Flyers: Carnival Starts Early This Season
Philadelphia Inquirer Sports Columnist Bob Ford writes about the Eagles, the Phillies, the Sixers and the Flyers.
Flyers: Carnival Starts Early This Season
Bob Ford, Inquirer Sports Columnist
I know I'm still catching up with things after being out of town, and this is old news here, but THE FLYERS SIGNED RAY EMERY??
That is apparently the case. I had to make sure, so I went over to the site of team spokesman Tim Panaccio and, yep, he had it, too. Said the "dust had settled after another sandstorm in Flyerdom," which threw me off a little. I mean, was it dust, or was it sand?
Either way, it was Ray Emery, the new goaltender, by way of Ottawa, by way of Russia, by way of Wackoville. With both Marty Biron and Antero Niittymaki becoming free agents on July 1, I guess the Flyers had to do something -- re-signing Biron would have been my preference -- and, oh yes, they did something.
It's awful to be accused of second-guessing a team, waiting for the outcome to decide if the organization was right or wrong in making a move. So, let's get the first guess out of the way now. This is going to be an utter disaster. Guys don't change at 26. If they miss practices, show up late all the time, get into automobile accidents, become a joke in their own locker rooms in one place, it's going to happen in the next place as well.
This is not Flyers Behavior. Whatever else this team is, the history here is it is as important to be a good teammate as it is to be a good hockey player. For GM Paul Holmgren, a man who tolerates no nonsense, to take this chance is utterly out of character.
And, by the way, it is missing the most vital point about the Flyers. The goaltending wasn't the problem. The problem was that the core of young players on the team who think they can ramp up their intensity and level of play when it is neeeded. Everything's just fine. We're just fine. Don't worry about us. So they blow playoff home-ice advantage on the final day of the season -- at home, to the Rangers -- and then dead-ass through the opening game of the playoffs against the Penguins. Just fine. No problem. The Flyers gave up 18 goals in six games against Pittsburgh. Big deal.
But the goaltending is always the easy answer. Coaches love to make that the answer, because then it's not their fault. It isn't the scheme or the motivation or the execution. It's that lump between the pipes there. Just didn't rise to the occasion. In this case, that's crap. Biron was plenty good enough.
And his replacement is a guy who was late for practice because he was signing autographs at the scene of one of his many fender benders? The dude ate a cockroach off the floor on a bet. Cockroach.
It would be fair to say the players are unconvinced about the signing.
"We all know about Ray. I'm ready to leave that behind and move forward," Kimmo Timonen said.
"We need to give him a chance before we judge him," Danny Briere said.
And then we're going to hate him wicked. At least that's the prediction here. Emery went to Russia to play for a season while he cooled off after his nuclear meltdown in Ottawa. Walked out on the Moscow club in February because he thought they were screwing him on the exchange rate on his salary. Reportedly got into a shoving match with a trainer who was trying to make him wear a hat. Didn't say what kind of hat.
(Since this comes down to Emery and Biron, parenthetically, here's that fight between the two of them, back when Biron was with Buffalo and Emery made it to the game on time.)
OK, I think that's all, at least until the act really gets going and the Wachovia Center fans are booing and throwing things after Emery gives up a soft goal and stomps around, pointing his stick at the defensemen.
This will not end well. And, for God's sake, don't try to make him wear a hat.
