This morning Dave Schultz was made available to the media from the penalty box in the Wachovia Spectrum to discuss being inducted into the Flyers Hall of Fame during an on-ice ceremony prior to the team’s contest vs. the New Jersey Devils at the Wachovia Center on Nov. 16.

Here, courtesy of Flyers publicity staffer Joe Siville, is the transcript of his Q & A:

Q: Did you like being in the penalty box?

“What I liked about it was that it wasn’t as crowded as on the bench. I had a towel, coke, you know we used to drink soda, which wasn’t really that good for you but Clarkie [Bob Clarke] started that. So it was relaxing. Only one time do I remember, well I don’t remember why I was there or how I got there. I had a slight concussion, only one time. It was always a good vantage point over here [laughs].”

Q: What are some memories that you have not coming back in your mind, standing back in the penalty box in the Spectrum, knowing that this building will be closed in just a couple of weeks, what are some memories that come flying through your head?

“Obviously the first one would be the big games that you’re involved with. Certainly Game Six against Boston was huge. I hadn’t realized I got a couple penalties in that third period - I don’t know what the referee was thinking on those [laughs], but we killed them off obviously. But I’m like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe I took that penalty in the third period up 1-0.’ So that game and some of the big games against the Rangers during the season. I remember we captured actually, I guess it was ’74, we captured the division championship, I think it was against Boston, right here [Spectrum]. So I actually remember probably more in a lot of the other buildings I had to play in, and some of the things that took place, but it’s going to be sad. It was a great place, as many many people experienced, and certainly our team.”

Q: How do you feel about being selected for the Flyers Hall of Fame?

“It’s unbelievable to me. I was absolutely shocked. All I think of is… forever. I mean, I’ll have my name on a banner forever in the Flyers Hall of Fame in the organization, so that’s very very special for me.”

Q: Who was your biggest nemesis or who did you enjoy fighting?

“None of them, I didn’t enjoy any of them, but they were small, really small [laughs]. Terry O’Reilly, I fought him eight times so he was my main nemesis. I knew that particularly if we were going into Boston there was probably a pretty good chance. I watched some video where I was going to fight Carol Vadnais or Gary Doak, or somebody and all you could see is O’Reilly going in and out of players and getting there before I could get involved with the other player, and he’d drop his gloves and we would fight.”

Q: What was the record over those eight [fights]?

“8-0 [laughs]. Actually there is a fight site and it shows every fight I’ve had as well as other players, and they were rated and I think there was one draw and I think he won four set, whatever that means [laughs]. The toughest part about fighting Terry O’Reilly was he was a lefty. That means the way I fought and the way he fought by grabbing the shoulder, we were wide open. There was nothing to protect, if you’re fighting a guy who’s swinging with his right you could duck. So a lot of times I’d have a lot of welts on my head, but with him it was straight on so it was the same for me. But he was a big guy, he was my main guy.”

    The Flyers received positive medical news Monday: Rookie left winger James van Riemsdyk practiced and had no ill effects from the concussion symptoms that sidelined him for two games, and veteran center Blair Betts' dislocated right shoulder isn't as severe as first feared.

    JVR should be able to play in the Flyers' next game, Friday in Florida, while Betts could be ready to return Oct. 22 against Boston.

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    After Monday's practice in Voorhees, the Flyers boarded a flight for Ft. Lauderdale, Fla, where they will have a five-day bonding camp that will include practices, a team fishing tournament and team sailboat races.

      “Just to get the guys together, have some fun and get some good camaraderie and chemistry,” defenseman Chris Prronger said. 

     It's a way for the team to blend its veterans with the nine newcomers: Pronger, Ian Laperriere, Ray Emery, Brian Boucher, Blair Betts, Mika Pyorala, van Riemsdyk, Danny Syvret and Ole-Kristian Tollefsen.

    Laperriere was 20 years old and the St. Louis Blues’ youngest player when coach Mike Keenan held a bonding camp in Florida 15 years ago.

    “And now I’m on the other end," he said.  Laperriere, who will turn 36 on Jan. 19, is the Flyers’ oldest player
    “It’s good for the guys, especially being new to the team like myself, to get a chance to kind of get to know everybody and have some laughs,” said Emery, who, while with Ottawa, said the team stayed at a resort to try to improve its unity. “You spend all year together, so it’s not like you’re unfamiliar with each other, but guys have families and maybe you only see them at the rink, so this is a chance to have a boys’ vacation and mix in hockey as well.”
 

