Philadelphia Flyers

The pilot episode of TheHockeyGuys Weekly Podcast, co-hosted by myself (@HunterCrowther) and James Stephan (@J_Habs). In today’s show, we cover: Stanley Cup Finals NHL Awards Changes in Edmonton Coaching changes around the league Flyers signing Mark Streit 2013 NHL Draft Click here to listen to the first edition of the podcast. Feel free to tweet James or myself suggestions, comments, questions or concerns related to the podcast. The post TheHockeyGuys Weekly Podcast: Episode #1 – June 18th, 2013 appeared first on The Hockey Guys.

Streit Talk The news of Mark Streit's impending four-year, $21 million deal with the Flyers did not come as a surprise after the team acquired his rights last week from the Islanders in exchange for a 2014 fourth-round Draft choice and minor league forward Shane Harper. Streit got his unrestricted free agent market value in terms of the $5.25 million cap hit. Like it or not, that's just whe Excerpt from: Bill Meltzer

Photo credit: Gerry Broome/AP By Dylan Howlett (@DylanHowlett) If he should need any further reminder of his profession’s tenuous nature, its unwieldy expectations, its capricious journey, Carolina Hurricanes head coach Kirk Muller need look no further than to his immediate left and right. There stand Dave Lewis and John MacLean, current Carolina assistants and cautionary tales of the enduringly bizarre realm of NHL coaching. Muller’s seat in Raleigh is barely lukewarm, percolating by the most fatalistic standards. He has steered the Canes to a 44-45-16 record and zero playoff berths since replacing Paul Maurice in November 2011, adequate considering the circumstances — midseason hire, a roster in transition — but hardly exemplary. Muller was one of the league’s most coveted coaching candidates when Carolina General Manager Jim Rutherford plucked him from the American Hockey League’s Milwaukee Admirals and booted Maurice. An assistant for five seasons with the Montreal Canadiens, Muller quickly accrued a reputation as a stout tactician. He devised the stifling schemes that successfully neutralized Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby in the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs, vaulting the eighth-seeded Habs into the Eastern Conference Final. But a decorated resumé stands little chance against the paper-thin patience of GMs, owners and fans who clamor for instant success as if it were a birthright. Woe, too, to the head coach who can be supplanted instantaneously by a more alluring candidate. Kirk Muller, center, is constantly surrounded by reminders of a head coach’s vulnerability (Credit: Getty Images). That’s precisely the scenario that befell Lewis in Detroit. The former defenseman led the Red Wings to consecutive Central Division crowns in 2002-03 and 2003-04, having been awarded the unenviable task of succeeding the immortal Scotty Bowman. But Detroit sputtered in the playoffs, falling in 2003 to Anaheim in the first round and losing once more to the Mighty Ducks in the second round a year later. Mike Babcock, the upstart head coach who guided the once-hapless Ducks to the 2003 Stanley Cup Final, began searching for a more prestigious post following Anaheim’s elimination from the 2004 playoffs. Lewis — a mainstay on the Joe Lewis Arena bench since 1987 as a longtime assistant — was out of luck, and soon out of a job. The Red Wings hired Babcock, won the Stanley Cup in 2008, and came one goal short of a second straight championship in 2009. Lewis would serve one more coaching stint in the NHL in 2006-07, fired after one season in Boston for failing to make the playoffs. There are, of course, extenuating circumstances, factors beyond the coach’s control that should absolve him of the sins of an underachieving team — “should” being the operative word, or in the case of NHL head coaching, entirely optional. Muller can reasonably invoke such circumstances. He has yet to oversee a full training camp, negotiating the delicate tasks of taking over a team in the middle of a season and cobbling together a cogent plan amid a lockout-condensed schedule. Muller did his level best in 2013, as did his team, which led its division into March before goalie Cam Ward and defensemen Justin Faulk and Joni Pitkanen joined the MASH unit, taking the Canes’ playoff aspirations with them. “We just weren’t able to overcome the injuries to key guys that we lost,” Muller said after Carolina was eliminated from contention, a valid point if not for the inconvenient truth that coaching is hardly fair nor reasonable nor logical. There are few excuses that can absolve all sins. MacLean was as diligent in pursuing a head coaching job as his ex-teammate Muller. He was an assistant coach with the Devils for six seasons. He coached New Jersey’s AHL affiliate for a full season, more experience than Muller could boast, having accepted Rutherford’s offer two months into his first

