible at his job coach. 

Also, maybe run some plays for/with Konecny below the goal-line? That worked pretty well in the Vigneault years at least in spurts. TK could look for Tippett cutting into the slot...there's things to try.

 

Q.2:  Which Sean Couturier Do We See?  Paying 8 million for a player who scored 38 points and went -10 isn't a value proposition.  He started well and got worse over time. Does the hernia fix help?  Does a better supporting cast help?  One way or the other, his performance and cap hit can't be ignored. 

I just don't know about this one. I hope the Couturier that started the season and played pretty damn well is who we get to see all season. That guy was pretty good, and it's not like he can get much slower of foot. If he's healthy I  think we won't mind the contract. But it's a big if, I like 14 a lot, I hope it works out. 

 

Q.3:  Whither Goaltending?  Ersson and the Fedotov may be hot, cold, or indifferent.  This will be interesting.  And I am not sure if we have a fill-in on tap.

If one of the two NHL guys gets hurt it's the Cal Peterson show and that show sucks.

I don't know what to make of the Kolosov situation. If he's balking at playing in Allentown then maybe he doesn't really want to play in the NHL. If he saw the steaming pile of pooh that started in front of him for a month last season and doesn't want to take that guy's job?...do we even want him?  

Personally, I think Ersson has "it" . But that's because I like how he has a little **** all to his personality, it shows itself after he plays badly, he hates that and I think he's got the goods to take the next step and become a good tandem goalie.  I like the Fedotov story, even though his contract is a little high, the team is spending less than 5 million on it's goaltending. So if giving that poor bastard a bone after being kidnapped and conscripted into mother Russian Navy, I'm fine with it. I hope he can play a little too...he's shown he can be good for stretches and has played well in big world tournaments. 

 

Q.4:  Will a Cam York-Jamie Drysdale First Pairing Live Up to Potential?  On the upside, this could be a good pairing, if a bit undersized.   Until Bonk or "other" join us, I don't see another first D pairing among the current crew.  

I think they don't play on the same pairing. I think Sanhiem/York is the top pair. 

I want to see Drysdale play and begin to develop. He's got a lot of skating talent and puck skills, I want to see him learn to play defense a little better, but really I want him jumping passes in the neutral zone and playing offense. I think that needs to be his game. If he's defending like Adam Ginning, that's a loss IMO. 

 

Q.5:  Will We Have a Surprise Upside (50+ Plus) Scoring From a Young Gun, Including MM?  I hope so.  We need the scoring.  

Right now, the bookies have Michkov's season total at +46...that's a couple of cheap assists away from 50 I think he does it, maybe Ol' Foerster ? Maybe Farabee? 

Honorable Mention:

 

Q.6:  Do We See a "Big" Cap Clearing Trade?  In essence, does one a usual suspect (Risto, Farabee, or Laughton) or even a re-signed Konecny go?  It seems like the right thing to do if under-25 is the desired player age

Anything is possible.

If Risto plays hockey this season anywhere near as well as he was playing when he was injured, a hockey-man GM will trade for him. 

I do think there are some moves that can be made, I don't know if Danny ever makes CoachX's and everyone else's dream come true and trades Scott Laughton.  

But i do think guys will be moved and new guys are coming in. I'd be so curious to know who they are targeting. 

 

The pivot to winning may start after this season depending on how this season goes. If these young guys near their ceilings...who knows right?

They were telling us 2026. Michkov's presence may cause a downshift in the pursuit of more talent. 

 

Edited July 24 by mojo1917

[OccamsRazor]

the Weapon has been activated!!!! DEFCON 4 IS SET!!!

 

[RonJeremy]

On 7/23/2024 at 7:26 AM, ctid said:

I'm ok with Coots' contract, only because I've tried to be positive and changed my perspective. He was underpaid on his previous contract, and overpaid on this contract. So somewhere in the grand scheme of things it evens out? I'm trying here...

That's known as the law of diminishing expectations.  This happens when you deal with 50 years  of disappointment. 

[ctid]

2 hours ago, RonJeremy said:

That's known as the law of diminishing expectations.  This happens when you deal with 50 years  of disappointment. 

I'm 43, so you are saying I've got 7 years more of this crap mediocre crap??

[OccamsRazor]

25 minutes ago, ctid said:

I'm 43, so you are saying I've got 7 years more of this crap mediocre crap??

 

 

no

 

i'm a late starter too i didn't get sucked in till 1991

 

So yeah it's still been 33 plus years of meh...i mean the pinnacle is two Cup appearances and a sweep and game 6 loss.

 

 

so not much on the banner stuff to show for it but this time it's different...trust me bro! 

 

Matvei is a huge piece of the eventual Cup winner i hope...i'm 53 in December....getting better looking but not younger...

