Posted: Thursday, February 19, 2009, 12:20 AM | 28 comments |
 

Could deal push Flyers to Cup?

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   Do the Flyers need to make a deal before the March 4 trade deadline to bring home their first Stanley Cup since 1975?
   That's the question facing GM Paul Holmgren.
    Head coach John Stevens said Wednesday he doesn't think a deal is necessary. He is happy to play the stretch run _ and the playoffs _ with the solid team Holmgren has assembled.
    Offensively, I agree.
    The Flyers have two of the leagues most dynamic lines, and the third line (Claude Giroux with Scottie Upshall and, for now, Darroll Powe, has been terrific lately.
    And when Danny Briere returns from the injured list _ he'll likely take Powe's spot _ the offense will get even better, especially on the power play.
    Before the season started, the Flyers said if Simon Gagne successfully returned from a concussion, it would be like adding a premier free agent.
    The same can be said now about Briere, who has been limited to nine games this season and is expected back on Wednesday.
    If Briere returns to his old form, it will be like adding a marquee player near the trade deadline _ without having to give up anything.
    So the offense seems set, but the defense could use an experienced, physical player (Chris Pronger?) who would make like easier for Marty Biron and/or Antero Niittymaki.
    Speaking of Biron, he appears to be finding his rhythm. It says here the Flyers can win a Cup with Biron. The last three Cup winners (Carolina, Anaheim and Detroit) didn't exactly have goalies who conjured memories of Bernie Parent.
    Biron showed in last year's first two playoff rounds that he can withstand the post-season pressure.
    Ah, but can his young defensemen?
    His blue-liners have good speed and handle the puck better than last year's defense. But the Flyers will miss the playoff experience that Jason Smith and Derian Hatcher provided _ that is, unless Holmgren can swing a deal.
    With an abundance of offensive talent, he can afford to trade one of his forwards and bring in a bruising defenseman who can  give the blue line more balance.
   * * * * * * * * 
   Biron will start Thursday's game against his former team, visiting Buffalo. Earlier this season, Biron made 40 saves as he blanked the Sabres, 3-0. 
   About 500 tickets remain for Thursday night.
* * * * * * * * * * 
   Stevens has not ruled out putting together a French Connection line in the future: Briere, Giroux and Simon Gagne.
   Long-time fans will remember the Flyers' first Fench Connection: Andre Lacroix, Jean-Guy Gendron and Simon Nolet in the late 1960s.
   And whatever became of Serge Bernier?
   * * * * * * * *
  In the spirit of Gonzo, here's a note that has nothing to do with sports.
  From here, Sunday's Oscar for best picture looks like a two-team race between Slumdog Millionaire and The Reader.
  I'd give Slumdog the nod by a very slim margin.
  Most overlooked film: The Boy in the Striped Pajammas, which had one of the most powerful and draining endings you'll ever see. It was one of the top three movies of the year. And how did Gran Torino not get nominated for best picture? Ditto grumpy (but lovable) Clint Eastwood in the best-actor category.
    OK, off my soapbox.
     _ Sam Carchidi
Posted by Sam Carchidi @ 12:20 AM  Permalink | 28 comments
28
Comments   
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 5:05 AM, 02/19/2009
    Honest question here, what about Gagne and a pick or straight up for Pronger or Bouwmeester? Gags is incredibly talented, but he's also teh softest player on the team. Add Pronger or Bouwmeester, and our D is better than anybody's in the East
    — duffers
  • Comment removed.
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 8:42 AM, 02/19/2009
    Gagne!?!?! Way too expensive of a trade. Who replaces him? Gagne is a bonafide scorer. We don't need JayBo or Pronger, Witt would be a cheaper add and not cost the depth of the O
    — bdemz
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 9:05 AM, 02/19/2009
    Although they don't want to trade Boowmeester fla will lose him for nothing next tear if they keep him, there in a no win situation.
    — marley
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 9:06 AM, 02/19/2009
    trade briere.
    — max-power
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 9:19 AM, 02/19/2009
    gags is the longest tenured flyer and one of the longest tenured players currently in philadelphia (that honor goes to b-dawk). still young, great scorer, and he always has a good +/- rating. trading him would be incredibly stupid.
