Philadelphia Flyers

It’s time to attempt to eviscerate a long-standing misnomer about the Flyers. There is a belief out there that the Flyers are horrible at recognizing defensive talent in the draft. It’s easy to make that argument when looking at past drafts ... Continue reading here: Flyers Recent Headlines

Photo credit: Dave Chidley / Canadian Press By Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell) The 2013 NHL Entry Draft in New Jersey is just over a month away. As we inch closer to this year’s draft, I’ll continue to plug away and post as many scouting reports on the top draft eligible players from the Ontario Hockey League as I can. Here is my scouting report on 2013 draft eligible forward Max Domi of the London Knights. Max Domi Age – 18 Position – Center Height – 5? 10? Weight – 194 Draft Projection: 8-12th overall OHL Team: London Knights 2013 Regular Season Stats: 39 goals, 48 assists, 87 points, +33, 71PIM, 64 games played 2013 Playoff Stats: 11 goals, 21 assists, 32 points, 26PIM, 21 games played NHL Comparable(s) – Nazem Kadri Upside – 8.5/10 Strengths – Max Domi is quite the package. He’s loaded with skill, is a dynamic offensive player and is one of the best skaters in this year’s class. Domi’s stride is explosive, to say the least. He has an incredibly high top speed and it doesn’t take him long to reach it. He’s extremely shifty and is very good with stops and starts and at cutting strides. He’s not a big guy but what he lacks in size, he makes up for in heart and feistiness. He won’t back down from anyone and he rarely gets outworked. While Domi’s willing to mix it up physically, he’s very good at getting under the skin of his opponents and drawing penalties. Domi sees the ice very well and is an excellent playmaker. His hockey sense is through the roof and there are very few passes he can’t make. Domi isn’t afraid to go to the dirty areas of the ice and has no problem filling the net, either. His hands are incredible and he can often be found stick handling in a phone booth. Weaknesses – While there aren’t many flaws in Domi’s game, he needs to work on his defensive zone play. Sometimes he is caught out of position or is trying to cheat out of the offensive zone and the Knights give up a scoring chance or goal as a result. You could also argue he’s too confident and gets carried away with his cockiness at times. Domi will need to do a better job of controlling himself at the next level. Another thing I noticed is that Domi tries to be too fancy every now and then and attempts to force a play, when most of the time it’s best to just keep it simple. Career Projection – Given Domi’s work ethic, speed, vision and overall ability he could blossom into a top line center. He’ll need to improve his defensive zone play if he wants to be an all situation player at the NHL level, but he certainly has the ability required to be a very effective offensive player in the NHL for a long time. 2013 Draft Eligible Prospect Profiles: Sean Monahan – Ottawa 67?s Darnell Nurse – Soo Greyhounds Ryan Hartman – Plymouth Whalers – Follow Todd on twitter @ToddCordell NHLToddCordell@Gmail.com The post Max Domi Scouting Report: 2013 NHL Draft Prospect Profile – London Knights appeared first on The Hockey Guys.

Apologies in advance for the brevity of today's blog. I have an early morning flight to catch. Later today, the two IIHF World Championship semifinal games will be held in Stockholm. At 9 a.m. EDT, Erik Gustafsson and Team Sweden (6-2-0) take on Finland (7-1-0), while Team USA (6-2-0) plays undefeated Switzerland (8-0-0). Phantoms goalie Cal Heeter is a member of Team USA but has not dressed for a Read more from the original source: Bill Meltzer

With the eyes of the hockey world focused on the Stanley Cup Playoffs and even the World Championships in Sweden and Finland, another very important and historical tournament is set to begin. And it's one that Flyers fans might want to keep an... View post: Flyers Recent Headlines

FLYERS AT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: AND THEN THERE WAS GUS Not including Team USA spare goaltender Cal Heeter of the Adirondack Phantoms, there were seven current Flyers-affiliated players who participated in yesterday's IIHF World Championship quarterfinals in Helsinki and Stockholm. Three of the four quarterfinal matches featured Flyers players. Come tomorrow's semis, there will only be one. View post: Bill Meltzer

One of the most frustrating aspects of following the Flyers over the years - decades - is how they have handled themselves regarding defensemen in the NHL Draft. As much as you can make the case they have consistently failed to produce a No. 1 goalie of any "ilk" who took them to a Stanley Cup Final since Ron Hextall, the situation on defense is just as depressing. Can you imagine if the F More here: Tim Panaccio

