myerstownherald.com

By ERIC FISHER
The Flyers’ first-round loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins last April contained two lessons. First, it demonstrated how close the Flyers were to beating the eventual Stanley Cup champions.
Second, it revealed what needed to be done to close the gap.
The Penguins, who have eliminated the Flyers the past two seasons (including the 2008 Eastern Conference finals), aren’t going anywhere. With centers Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin and goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, the Penguins should be Cup contenders for years. If the Flyers want to win that elusive Stanley Cup – the franchise’s last Cup was in 1975 – they’ll have to get past the Penguins.
General manager Paul Holmgren quickly addressed the Flyers’ most pressing needs. Improve the defense? Check. Acquire a veteran forward to take some pressure off budding stars Mike Richards and Jeff Carter? Check. Improve the goaltending? Check.
Holmgren also managed to make the Flyers even nastier. Few opponents will look forward to facing the orange and black this season.
The defense was improved with the blockbuster trade for Chris Pronger, whom the Flyers promptly signed to a long-term contract. Pronger (6-foot-6, 230 pounds), a former NHL MVP and Norris Trophy (best defenseman) winner, elevates an already-good defense to another level.
Pronger, who will turn 35 a week from Saturday, can help in numerous ways. Despite his age, Pronger can still log a ton of ice time. His shot will help the power play. His experience will help the younger defenseman and the team’s young leaders. And his physical presence and mean streak will have opponents’ heads on a swivel as they enter the Flyers’ zone or dig for pucks near the net.
Pronger was the marquee addition, but the quiet signing of veteran forward Ian Laperriere also was an adept move. Like Pronger, Laperriere, 35, adds veteran experience and toughness. Most importantly, Laperriere’s penalty-killing and face-off skills will give Carter and Richards a break.
Carter and Richards (both are 24) excelled last season, but both players were seemingly on the ice in every key situation. Many felt this dynamic young duo wore down by the end of the season, although shoulder injuries certainly impacted both players’ production during the Penguins series.
The final item on Holmgren’s checklist was goaltending. Martin Biron and Antero Niittymaki were both good, but there was a feeling that neither was good enough to lead the Flyers to the Cup.
The Flyers’ choice of Ray Emery as their new goalie raised some eyebrows. Emery misbehaved himself out of the NHL after a few turbulent years with the Ottawa Senators. Forced to play in Russia, the hot-tempered Emery didn’t help himself by taking a swing at the team’s trainer, a video clip that got played and replayed all over the world.
The Flyers, however, saw a talented goalie seeking another chance. They remembered that he led Ottawa to the 2007 Stanley Cup finals, a level the Flyers haven’t reached since 1997.
The Flyers took a risk by signing Emery, but it isn’t a big one. His relatively inexpensive contract is for one year. Considering he just turned 27 earlier this week, Emery could find himself a long-term home with good behavior and better goaltending.
Did I mention that Emery, who has adorned his goalie mask with pictures of Philadelphia boxing legends Bernard Hopkins and Joe Frazier, is a heckuva fighter?
Adding Pronger, Laperriere and Emery renewed the criticism that Holmgren and the Flyers organization are living in the past by trying to recreate The Broad Street Bullies.
Although it’s meant as criticism, the Bullies analogy works. The Bullies were renowned for their brawling, but they also were extremely talented. Bob Clarke, Bill Barber and Bernie Parent are in the NHL Hall of Fame. Rick MacLeish and Reggie Leach were top-notch snipers. Even chief enforcer Dave Schultz scored 20 goals during the Flyers’ first Cup-winning season.
So, yes, the Flyers added Pronger and Laperriere to a roster that already includes the pugnacious Riley Cote, Dan Carcillo and Arron Asham. But they also have tons of talent, most of it young.
Carter (46 goals last season) and Richards (30 goals) are joined in the 30-goal club by 27-year-old Scott Hartnell (30 goals). Joining these young guns this season are 21-year-old center Claude Giroux, who was impressive in half a season last year, and 20-year-old left wing James van Reimsdyk, the No. 2 pick in the 2007 draft.
Even Simon Gagne (34 goals), the longest-tenured Flyer, is just 29. If Danny Briere can bounce back from an injury-plagued season in which he played just 29 games, the Flyers’ offense could be fearsome.
After Kimmo Timonen and Pronger, the talented defense is also young, with Braydon Coburn, Matt Carle, Ryan Parent, Ole-Kristian Tollefson and Danny Syvret all 25 or younger.
The Flyers already have a spot in the big game – the Winter Classic at Fenway Park on January 1. But their eyes are on even bigger games, the ones that take place in late May and early June.
With their mix of experience and youth, combined with talent and toughness, they just might get there.