Hey Bob, if you're going to submit lazy reporting, why not add a sentence or two about Eagle fans throwing snowballs at the end of your little rant there? Those quotes from Timmo and Briere do not indicate second guessing at all. And you want to talk about half assed performances, Biron was part of that too. With the "oh well, I had a bad game" attitude. And if the team has that problem, bringing in a firery vet, the only one on the team besides Knuble to go to a cup final, can only help. Patrick Roy wasn't exactly a dossile human being. If you want to be cute with the YouTube links, check out Roy's meltdowns in Montreal, he had about a dozen in Colorado, and there's also a clip of him on the bench in the Q ordering his goaltender son to skate the length and destroy the opposing goalie in a fight. Emery was the right signing, and when he turns out better than anyone gives him credit for, "don't even bother comin down to Ray's Boom-Boom Room...you ain't gettin in."— richards4captain18- The fact that you would prefer Biron for 4+ years at $4-5 Million shows me you are nuts! I dont care what Emery does...I will take it over signing Biron to a long term deal.— cujat13
- I don't think for one second this is an upgrade. It's a move driven by Holmgren's mismanagement of the salary cap after he went on a frenzy of expensive free agent signings to make his team competitive after they finished last. Now the chickens are coming home to roost and the Emery issues will be even worse once they start losing.— St.Patrick33
- Wow, I guess you never messed up in your life and needed a second chance! Give the guy a break, who cares what happens off the ice as long as he can stop the puck and win us some games.— mmmmCookies
- Hey bob stick to football. If Emery Keeps a clear head he is hands down a better goalie that Marty. If you can get this kind of goalie on the cheap why not give it a shot. Also, this does clear up some room for making a splash in Free Agency ( Assuming there will be a trade) for a Blue liner. It is true Marty was not the problem for the flyers in the playoffs it was the d, but the flyers have to make room to move towards signing somebody.— jon7173
- Bob, I hated the idea of this trade at first, but Luuko(sp?) made sure he was part of the vetting process the entire way for this guy along with Holmgren. And I happen to think highly of Luuko and how he handles his position with the Flyers. Besides, Biron is reportedly looking for a long term deal worth $5M/yr. You don't seriously think he is worth that kind of scratch do you? Although I wholeheartedly agree with your points about a team that thinks it can turn itself on like a light switch(which drove me hair pulling nuts at certain points last season) - that issue lies with Stevens, who I still don't think has the goods to head coach an NHL level team. Emery knows this is likely his last chance to stay in the NHL, and I personally think he is going to be playing and acting as best he can to get a long term deal - and you can bet your paycheck that Holmgren's position of GM is riding on this decision.— CTL
- Bob. Well done!! You could not have said it better. This guy is nothing but a NOG!! He will blow up this team!! And the problem the last few years was not the goaltending. It was motivation. It was the scheme. It certainly is the Bob Clarke era. Clarkey still doesn't realize that the game is different now then it was in the late 70's early 80's. Until he adjusts to the new pace of the game. This team is going no where!!— FetchDixon
While I agree with you that the Goaltending is the easy goat for last season. I thought Marty was very good. I think it's easy to blame the last guy who had a shot at the puck and say, "if only he had made the save". However this isn't about Marty abilities. This is a cap move. Marty asking for too much and we are unable to give it given the cap situation. Emery will let us sign Knuble. Which is good. Ray's on his best behavior and a one year contract. I think we'll get one good year out of him before he starts falling back into old habits. I just hope Homer's got a goalie of the future developing by then.— flyler- Bob, do everyone a favor and don't write about the Flyers. You're not very good at it.— FlyersKevin
- Hey Bob, you are entitled to your opinion. Yeah, I know. Everybody's else's opinion stinks except our own.— SayHello2MyLittleFriend
- Bob who?— wingslax35
- get down off your high horse mr. high and mighty,have you ever heard of a second chance? glad i didn't have you as a parent! people change at all ages, they just have to make up their mind to.for you to say he can't change shows your blind eye. does josh hamilton ring a bell?— low tide
- What a GARBAGE "story", please don't mention the fact that they signed a goalie who is as good if not better than anything else they had for at least 3-3.5 million LESS than they would have paid for ANYBODY ELSE. Money that will be well served elsewhere, like where the real problem is...on the blueline. Instead, let's just spout off about a guy you know nothing about other than what you have heard in the rumor mill. Go back and watch the press conference you obviously didn't see, go talk to Phantoms coach John Paddock, who coached Emery in Ottawa, and ultimately gave the final endorsement to sign him here, do some work before shooting off your mouth uninformed.— beagle29
- Bob, you may want to add that Ottowa as a whole has been a disaster since they lost that cup finals, and very little of that was Emery's fault. Moreover, this guy is younger, more talented and has more fire than Biron, and isn't that what this roster needs? I think so. If he misses practice he can do an AI impression and we'll all laugh.— Ckott
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