*Great game in Boston last night. All the game stuff! *So why can't the Flyers grow top defensemen at home? Spoiler alert: Panaccio doesn't know. (CSN Philly) *Claude Giroux, showing people how it's done. (Philly.com) *Turns out Ovechkin's lackluster performance may have been due to injury. (Puck Daddy) *The fine folks at Anaheim Calling wonder if the Ducks should trade Bobby Ryan to the Devils. Let me help you with that: NO PLEASE. NO. (AC) *Let's check in on ex-Flyers that are still playing hockey. (Flyers Faithful) *A lot of empty seats during Boston's incredible comeback against the Maple Leafs last week. That's not how it's supposed to happen. (Raw Charge) *Meltzer on Briere, Worlds QFs. (Hockeybuzz) *Thankfully, Toronto's Mark Fraser suffered no permanent damage as a result of his skull fracture. (SB Nation) *I know we don't want to give this the dignity of discussion, but this is the story in this town right now. These people with the pitchforks out for Bryz? ENOUGH.

Is Briere Tradable? It is almost inevitable that Danny Briere will not be a member of the Philadelphia Flyers next year. The only question is whether he will be bought out or traded. The former is the more likely scenario. Briere has a no-movement clause in his contract, which includes an all-inclusive no-trade. As such, Briere does not have to accept any trade he doesn't feel is in his bes Read more: Bill Meltzer

Photo credit: Terry Wilson / OHL Images By Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell) The 2013 NHL Entry Draft is less than two months away. As we inch closer and closer to this year’s draft, I’ll continue to plug away and post as many scouting reports on the top draft eligible players from the Ontario Hockey League as I can. Without further ado, here is my scouting report on 2013 draft eligible defenseman Darnell Nurse of the Soo Greyhounds. Darnell Nurse Age – 18 Position – Defenseman Height – 6? 5? Weight – 193 Draft Projection: 8-12th overall OHL Team: Soo Greyhounds 2013 Regular Season Stats: 12 goals, 29 assists, 41 points, +15, 116PIM, 68 games played 2013 Playoff Stats: one goal, three assists, four points, 6PIM, six games played NHL Comparable(s) – Tyler Myers Upside – 8/10 Strengths – Darnell Nurse is an excellent defensive defenseman, and is arguably the best defenseman in this year’s class when it comes to taking care of his own zone. He’s a very strong skater despite his tall, lanky body. Nurse isn’t shy about using his size and is very good at shutting opponents down, whether it be by using his body or his lanky arms and stick to poke the puck off the opposing player. Nurse is a very hard worker and doesn’t back down from anyone. He uses his big frame as you would expect someone his size would and he’s not afraid to drop the mitts, either. He’s incredibly smart, positionally sound and really understands the game. One of the best aspects of Nurse’s game is that he doesn’t force things and allows the game to come to him. He almost always goes for the high percentage plays, which is somewhat rare for a young defenseman who has as much talent as he does. While Nurse isn’t known for his offensive game, he can produce if given the opportunities and should be able to help generate some offense at the next level. Nurse owns strong leadership abilities as well which he should be credited for. Weaknesses – Nurse can produce offensively in the OHL but I’m not sure how much will translate to the NHL, if and when he gets there. His shot isn’t all that impressive and he doesn’t have that ‘wow’ factor to his game. I’d like to see him fill his frame out more, too, but that should happen over time. Career Projection – Nurse has the potential to be a top notch shutdown defenseman who can dominate given his size, physicality and skating ability. Despite his mediocre offensive abilities and lack of a booming shot most defenseman his size have, I think he could become a top-pairing defenseman if he is developed properly. 2013 Draft Eligible Prospect Profiles: Sean Monahan – Ottawa 67?s Ryan Hartman – Plymouth Whalers – Follow Todd on twitter @ToddCordell NHLToddCordell@Gmail.com The post Darnell Nurse Scouting Report: 2013 NHL Draft Prospect Profile – Soo Greyhounds appeared first on The Hockey Guys.

*Compared to the excitement of the last two weeks last night was an absolute snoozefest. Chicago-Detroit, the one and only game, recapped by our friends at Second City Hockey. *Tavares is beating Simmer in the NHL14 vote, so go vote for the Wayne Train 1 or 400 times. (NHL) *The Flyers may be able to find some goalie depth in this year's draft. (Flyers Faithful) *Ilya Bryzgalov, I want to sit and chat with you. (Puck Daddy) *The NHL has announced that the Rangers will play not one but two games at Yankee Stadium, one against the Islanders and one against the Devils. (Blueshirt Banter) *Meltzer previews the second round. (Hockeybuzz) *UFA Mike Ribeiro says he values stability over money, so he'll probably stay with the Caps. (Puck Daddy) *Raffi Torres laid a questionable hit on Jarret Stoll the other night. (JFtC) *Kerry Fraser on whether or not Torres deserves a suspension. (TSN) *The Selke finalists have been announced. (Puck Daddy) *More wise words from the one and only Bernie. (Philly.com) *Happ