Four years, 21 million dollars; that's what it took General Manager Paul Holmgren to ink Mark Streit and make him a Flyer. The Flyers have already commenced their off-season over-haul of their blue-line, and the first move is an expensive one to say the least. Streit will have big expectations this season (and the three others that follow) to live up to his contract. At first glance the deal is ridiculous. A 35-year old blue-liner who has not been anything exceptional over the past couple of season banking a deal with 5.25 per season over the next four seasons. But in reality, the deal isn't as bad as it originally appears. First off, bringing in Streit makes the Flyers a better team right off the hop next season. He moves the puck extremely well, is a veteran who can play big minutes and is a power play specialist. What is also relatively unknown is the fact that he has only been in the league seven years, so there is not as much wear and tear on him as most 35 year old defenders in the league. Did the Flyers' overpay? Yes. There is no question about it, but market value must also be taken into consideration. Streit could have gotten a deal like this else where, so the Flyers knew they had to pay up big to keep the former all-star from testing the open market. Obviously a four year deal with 4.5 per year or a two year deal worth 5.25 per year would have been more ideal for an already cap-strapped Flyers team, but we have to remember it's a business, and the move undoubtedly makes the Flyers more of a contender short-term. So with Streit now inked, what does this mean going forward. First off, we can expect Andrej Meszaros and Danny Briere gone. Briere will be the victim of an amnesty buy-out, while Mez will probably be shipped out for a pick to a squad looking to reach the cap-floor. Right there the Flyers would clear 10.5 million off the cap. Then come Ilya Bryzgalov, who's status still seems to be up in the air. A decision on Bryz will likely come once the Flyers access the situation after most deals are made. One player who may be shopped is Braydon Coburn. He carries a 4.5 million cap hit over the next three seasons, and is coming off one of his worst campaigns as a Flyer. He would also bring a lot back in a deal to club that is seeking defensive help. He is still young, is a top-three defensemen and has a fairly low cap-hit. So if the Flyers hypothetically ship out Mez, Coburn and Briere, what would Holmgren do to replace them. The Flyers would have Kimmo Timonen, Luke Schenn, Nicklas Grossmann, Bruno Gervais and Streit all locked up on defense next season. Expect the Flyers to re-up Erik Gustafsson as well for next season. That leaves the Flyers with four top-five guys and a six and seven defensemen in Gervais and Gus. Who could plug in to round out the top-six? It could be a drafted defenseman like Zadorov, Ristolainen or Nurse. It could be a free-agent signing like Ryan Whitney or Andrew Ference? Or will the Flyers make a dynamic splash and make a trade for Alex Pietrangelo, Kevin Shattenkirk or Keith Yandle? The Flyers certainly have the pieces to acquire any one of the three (maybe not the Pietrangelo, but certainly the other two) with some of the players on their roster. The question is would Holmgren be willing to ship out Sean Couturier off in a deal. The Flyers could land Yandle for Coots and Coburn swap, but is it worth it? Only time will tell what Paul Holmgren has up his sleeve, but one thing is for sure: This is just the beginning of Philadelphia's off-season. Four years, 21 million dollars; that's what it took General Manager Paul Holmgren to ink Mark Streit and make him a Flyer. The Flyers have already commenced their off-season over-haul of their blue-line, and the first move is an expensive one to say the least. Streit will have big expectations this season (and the three others that follow) to live up to his contract. At first glance the deal is ridiculous. A 35-year old blue-liner who has n

*Well, the Bruins carried that OT win momentum right into game three and we all got a break from marathon hockey. Full game coverage here. *Paul Holmgren went out and got us a defenseman. Reactions seem to range from "lol Flyers" to "glad we avoided that mess" to "oh ok, well that's...a contract." I'm starting to think that Homer is under the impression that NTCs are compulsory, though. Someone should tell him they aren't. *Meltzer muses on the Flyers' possible goalie options should a Bryzgalov amnesty happen. (Hockeybuzz) *Looking back on Bruno Gervais' 2013 season. (Flyers Faithful) *Our friends over at Defending Big D speculate on what it might cost for them to land Brayden Schenn or Sean Couturier. (DBD) *A very thorough introduction to the NHL draft. (HEotP) *The SB Nation hockey family have begun their 2013 Mock Draft, and the Avs fans have started things off in an interesting way by taking Nathan MacKinnon over Seth Jones. *Sidney Crosby seems to think Zdeno Chara was intentionally going after his broken jaw during a scrum. Seems unlikely. (CBS Boston) *BSH reader PierceC has put together a very intensive four-part series on defining the performance of NHL lines using advanced stats. It's worth a read. (Parts one, two, three, and four) *Bernie Parent on the importance of having a laugh. (Philly.com) *We may not have had the pleasure of an NHL Awards show this year, but that didn't stop the Battle of California from judging the fashion choices of this year's winners. Hilarity ensues. (BoC)

With word leaking that the Flyers have agreed in principle with Mark Streit on a four-year, $21 million contract (still have to shed salary elsewhere before it can be finalized), I found myself doubting the team’s future direction. Do they even have a direction? Is there anything even resembling salary cap responsibility? Or is the front Will the Flyers Ever Learn? - Broad Street Buzz - Broad Street Buzz - A Philadelphia Flyers Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and More See the original post here: Broad Street Buzz

