Flyers get away to Cape Cod

ORLEANS, Mass. - The Flyers continued their "Getting To Know You" portion of their preseason on Sunday, practicing for 90 intense minutes here in Cape Cod as they prepare for Wednesday's opener in Boston.

The previous day, they played paintball - Nick Grossmann was dominating - and ate meals together. Their deep-sea fishing excursion Sunday afternoon was canceled because of choppy waters, so the team watched NFL games together.

"Listen, it doesn't determine wins and losses, but it gets your team together," coach Craig Berube said. "The guys have a good time together. They had fun playing paintball. We have new guys on the team, and it's important they get to know each other. All good teams that win are pretty close. I like our team. I like the way they look. I like the way they interact with each other. I like the character."

R.J. Umberger, Michael Del Zotto, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Blair Jones, Nick Schultz, and rookie Jason Akeson are the newcomers.

"It's good for the guys to be together," said Umberger, who was acquired in the deal that sent Scott Hartnell to Columbus in the offseason. "We haven't had a hectic schedule [here], so we've had a lot of down time together. Some time, with team bonding, there can be so much going on that you don't get any rest, so this has been good."

Because of the cramped quarters at the cozy Charles Moore Arena, the players were in four tiny dressing rooms Sunday.

"The ice is good, and these old barns are fun," said Umberger, adding he is still developing a chemistry with linemates Vinny Lecavalier and Michael Raffl. "It brings you back to your childhood growing up. I grew up on rinks way worse than this in Pittsburgh."

"It feels like minor hockey again; it brings you back to your roots - just having fun again," Del Zotto said. "Being a new guy on the team . . . and getting to know the guys a little bit, it's been great for me."

Akeson, part of a productive fourth line (with Zac Rinaldo and Bellemare) that has been one of camp's most pleasant surprises, said the paintball experience was "a little bit painful, but it was good, and creating friendships and bonds we're going to have for the next eight months is pretty great."

Simmonds update. Wayne Simmonds, wearing a boot on his injured left foot, watched practice, and Berube said he didn't know if the right winger would be able to play in Wednesday's opener.

"If he can get on the ice [Monday] and maybe practice the next day again, maybe I'd consider putting him in," Berube said. "But right now it's up in the air."

Breakaways. Kimmo Timonen, sidelined with blood clots, made the trip and watched practice. . . . Umberger, Rinaldo, and Grossmann are the only three Flyers not wearing a shield, though Umberger said his family is urging him to change his mind.