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     The rock band KISS recorded some fire-up-the-crowd videos Monday before the group's show at the Wachovia Center. Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer did the video, which will be shown on the scoreboard during Flyers' home games.

   The Flyers had an early-season homestand against three teams _ Washington, Pittsburgh and Anaheim _ that look like Stanley Cup contenders.
    It was a chance for the Flyers to make a statement, a chance to show they belong among the NHL elite.
    So what did we learn?
    That the Flyers, despite the trade for star defenseman Chris Pronger, are still a work in progress.
    The Flyers went 1-1-1 in those games.
    At times, they looked like they could play with any team in the league. Like in the first period of Saturday’s 3-2 shoot-out loss to Anaheim.
    In the first 20 minutes, the Flyers tightened up their defense and allowed the Ducks few scoring chances. They outshot Anaheim, 14-7, got solid goaltending from Ray Emery and a power-play goal from Mike Richards.
     But there have also been times when the Flyers lose focus. Like when they allowed three goals (on nine shots) in the second period against Washington on Tuesday _ or like when they collapsed at the end of Saturday’s game.
    They coughed up a 2-0 lead in the final 6:44 of regulation, allowing Teemu Selanne to score twice and tie the game at 2-2. Selanne’s second goal was scored with 16 seconds left in regulation after he took a slick circle-to-circle pass from Scott Niedermayer.
    But Ryan Getzlaf made the play, keeping the puck in the zone near the blue line and feeding Cherry Hill’s Bobby Ryan (plus-2), who then fed Niedermayer.
    The 39-year-old Selanne was the only player to score in the shoot-out. But his biggest goal was the one that forced OT.
    “Getzlaf keeping the puck in like that was a huge play,” said Selanne, who has 583 career goals. “Scotty got the puck and I can’t believe how open I was. I just tried to sneak behind there and a guy like Scott _ if you get open, you know the puck is going to come _ so I was very happy to see the puck go in.” 
    Selanne’s late heroics ruined what had been a perfect script for Pronger, who celebrated his 35th birthday and scored his first goal as a Flyer. Against his former teammates, no less.
    “At this stage, we have to look at it as a learning experience,” Pronger said of the late-game collapse. “It sucks to lose…We’ve played good enough to win, but we haven’t. We’re doing a lot of good things, but it’s the little intangibles, thing like getting pucks out at critical times in periods….Things that championship teams do, day in and day out, we need to get to. We’re a young team and need to learn that.”

   They also need to figure out a way to win shoot-outs. The Flyers were 0 for 3 in the shoot-out Saturday as Danny Briere, Richards and Simon Gagne were stopped. They have a 12-25 shoot-out record in the franchise's history.

 Scott Hartnell was not suspended by NHL czar Colin Campbell Friday over an alleagtion made by the Penguins' Kris Letang, who claimed Hartnell bit him in Thursday's game. At Friday's hearing, Hartnell said he did not bite Letang.

   Some interesting developments in Flyersland Friday:

   1. Scott Hartnell was not suspended by NHL czar Colin Campbell after a hearing that was held via a conference call.

   Pittsburgh's Kris Letang had accused Hartnell of biting him when they were in a scrum late in Thursday's game. But an NHL source said the video was inconclusive and that the referees _ who were trying to break up several near-fightsat the time  _ could not substantiate Letang's claim.   

   2. At Friday's practice in Voorhees, Claude Giroux, who had been centering the third line, was moved to right wing on a line with Mike Richards and Simon Gagne. Mika Pyorala, who had been at RW on Richards' line, centerd the third line with Darroll Powe and Arron Asham.

    Coach John Stevens may go with that setup Saturday against visiting Anaheim.

 3. James van Riemsdyk again did not practice, and Stevens made it sound like he won't play until next Friday in Florida. The Flyers are reluctant to call it a concussion, but JVR has not been feeling himself since his head hit the boards Tuesday against Washington.

     Before he was exonerated, Hartnell strongly denied biting Letang.

    Mike Tyson, Conrad Dobler and Tree Rollins are some of the athletes who are infamous for biting incidents.

   Hartnell said he should not join the list.

    “Anybody who knows me personally knows I’m definitely not a savage," he said after Friday's practice. "I just play the game hard.”

   After the Flyers' 5-4 loss to arch-rival Pittsburgh Thursday, Letang accused Hartnell of biting his right ring finger when a scrum broke out in the corner with 1.2 seconds left.