    — philly57
  • Comment removed.
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 10:05 AM, 02/19/2009
    Briere is too strong a player and too expensive to move. I think Lupul or Jones are the two players that might move. Gagne is having one of his strongest seasons in years and is playing well with Richards. They can't move Gagne.
    — MH
  • Comment removed.
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 11:09 AM, 02/19/2009
    Good +/- are you kidding me - his plus minus is off the charts year in and year out - Gagne for what Broduer (in his prime) - I hope they don't make a trade just to make a trade - remember this team was at the bottom of the league (last place overall) just two years ago - panicky moves to win it all made by Clarke and Snyder ruined the teams chances for continuity and chemistry - Williams and Brindy went down to Carolina with Rex to win a CUP - we stocked Colorado for two Cups because we had to have Lindros, and we sent Tampa some key pieces for their Cup. We are not a bunch of old long tooth veterans - we have a bunch of young guns - look how long the Devils have stuck with their core - panicky moves at the end of each season in the long run hurt building the team for the long haul - I hope Homer and Snyder don't fall into the old trap that Clarkie (god bless his hockey playing tenacity) and Snyder and the fans have fallen into - patience here guys. This team is an above average top ten team now (not a last place team) when sufficiently motivated they beat Boston. I would advise them to keep their pants on.
    — JourneyHome
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 12:28 PM, 02/19/2009
    I wouldn't deal Gagne either. He's too strong offensively, and plays great with Briere when they're both in the lineup. (I know, that's not a given.) Also, mentioning a possible trade of JVR - am I the only one still irritated/miffed/p-o'd that the Flyers got the #2 pick in that draft, and Chicago got #1, which ended up being Patrick Kane? The Flyers had a far worse record, and I guess fittingly, couldn't even win the lottery.
    — uncle meat
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 12:36 PM, 02/19/2009
    NO MAJOR DEADLINE DEAL HAS EVER WON A TEAM THE CUP. Tweak here and there....and go with it
    — LongtimeFan3
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 1:10 PM, 02/19/2009
    I don't think Holmgren is dumb enough to trade Van Riemsdyk for an oft-injured up and down goalie with loads of potential but a thin resume (including playoff resume). It's common now for Flyer fans to ridicule the deal considered last year -- Carter plus a 1st round pick for Leafs' defenseman Thomas Kaberle. Trading Van Riemsdyk plus a salaried player to balance Lehtonen's $3 million would be ridiculous unless the Thrashers thrown in their 1st round pick which, of course, they would be too wise to do. Top of the draft picks like Van Riemsdyk are too valuable to trade and if Holmgren doesn't have the patience to see talent developed, he should join Bobby Clarke in well-desrved retirement.
    — Claudio Vernight
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 2:14 PM, 02/19/2009
    Do not trade JVR!!..If you can score and then have the defense any decent goalie will get the job done..As we see, Broduer apparently isnt the goalie we thought him to be since the Devils havent skipped a beat!............Just kidding people, but you do have to look at the system and players cause its working....
    — CROSSI
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 3:02 PM, 02/19/2009
    Deal Jones with a draft pick for a veteran defensemen. Dont trade JVR or Briere, or Gagne, or anyone else except for Jones. He's played poor as of late but hes got pretty good trade value. Keep the currebnt team maybe minus Randy Jones.
    — BFisch


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About Sam Carchidi
Sam Carchidi is in his fourth year as the Flyers' beat reporter. He became an Inquirer staff writer in 1984 and covered mostly South Jersey high school sports and the Phillies before taking the Flyers beat.

Carchidi has written three books _ the nationally acclaimed Miracle in the Making: The Adam Taliaferro Story, which he co-authored with Scott Brown; Bill Campbell: The Voice of Philadelphia Sports; and Standing Tall: The Kevin Everett Story, which was featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show. He also contributed to a 1993 Inquirer book on the Phillies.

A lifelong South Jersey resident, Carchidi lives in Wenonah with his wife, JoAnn, and their two children, Sara and Sammy.

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