A Fresh Start

By: Patrice L. Leonard

Is there anything more glorious than a fresh, new start? Ask any Flyer fan tonight and they will say, “no”. What went down at the Wachovia Center on Thursday evening was a rebirth of sorts. The old adage, out with the bad, in with the good, never rang truer. Now, I’m not going to mislead you, some of the old problems are still there and work definitely needs to be done, but for all intents and purposes, this team looked totally rejuvenated. The building felt different, the fans sounded different, you could see the energy in this team that had gone missing for at least the past year.

The young guys on the team played harder than others. That is what you should expect from a John Stevens coached team. He had the opportunity to coach them to a championship with the Phantoms during the lockout season. We all expected this from the likes of Mike Richards, RJ Umberger, Alexandre Picard, and Jeff Carter. A few of the veteran guys are stepping it up as well. Forsberg, as usual, set a good example with physical play and two goals, one during the shoot out. Sami Kapanen was, well, Sami Kapanen. And you never get a bad game from Mike Knuble. Newcomer Lars Johnsson, though lacking in minutes, brought a bright spot to the penalty-killing unit. Denis Gauthier returned to his physical style early and often.

Antero Niittymaki was great in goal, but I have to admit that I was slightly shocked at Stevens starting him over Esche tonight. If Robert Esche is to be put on the trading block, he will need to be showcased. He’ll play well if he thinks he’s playing for a job.

Now, the problem area: Defense. Not so much defense as defensemen. We still have the two oak trees to worry about. Derian Hatcher and Mike Rathje are killing this team with their Jurassic mobility. In the early stages of the season, I actually praised Hatcher. He did look faster and more agile. I think he is starting to feel his age now. This is a game of youth and speed, not just brute force. Those were the good old days in the NHL. They have been written in the history books and it is now time to move on. Rathje and Hatcher are slow and a hazard on the ice, both with too many give-aways to count.

John Stevens sent down Nolan Baumgartner and sat Freddy Meyer. One, I understand, that being Freddy Meyer. He is having a horrid year so far. Baumgartner would have done this team some good on the blue-line. He has size and some speed. Stevens in turn called up one of the “tough-guys” from the Phantoms in Tristan Grant. He and Ben Eager may very well become the new enforcers for this team given time. However, time is not what they had last night. Together they logged an ice time of about two and a half minutes. Not enough time to warrant them a spot on the roster unless Stevens plans to use them more in the future. Not enough time to warrant Stevens sitting Geoff Sanderson to make the roster spot available. Again, they are kinks that will work themselves out in due time.

The game against the Thrashers saw players like RJ Umberger and Mike Richards show why they are the future of this team. With unselfish play and hard work in the corners and in the open ice, they give us reason to think that this team is in very good hands for years to come. Now, if they can just convince Jeff Carter to not be so showy and pass of shoot the puck in an appropriate time, we’ll be okay. He is just too worried about making all his plays look pretty and spectacular; he often hesitates and misses the net altogether.

Overall, the Flyers got what they needed. Not just a win, but also a team win, with just a few minor exceptions. The fans got what they needed. A solid effort, some physical play, overtime, and a shoot out win. They big stars scored and the future stars played as if they were on fire. In addition, there is not doubt in my mind that Mike Richards will find the back of the net soon. Heaven knows he deserves it.