   Letang displayed a bloody finger in the locker room.

    Last January, the league suspended Ottawa's Jarkko Ruutu for two games without pay for biting Buffalo's Andrew Peters' gloved hand. 

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   In Thursday's loss, the Flyers committed turnovers that led to two goals, and a Braydon Coburn clearing pass deflected off Ray Emery's left skate and into the net.

   Jeff Carter (four points) and Danny Briere each had two goals for the Flyhers, who outshot the Pens, 34-25, but got shaky goaltending from Emery. The goalie has a 1.00 GAA on the road and his GAA is near 5.00 at home.

     Notes. Sidney Crosby won 21 of 24 faceoffs....The Penguins won 55 percent of the faceoffs.....The Flyers had a 6:08 advantage in power-play time....Chris Pronger will face his ex-Anaheim teammates Saturday night. The Ducks' lineup includes Cherry Hill's Bobby Ryan and former Flyers Joffrey Lupul, Luca Sbisa and Steve Eminger. .

   As expected, Flyers rookie left winger James van Riemsdyk will not play Thursday night against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins.

   Van Riemsdyk, who played just two shifts after being pushed into the boards midway through the second period Tuesday, did not practice Wednesday or skate Thursday morning, and while he says all concussion tests were negative, the team is taking the cautious approach.

   And while he will not play Thursday, there is a good chance JVR (three assists in three games) will return to the lineup Saturday against visiting Anaheim.

     Blair Betts, who suffered a dislocated right shoulder Tuesday, will also be missing from Thursday's lineup; he is expected to be sidelined at least a month.

     The fourth-line center had been reducing Mike Richards' time on the penalty kill, keeping Richards more fresh in other situations. Richards has five goals, tied for the NHL lead.

    In Betts' absence, Claude Giroux, Darroll Powe and Mika Pyorala will probably see more time on the PK.

    This is how the lines will probably look Thursday:

   First line: Scott Hartnell-Jeff Carter-Danny Briere.

   Second line: Simon Gagne-Richards-Pyorala.

   Third line: Powe-Giroux-Arron Asham.

   Fourth line: Riley Cote-Ian Laperiiere-Dan Carcillo.

   D pairings: Chris Pronger-Matt Carle; Kimmo Timonen (quietly off to a strong start)-Braydon Coburn; Ryan Parent-Ole-Kristian Tollefsen.

    Goalie: Ray Emery.

    Asham and Cote, each of whom were healthy scratches in the first three games, will see their first action Thursday. Ditto Tollefsen, who will replace Danny Syvret because coach John Stevens wants a more physical presence against the Penguins.

    The Flyers will have extra motivation; they are facing a Pittsburgh team that erased a 3-0 deficit and scored a stunning 5-3 win in the sixth and final game of last season's playoffs.

   It made it a long, hard summer, Carle said, a statement echoed by his teammates.

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    About 700 tickets remain for Thursday.......Fans who attend Thursday afternoon's Phillies game can present their tickets at the Wachovia Center box office that night to purchase a $25 ticket to the Flyers-Penguins contest.....The Flyers will be trying to go to 4-0 for the first time since 1995.....Surpisngly, Carle leads the Flyers with six points (one goal, five assists).

     Seventy-seven shots, 11 goals, an NHL-record-tying performance by Matt Carle and, thanks to Mike Richards, the first Flyers hat trick in a home opener in the franchise's 42-year history.

     Yep, just another typical night at the Wachovia Center, where the Flyers outlasted the Washington Capitals on Tuesday, 6-5, in an OT thriller that was played at a frenzied pace.

    Carle tied an NHL record for a defesemen by collecting four assists in one period (the second), while Richards notched all three of his goals in that same 20-minute session _ and managed to overshadow Alex Ovechkin (two goals), Alexander Semin (two goals) and Nicklas Backstrom (three assists).

    “We don’t want to get involved in a track meet with the Pittsburghs and the Washingtons of the world," Flyers coach John Stevens said. "I think we’re built just a little bit differently, but we do have an exciting offensive team and I think you saw that tonight. But we’re going to be a little bit different in hopefully shutting the game down a little bit more. Ovechkin, Semin – that’s one of the best offensive lines in the league. But having said that, you look at our top two lines and you throw a guy like [Claude] Giroux in there, James [van Riemsdyk] is a young kid but he’s got a lot of offensive ability, and the ability of our back end to move the puck, and we have pretty good depth in our offense throughout our lineup.”