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Now that everyone is furious with this horrible Mark Streit signing, it’s my job to settle everyone down. Or at least attempt to. I want to start off by pointing out that we got the best possible player on the market that fit the hole we had in our lineup: a puck moving defensemen. The two key things to take away from that last sentence are: quality addition for 2013-14, no subtractions. Are there better defenders on the trade market? Of course. Could we acquire them without giving up major assets? Nope. The first of three positives I want to point out is the fact that Mark Streit is a young 35 if there ever was one. He’s only played in 491 career NHL games. He played overseas before he came to the NHL, but the league he was in only had a 44 game schedule and was nowhere near the grind of the NHL (he played in the “Swiss-A League”). In addition to the fact he’s played less than 500 NHL regular season games, he’s only played 18 career post-season games. Positive number two has to deal with the fact that Streit is a very good puck-mover. Check out this table: Rk Active Player Games PPG 1 Gonchar 1177 0.658 2 Green 433 0.64 3 D. Boyle 879 0.597 4 Streit 491 0.587 9 Weber 528 0.551 11 Timonen 1015 0.528 15 Kieth 607 0.509 18 Suter 590 0.458 25 Bouwmeester 764 0.402 He’s got the fourth highest points per game for active defenders, behind only Gonchar, Green, and Boyle. And it’s not as if he’s hit his true decline yet. Streit had .56 PPG last year and was right around the same place the year before. Now that we know Mark Streit is an elite point producer in today’s game, I wanted to see how he compared to other players who put up similar PPG numbers---and then see how those players faired in the end of their careers. Streit has a .587 PPG. I compiled data for all defenders who had similar career PPG numbers (.62-.525, skewed to have more players of lesser PPG numbers to lower the total expectation for Streit) and had at roughly a half point per game in their 35 AND 36 year old season (Streit just played his 35 year old season). The results were honestly, shocking, and in a good way. Only a select handful of defensemen were able to be point producers in their 35 and 36 year-old seasons. Check out this table below: Career PPG% 35P 35G 35 PPG 36P 36G 36 PPG 37P 37G 37 PPG 38P 38G 38 PPG 39P 39G 39 PPG S. Niedermayer 6.04 194 0.586 48 80 0.60 48 80 0.60 D. Boyle 5.11 190 0.597 48 81 0.59 20 46 0.43 C. Pronger 6.06 220 0.598 55 82 0.67 25 50 0.50 12 13 0.92 R. Blake 6.04 225 0.612 46 74 0.62 51 81 0.63 34 72 0.47 31 71 0.44 45 73 0.62 B. Rafalsky 5.10 194 0.618 59 78 0.76 42 78 0.54 48 63 0.76 M. Schneider 5.11 192 0.576 46 78 0.59 59 72 0.82 52 68 0.76 39 65 0.60 32 67 0.48 C. Chelios 6.0 192 0.574 42 81 0.52 36 75 0.48 34 81 0.42 3 24 0.13 39 79 0.49 K. Timonen 5.10 194 0.528 37 82 0.45 43 76 0.57 29 45 0.64 The table is pretty simple. It’s each individuals yearly stats displayed horizontally. The number is the season, meaning “35” is the player’s 35th year old season. Eight players had 35 year-old seasons like Mark Streit in which they lit up the stat sheet and they wanted to play at least one more year. From there the results vary, but as you can see, 6 of the 8 played a third year, 3 of those 6 played a fourth year, and those three who played a fourth year also played a fifth year. As for the breakdown? Season P/G Points*82 35 0.6 49.2 36 0.581 47.642 37 0.611 50.102 38 0.456 37.392 39 0.53 43.46 y=-2.1578x + 52.012 , r^2= .42906 With elite puck-moving defenders,

Kinda crazy day for the Flyers. For starters, as Eklund wrote earlier, Danny Briere is a definite buyout recipient next week while goalie Ilya Bryzgalov, as I have been saying, remains up in the air. I reported tonight on CSNPhilly.com that 2 sources say the problem remains the Flyer getting another goalie they really want and feel confident with BEFORE making the Bryz decision. They need Follow this link: Tim Panaccio

Photo: It seems like it’s almost time to welcome a new Flyer! The news of Ex-Islanders D-man and Captain Mark Streit coming to Philadelphia appeared last Wednesday when the team acquired the rights to him by giving up minor league player Shane Harper and a 4th round pick in 2014 , but fresh news has broken that the Mark Streit Update -- Deal Terms Agreed - Broad Street Buzz - Broad Street Buzz - A Philadelphia Flyers Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and More Read more here: Broad Street Buzz