No joy in Flyersville
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Flyers Report: Broad Street Bull
No joy in Flyersville
Sam Carchidi, Inquirer Staff Writer
Are the Flyers collapsing right before our eyes?
Two straight losses to sad-sack Atlanta, including Sunday’s 3-1 setback at the Wachovia Center, have raised that question.
Entering a home-and-home weekend series with the Thrashers, the Flyers had the NHL’s second-best record over the last 10 weeks.
But all that consistent play means nothing if they don’t get their act together down the stretch.
In Sunday’s loss, Atlanta goalie Ondrej Pavelec (44 saves) outplayed a shaky Brian Boucher (28 saves), moving ninth-place Atlanta to within four points of the Flyers in the Eastern Conference.
The Flyers have 79 points, the same number as Montreal and Ottawa. All three teams are tied for fifth (excluding tie-breakers) and have 10 games left.
The Flyers play at struggling Ottawa Tuesday, host Minnesota on Thursday, and then travel to Pittsburgh on Saturday.
Ottawa, which has lost five straight, plays at Montreal on Monday. That means the Flyers will drop to sixth or seventh before their next game.
Suddenly, the playoffs aren’t a lock.
The Flyers, who somehow lost all four games to Atlanta this season, fell into a 2-0 first-period hole Sunday and never recovered. In their last four games, they have been outscored in the first period by a combined 9-3.
“Obviously it’s easier to play with a lead than coming back; we’re not making enough offense in the first period to get the opportunities and get goals and then play with the lead,” said Mike Richards, who scored his second goal in the last nine games. “Some of that obviously has to be corrected, and in a hurry.”
If not, there will be major changes made in the off-season.
* * * * * *
Phantoms goalie Johan Backlund, who is recovering from a groin injury, appears about ready to join the Flyers.
Just a hunch: Backlund gets a start Thursday against Minnesota.
Hey Homer, I can skate better than Hartnell and can stay out of the penalty box, where is my contract? Please give me a no-trade clause as well please.— djax10- @ djax, get a clown wig and you've got the job.— Kanayd
- You have to at least been considered good to collapse. These guys stunk all year.— Flyers-Losers-For-35-Years
- Flyers have had the bad attitude going now for 2 seasons. They got one coach fired already. When you hear the "captain" give excuses like "it's only one game, it's a long season", you know your team has problems. Remember when Bozo (Hartnell) earlier this season said "It's only 30 games into the season, what's everybody worried about"? How are those games in hand working out for you?— BobbyD
- Great hunch (at the end of this article)...that is the Flyers style. I want the young guy to get a shot in net but REALLY...haven't we seen this before? Take the injured guy and leave him in net until he gets hurt and misses the rest of the season. Emery = out, Leighton = out (even though that injury was a fluke), & oh yeah...road Nittymaki out of town with two bad hips. Hey there's a thought, maybe they wouldn't be 0 - 4 against Atlanta if they still had Nitty and he's a better goalie than Boucher even with two bad hips!— 67Flyer
- This is not a good team. Is anyone surprised? Going with Emery and Boucher at the beginning of the season was questionable at best. Homer's job should be called into question. This guy made some trades that are just terrible. You can blame Stevens for much of the younger guy's step back this year. There are so many players on that roster that need to go listing them would take up too much space. I can't wait until next season with no draft pick and no cap space to work with...I think the problem with this team goes right to the top. Snider needs to step down, too.— phillyphanforlife
- What a stupid question to start yet another subpar column. Yes, the Flyers stunk this weekend, no question about it. I am the first to admit that this team is not going anywhere in the playoffs (2 rounds, tops). But to read the start of this pathetic column, you'd think this team was in 8th-10th place in the East. Rather, they are tied for 5th, with a big game vs Ottawa tomorrow night. How can you say this team "will drop to sixth or seventh before their next game"???? What if Ottawa loses to Montreal tonight??? Ever consider that possibility? Sam please stop being a drama queen. Its far too early to consider this team "collapsing". If you need to brush up on your "collapsing" definition, look up the 2007 New York Mets. In the meantime will someone please spare us from this continued horrendous attempt at journalism. Just because the Flyers stink doesn't mean their beat writing has to as well.— UncleEddie
- UnlceEddie, if the MTL-OTT game goes to OT, both teams will move ahead of the Flyers (the loser with 80 points, the winner with 81; the Flyers will stay at 79). So that moves the Flyers to 7th. Also, the Flyers have now squandered their games in hand, something that was not specifically mentioned.— mikemcnhl
- This team has been a mess since day one. Why is anyone surprised that its come to this and that its likely the Flyers are headed for the golf course rather than the first round? Ray Emery was the answer in goal? Really?!?! Chris Pronger was going to lead this team to the Stanley Cup?? Now comes the bigger problem. Because of the salary cap this team isn't going to get any better unless you trade a core player or two. Nobody is going to take Pronger off their hands at that price and how good a team do you have if you have to move Richards or Carter? This has turned into a God-awful mess that might be years in the correcting.— NoRebound
- Are the Flyers collapsing? Yes. What is the cause of this collapse? First, the players. Excuses, excuses, excuses. Let's play like we mean it. Every game! Period. Second, management. Paul Holmgren still hasn't gotten it. Speed and toughness will win, not fights. He need to find more players like Pronger, Betts, and Coburn, and find a goaltender that isn't some other team's castoff. Where in the world does he come up with giving out no-trade clauses like candy on Halloween? Let's be smart, for a change. If Comcast ran the rest of their businesses like the Flyers, they would be bankrupt. Wholesale changes from top to bottom are required.— Mike111
- Hey Mike111, I hope you meant Carcillo, and not Coburn.— BobbyD
- And I'll post (say) it again. It's the leadership stupid! When Laviolette took over, there should have been leadership changes on this team...period. Leadership filters down to the soldiers, not up to the General.— cohdab16
I tuned into Versus on draft night last June and the first story announced was the big Flyers trade for Pronger. At the time I wondered why on earth they needed him and why they gave up so much for him at his age. It was a riverboat gamble on Holmgren's part and if the Flyers miss the playoffs, he should be dismissed. I also wonder why Holmgren knuckled under on all these player contracts--Mike Richards wants all this money, Jeff Carter wants all that money, blah blah blah. Let them sign RFA deals elsewhere and get that team's first round picks for the next three years. It has to be Ed Snider who has instilled this "win now at all costs" mentality that permeates the organization. The result is a high priced team on the brink of collapse.- Mike Knuble is so happy the Flyers couldn't sign him last Summer...hope he and the Caps win the cup this year! Since the Flyers won't make it I'm rooting for the Caps and hopefully Ovi lays out Crosby like he did Jagr in the Olympics!— tralala
- Get prepared for the Flyers to miss the playoffs this year. This team will continue to be mediocre. They just can't compete with the other top teams in the conference.— Joey Jo Jo Jr Shabadoo