[mojo1917]

21 hours ago, RonJeremy said:

This happens when you deal with 50 years  of disappointment. 

sometimes this reads to me like it's been 50 years sucking.

For about 3/5s of that time the Flyer were pretty good. The 80s and 90s had some near misses.

The 2000s to 2013 had some fun and good teams too, I know you know this. 

I think along with your diminished expectations you could add some recency bias too to make that post feel even more hopeless.

 

Edited July 25 by mojo1917

[RonJeremy]

2 hours ago, mojo1917 said:

sometimes this reads to me like it's been 50 years sucking.

For about 3/5s of that time the Flyer were pretty good. The 80s and 90s had some near misses.

The 2000s to 2013 had some fun and good teams too, I know you know this. 

I think along with your diminished expectations you could add some recency bias too to make that post feel even more hopeless.

 

We have come close several times but there are basically three reason why we lost in the playoffs or lost the Cup.

1 Goaltending

2 Lack of defensive depth

3 Lack of secondary scoring .

All of these shortcomings can be blamed on our GMs at the time. I'll just sum up our Cup loss to Chicago... Leighton and having a third pair of Krejac and Parent. We basically had no third pair and we had a minor league goalie. 

 

[JR Ewing]

30 minutes ago, RonJeremy said:

We have come close several times but there are basically three reason why we lost in the playoffs or lost the Cup.

1 Goaltending

2 Lack of defensive depth

3 Lack of secondary scoring .

All of these shortcomings can be blamed on our GMs at the time. I'll just sum up our Cup loss to Chicago... Leighton and having a third pair of Krejac and Parent. We basically had no third pair and we had a minor league goalie. 

 

 

Different perspective, but my view in each of the times the Flyers lost in the Finals was much less a depth issue but that they couldn't match the raw power of the opposition's star players:

 

2010 - Kane, Toews, Keith. Antti Niemi was no Dominik Hasek.

1997 - Detroit had 8 future HOFers on their team and were so dominant that they could win Cups with average goaltending.

1985 and '87: once again, ran into a juggernaut whose top end they couldn't match, emphasized by Gretzky, who had twice as many points as the Flyers leading scorer, Tim Kerr. Seven HOFers on those Oilers teams, the Flyers had one.

 

[flyercanuck]

1 hour ago, JR Ewing said:

 

Different perspective, but my view in each of the times the Flyers lost in the Finals was much less a depth issue but that they couldn't match the raw power of the opposition's star players:

 

2010 - Kane, Toews, Keith. Antti Niemi was no Dominik Hasek.

1997 - Detroit had 8 future HOFers on their team and were so dominant that they could win Cups with average goaltending.

1985 and '87: once again, ran into a juggernaut whose top end they couldn't match, emphasized by Gretzky, who had twice as many points as the Flyers leading scorer, Tim Kerr. Seven HOFers on those Oilers teams, the Flyers had one.

 

 

And other than Michkov, they're trying to build a winner with the same recipe. And we all know what the end result is when your "star" goes head to head with their "superstar". 

[RonJeremy]

17 hours ago, JR Ewing said:

 

Different perspective, but my view in each of the times the Flyers lost in the Finals was much less a depth issue but that they couldn't match the raw power of the opposition's star players:

 

2010 - Kane, Toews, Keith. Antti Niemi was no Dominik Hasek.

1997 - Detroit had 8 future HOFers on their team and were so dominant that they could win Cups with average goaltending.

1985 and '87: once again, ran into a juggernaut whose top end they couldn't match, emphasized by Gretzky, who had twice as many points as the Flyers leading scorer, Tim Kerr. Seven HOFers on those Oilers teams, the Flyers had one.

 

True, we never had the high end talent of the other Cup teams but of all the Cup losses, I think we totally outplayed Chicago and would have beat them with just good goaltending and a capable second pair. 

[flyer4ever]

On 7/24/2024 at 4:15 PM, ctid said:

I'm 43, so you are saying I've got 7 years more of this crap mediocre crap??

9 more years. Thats when TK's new contract expires.

[JR Ewing]

35 minutes ago, RonJeremy said:

True, we never had the high end talent of the other Cup teams but of all the Cup losses, I think we totally outplayed Chicago and would have beat them with just good goaltending and a capable second pair. 

 

The goaltending in the 2010 Finals was a hell of a thing. It seemed like none of the goalies on either team knew how to make a save consistently.

[RonJeremy]

9 minutes ago, JR Ewing said:

 

The goaltending in the 2010 Finals was a hell of a thing. It seemed like none of the goalies on either team knew how to make a save consistently.

No, both teams goaltending sucked,  but our goalie gave up the cheapest Cup clinching goal in NHL history.