Holmgren relying on kids' growth
After listening to Flyers GM Paul Holmgren Thursday, I get the sense that _ unless other teams bring down their demands _ he will not be a player in the trading sweepstakes for Anaheim’s Bobby Ryan or Columbus’ Rick Nash.
Holmgren relying on kids' growth
Sam Carchidi, Inquirer Staff Writer
After listening to Flyers GM Paul Holmgren Thursday, I get the sense that _ unless other teams bring down their demands _ he will not be a player in the trading sweepstakes for Anaheim’s Bobby Ryan or Columbus’ Rick Nash.
In other words, the Flyers are not dealing promising centers Sean Couturier or Brayden Schenn.
Period.
Holmgren talked today after the Flyers signed winger Ruslan Fedotenko and defenseman Bruno Gervais, a pair of unrestricted free agents.
The Flyers still have the cap space to make a deal, but my sense is that they are committed to the kids _ they played 12 rookies last season _ and will give them another year to develop.
They can use that cap space to make a move during this season _ or have plenty of room next year, when the free-agent class is expected to include Shea Weber, Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf, among other marquee names. (Kimmo Timonen and Scott Hartnell will also be among the UFAs in 2013.)
“I really like our team,” Holmgren said, “and I’m hesitant to look at anything where I’ve got to give up something (important) to get something back. We have a lot of good young players that have tremendous potential. Quite frankly, I’m happy with our team right now. That doesn’t mean we won’t look and see what happens.”
Holmgen said the Flyers “took a couple swings for the fences early on in free agency” _ he was referring to Zach Parise and Ryan Suter _ “and those are adding players that you’re not taking away from your team. We had to slide to Plan B, and we’re happy with the players we got in Plan B.”
And happy to watch the youngsters mature and develop into (hopefully) stars.
Breakaways. Holmgren on not being able to resign Matt Carle, who went to Tampa Bay: “I’m disappointed, but we’ll move on. We tried hard to sign Matt.”….Holmgren said he spoke with Jaromir Jagr’s agent, Petr Svoboda, throughout the start of free agency. “I don’t know if he got antsy or what. I got a call late on the 3rd (of July) that he was getting excited and wanted to make a move, and I wasn’t prepared to do anything at that time," the GM said. "We still had offers out on the table that I wanted to wait on, and I wasn’t prepared to move on Jaromir at the time….and he wasn’t ready to wait.” Jagr signed with Dallas…..Holmgren said he doesn’t expect problems coming to an agreement with Jake Voracek, a restricted free agent. “I don’t want to put a timeline on it, but he’ll be signed at some point," he said.
The UFA list as of today is terrible. Slim pickins to say the least. Only thing left to do is trade and if the asking price is too high Homer will let it go and wait until the trade deadline if possible. That being said, If I had to give up some youth for a proven commodity I may do it. Homer said "I like our team" so look out!— NYPHILLYPHAN- The Rangers have a couple of big boy fighters on their roster, the latest addition being Asham. The Islanders have Carkner, who is a monster. The Pens have their thugs and the Bruins, well they're always the Bruins. Even mild-mannered Montreal has some fighters now. But the Flyers? They need a certified heavyweight or two lest we see Wayne Simmons and Zac Rinaldo get their head pounded in game after game. Jody Shelley? Not going to get it done. Homer, find us a heavyweight.— schultz08
- Some of you guys just aren't happy unless you're sh****** your pants are you? Seriously? Its like this: Schenn makes up for Carle, Fedotenko more than makes up for old man Jagr. Only player we really haven't replaced is Pronger, and there is no Pronger out there to replace him with. Homer, you're the man right now. B*tchslap Bryz a little, then take him to Epcott center, and let him spend some time with his kids. Then get to work on getting Shea Webber, via trade this year or FA next.
He's your key big boy.
Also ignore 90% of the other Flyer's fans. Over emotional basketcases.— WestonF01 - Growth.....that is funny. Does the author realize that Hartnell, Giroux, Simmonds, and Talbot all had the best seasons of the careers? I expect only one of those 4 to continue his pace. Couturier is a balanced 2-way player who will never be an elite scorer. He will be a great player. His hockey IQ is some of the best I have ever seen from an 18 year old, but his skating will keep him from being a big scorer. Schenn is the opposite. Schenn can chip in 20 goals if given the chance...he still needs to earn that chance.
On this board, last season, everyone was applauding the trades of Carter/Richards for the freedom and cap space. Saying that it allowed them to sign players like Jagr, Read, and Bryzgalov. Now, complaints about Bryzgalov, loss of Jagr...Flyers are left with a pile of spendable cash sitting on the table, and no skilled forwards adding depth to this franchise. Meanwhile, the 2 traded centers have earned a day with the greatest trophy in sports.— Hexy4GM - LOL! Clearly, I have touched a nerve. Enjoy this season boys...it's gonna be a rough one.— Dangler9
- Cheers to Homer! Honestly, all people did was moan and groan about how good players get traded off to win elsewhere. Now Homer stands pat with a group of young players and people don't like that either. I applaud Homer for having Plan B = give these kids a chance!— mikeyo27
- Weston's right. Weber will be a Flyer by end of season.— RG
- Cheers to Homer; give me an effin break!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He blew the entire offseason. Cut payroll, lost key players and didn't sign anyone worth signing! Yeah, great job "Homer"!!!!! LMFAO— JBinPA
- Carle, JvR, Jagr, Kubina, Bobrovsky out
Schenn, Gervais, Fedotenko, Leighton in.
No matter how you slice it, it's a significant loss of size, skill, and depth.
The strenght of the team at forward has been weakened, and the weakness of the team at defense has been weakened further.
We've cashed in two valuable trade chips in JvR and Bobrovsky, and the roster has still taken a step backwards.— andyd - Homer makes it sound like waiting on Suter and Parise cost him the chance to try to keep Jagr. The Flyers will miss his skill but at $4.5 million he's overpriced. Plus, besides netting the GWG in Game 2 against Pittsburgh, Jagr was mostly invisible in the playoffs. The Flyers seem resigned to waiting until next summer to add a key piece. I'd like to see Weber in the Orange and Black.— Snap Crackle Propp
- Gotta give Homer credit for going after Parise and Suter aggressively. Obviously, it wasn't a money issue that ultimately decided for them. I think Schenn is a nice addition, and the kids will continue to get better. Hopefully, Timo stays healthy, in which case he's still as reliable a defenseman as there is. But, it really comes down to Bryz. If his head is screwed on straight and plays the way he's capable of, the Flyers should be a Cup contender. If not, they can't possibly be successful. Bobby Ryan would be a very nice addition, but would hate to have to give up Coutierier to get him.— Fan Forever
- I think Luke Schenn going to have a career year. I live in the Toronto area and the pressure on Laff players is crazy. Not to mention playing for Wilson. Stay the course Homer, keep some free cash for the trade deadline.— racsokitty
- I think the talent the Flyers have will pay dividends. Patience helps. Some people are still irked that Carter and Richards were shipped.
I went over Schenn's numbers again. He has limited playing time and was injured for huge chunks of the season. IF HE STAYS HEALTHY, with more playing time, he's a 25-goal player minimum, but with momentum from preseason, he could put up 30 goals. I expect both he and Cout to put up 22-27 goals next season while Read's numbers drop.— pillsbury - Reading these post is just hysterical.... I never seen so many arm chair GM's. This is a laugh fest....what a bunch of loons...keep the coming with your absurd assesments of what the Flyers need....LMFAO— fbpdplt
