State of the Flyers

By: Steve Johnson

When the Flyers traded away team stars Mike Richards and Jeff Carter in the 2011 off season nobody expected them to be a championship contender. It's easy to look back now in disappointment, but in reality the 2011-12 Flyers exceeded our expectations and maybe us hopeful for the future. The Flyers traded captain Mike Richards to Los Angeles for prized prospect Brayden Schenn, Wayne Simmonds and the Kings 2012 2nd round pick. In that same day, they traded Richards buddy Jeff Carter to Columbus for winger Jakub Voracek, and the 8th overall pick (which turned into Sean Couturier). After trades that got rid of your two top players to bring in 4 players of the ages of 21, 19, 22, and 18 year old you would have thought they were building for the future. Then they go out and trade the cap they saved with Richie and Carter and get Goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov, and sign him to a 9, that's right 9 year deal worth over 50 million dollars. Now bring yourself back to the summer of 2011, if I would have told you the Flyers would knock off the Penguins and be the favorite to win the Stanley Cup after that series, you would have thought I was crazy. Well they did, and they were, and guess what? They still have a bright future...and possibly a dynasty on their hands. Here is the state of the Flyers for the 2012-13 season, and many years to come.

Centers
Claude Giroux ($3.75 million cap hit, 2 years left, RFA in 14-15)
Danny Briere ($6.5 million cap hit, 3 years left, UFA in 15-16)
Sean Couturier ($1.375 million cap hit, 2 years left, RFA in 14-15)
Brayden Schenn ($3.11 million cap hit, 2 years left, RFA in 14-15)

Breakdown: All of these players should be returning in 2012-13 and are expected to have major roles as they did this year.
Giroux is the star of the team, and a top 5 player, if not the best all around player in the world today. Briere is one of the best 2nd line centers in the game and is one of the most clutch players in the game. Couturier stepped up like no one (outside of Paul Holmgren) expected. As a 19 year old, to be the main face off guy in the defensive zone, play on the penalty kill, and be a shut down player against one of the world's best (Malkin) is unheard of. Couturier is heads above what you expect a 19 year old to be, expect him to step his game up offensively.
Schenn had his ups and downs last year, and battled through injuries. He was the key piece in the trades this off season, but probably played the worst out of what the Flyers got for in return. The Flyers fully expect him to step his game up a notch and be an offensive threat next year.

Wingers
Scott Hartnell ($4.2 million cap hit, 1 year left, UFA in 13-14)
Jaromir Jagr (Unrestricted Free Agent this year)
Jakub Voracek (Restricted Free Agent this year)
Max Talbot ($1.75 million cap hit, 4 years left, UFA in 16-17)
Wayne Simmonds ($1.75 million cap hit, 1 year left, RFA in 13-14)
Jody Shelley ($1.1 million cap hit, 1 year left, UFA in 13-14)
Matt Read ($900,000, 2 years left, UFA in 14-15)
Ian Laperriere (Unrestricted Free Agent this year)
James Van Riemsdyk ($4.25 million cap hit, 6 years left, UFA in 18-19)
Harry Zolnierczyk (Restricted Free Agent this year)
Eric Wellwood ($580,000, 1 year left, RFA in 13-14)
Tom Sestito (Restricted Free Agent this year)
Zac Rinaldo ($544,000, 1 year left, RFA in 13-14

Scott Hartnell stepped up his game tremendously last year, scoring a career high and team leading 37 goals on the line with Claude Giroux and Jaromir Jagr.
Jagr was a big surprise signing last year and an even bigger surprise on the ice. At 40, and two years out of the NHL, nobody expected him to have the year he had. Torwards the end of the year it did seem like he was battling injuries and starting to slow down. Laviolette took him off the top line several times throughout the Devils series. Signing Jagr is not the top priority for the Flyers front office unless they can get him for cheap. He did admit, this was his favorite year of hockey, and for a multiple Hart Trophy and Stanley Cup winner that is saying something.
Voracek is a restricted free agent and the team would love to bring back a player with his speed and heart. He fit in very nicely with the Flyers up tempo pace and they would be dumb to let him walk.
Talbot is signed through 16-17 and will continue to bring toughness and hard work, including a great locker room presence for years to come.
Wayne Simmonds fit right in with the Flyers toughness and instantly became a fan favorite, he will be back again next year and it wouldn't surprise me to see him receive an extension.
Jody Shelley still has a year left on his contract, but it looks like the NHL no longer has a place for his type of one dimensional play.
Matt Read was the surprise of the team after going undrafted and made a strong case for rookie of the year. He still has 2 years left on his contract and will get every chance to be a Flyer for a long time.
Laperriere was still under contract this year, but was on the pre game show due to his injuries. His career is over.
James Van Riemsdyk received a new contract and will be a Flyers as long as they want him too. He's signed through 2018, but he needs to stay healthy to not be a hot commodity on the trade market. He showed signs of being great throughout the year but could not stay on the ice. JVR has the potential to be a top player in this league, and the Flyers would prefer it be wearing orange.
Zolnierczyk showed flashes in his 30+ games this year, but not enough to beat out Eric Wellwood for a playoff roster spot. Harry Z is a restricted free agent and might not have a spot on this team next year, while Wellwood showed that he can bring energy and speed both offensively and on the penalty kill.
Sestito is a restricted free agent as well, and didn't show much for the Flyers to keep him around. He's a big body and plays hard and will likely end up somewhere else.
Rinaldo at times was the most loved player in the Wells Fargo Center and the hated other times. He was always there to get the crowd and more importantly his teammates pumped up with a huge hit, but then let them down with stupid penalties as well. He will be back next year and is a restricted free agent in 13-14.

Part 2 Defense and Goaltending will follow tomorrow. Stay tuned.