    The Flyers are 3-0 for the first time since 1998.

    All the news wasn't good. Center Blair Betts, a valuable penalty killer, suffered a dislocated right shoulder and will be sidelined at least four weeks. Van Riemsdyk played just two shifts after getting run into the boards in the second period; he will be checked for a possible concussion Wednesday. 

    Notes. The Flyers were 3 for 9 on the power play; Washington was 1 for 5.....Carle has six points in three games......Washington's Mike Green (28:23) and the Flyers' Chris Pronger (27:44) played the most minutes. Pronger had four giveaways, one that led to a Caps goal...Kimmo Timonen had a goal and two asists and played a game-high 33 shifts. Braydon Coburn also played 33 shifts.....On Thursday, the Flyers play host to the Penguins, the team that has eliminated them from the playoffs the last two years.

   The new-look Flyers, off to an impressive 2-0 start, will be trying to contain Washington's Alex Ovechkin when they play their home opener Tuesday night at the Wachovia Center.

   Stopping Ovechkin is like going a day without hearing media reports (ugh) about Jon and Kate.

  Virtually impossible.

   Ovechkin, the left winger who was the league's MVP last season, has three goals and three assists for the 2-0 Caps, whose lineup includes former Flyer Mike Knuble, one of the classiest players to ever wear the orange and black.

    Kimmo Timonen and Chris Pronger figure to be shadowing Ovechkin when he's in the Flyers' zone Tuesday.

   The Flyers have received brilliant goaltending from Ray Emery (1.00 GAA, .963 save percentage) excellent penalty killing and opportunistic scoring (thanks, in part, to a stunningly weak Martin Brodeur) as they have started 2-0 for the first time since 1998-99.

   Mike Richards and Jeff Carter have two goals apiece, and rookie James van Riemsdyk has chipped in with three assists.

   Stevens understandably plans to use the same lineup that has produced the 2-0 start. The one change he may make: moving Timonen to the right side of the defense so he can match up with Ovechkin. 

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   Ed Snider, the Comcast-Spectacor chairman, will sign copies of the new commemorative book entitled “God Bless the Spectrum” at the Barnes & Noble in Center City (Walnut Street and 18th Street) on Wednesday from 6 p.m. until 7 p.m.

  The book, which features more than 200 color photos, retails for $24.95 and is now available at Barnes & Noble, RememberTheSpectrum.com and at souvenir stands at the Wachovia Center.

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   About 600 tickets remain for Tuesday's game..... Ray Emery (1.00 GAA) play play all three games this week, facing the Caps, Penguins (Thursday) and Ducks (Saturday).   

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    Tuesday's home opener is only on Versus, so DirecTV customers won’t have access to it.

    Here are some restaurants/bars in Philadelphia with the DISH Network, which carries Versus:

    Brian’s Sports Bar, 5007 Frankford Ave.; Flames House Restaurant, 7930 Bustleton Ave.; California Pizza Kitchen, 4040 City Avenue #1; New Heaven Restaurant, 1119 Walnut St. 
_ Sam Carchidi

    NEWARK, N.J. _ For rookie left winger James van Riemsdyk, it was a happy homecoming last night as he had two assists in the Flyers' convincing 5-2 win over the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center.

    Playing in an arena 35 minutes from where he grew up _ Middletown in central Jersey _ van Riemsdyk continued his strong early-season play.

    Ditto goalie Ray Emery, who made 24 saves _ including several acrobatic ones _ as the Flyers got off to a 2-0 start for the first time since 1998-99.

    Emery badly outplayed the legendary Martin Brodeur, who looked (way) past his prime as he allowed four softies on a night in which he played his 1,000th career game.

    The best news for the Flyers was this: They got goals from all four of their lines _ the type of balance that will make them a difficult team to defend.

    "That's going to be critical all year," captain Mike Richards said. "Different people stepping up."

     Jeff Carter, Ian Laperriere, Richards, Darroll Powe and Matt Carle scored for the Flyers, who play their home opener Tuesday against Washington.
    Claude Giroux, Chris Pronger, van Riemsdyk, and Carle were each plus-3 for the Flyers.

   The scrappy fourth line of Dan Carcillo, Blair Betts and Laperriere _ call them the LCB Line, II _ has played solidly and been one of the team's most pleasant surprises thus far.