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Flyers Offseason Update

By Alex Whiteleather | July 3, 2009 | Passion and Pride

Coming off a season that saw the Flyers lose in the opening round of the playoffs to the eventual Stanley Cup champions the Flyers came into the offseason with quite a few questions to answer. With free agency starting to dry up it's time to look back at what the Flyers have done to catch up with the Penguins among other top teams.The Flyers have lacked a franchise goalie since Ron Hextall and it seems unlikely Ray Emery will be the answer to that problem but given the Flyers financial problems against the cap the signing seems worth it. Emery is a spark plug with immense talent but also a repuation for being confrontational with opposing teams as well as his own teammates. Emery led the Ottawa Senators to the Stanley Cup finals in 2006 but was exiled to the Russian league last year. Emery called the experience a humbling...

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A Hockey Town Reacts as a Hockey Town Should to the Arrival of a Much-Needed Bit of Bulk and Banging

By pucksandbooks | July 2, 2009 | On Frozen Blog

The signing of Mike Knuble is management's surgical strike against the cute.

Read more | 1 Comment | Tags: George McPhee, National Hockey League, Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals

In Pronger We Trust

By David Thomas | June 28, 2009 | Philly Sports 4 Life

The Flyers in a brave and bold move made a blockbuster deal this weekend. The Flyers parted way with some very good talent and a few #1 picks to fill a dire need.That dire need was a big, intimidating, feared, crease clearing defenseman........Answer................... Chris Pronger!There are already to strong schools of thought on the move. One valid case is the Flyers gave up a ton for a 34 year old defenseman with only 1 year left on his deal. The Flyers parted ways with 20+ goal scorer Joffrey Lupul, young defenseman Luca Sbisa, and two 1st rounds picks. It's a ton to give up especially dealing Sbisa. That one stings.The other side of the argument is the Flyers have a bunch of 20+ goal scorers. Sbisa is still young and would not be a stud, if he turned out to be, for at least a few more years. The two...

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2009 NHL ENTRY DRAFT

By Colin Jeffrey | June 27, 2009 | Colin Jeffrey's 301

Howdy from Ottawa....draft night! No surprises through the top 3 picks. Can't believe Philly gave up Lupul, Sbisa, two 1st rounder's and a conditional 3rd to Anaheim for Pronger who has all but 1-yr left on his contract. The rumour now is Flyers F Daniel Briere is going to be moved (Montreal?) to make cap room for Pronger. The Ducks on the other hand save $1 mil. on the deal, get two roster players and two real high picks in a deep draft. Also with Scott Nidermayer returning, I can only assume the Ducks will save another $1 million plus as Scott...

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, NHL, Ottawa Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks

Philly Sports Chatter

By David Thomas | June 26, 2009 | Philly Sports 4 Life

PHILLIES:The Phillies are having a miserable June. They lost again tonight in Tampa losing the series.The only good news for the Phillies recently is Brad Lidge was activated off the DL today and will be ready for action.The problem list is long. Jimmy Rollins is in amazing slump. He is barely hitting .200 and is starting to have more defensive lapses. It's time to move him out of the lead off spot. I say move him to the 6-hole for at least a month. Move Werth or Victorino to leadoff. I would vote Werth. He works the count better than Shane (besides when he swung at the 1st pitch with the bases loaded on three straight walks in Tampa).Hopefully Ryan Madson will return to form back in his regular 8th inning role. Blowing 3 saves in one week can play games with your head. The bullpen is getting fried cause...

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Philly Sports Weekend Wrap

By David Thomas | June 14, 2009 | Philly Sports 4 Life

PHILLIES:The much anticipated series between the Redsox and the Phillies lived up to its billing. Many people agree this is a possible World Series matchup. It's a little early to go that far but this series in mid-june was great. It did not come without some controversy.Friday night was a pitcher's duel between Joe Blanton and John Lester. The game went extra innings and it appeared that Greg Dobbs hit a 3-run game winning homerun. It was ruled a foul ball. It was a tough call and I think it was probably foul, but the umpire refused to review. Manuel argued but the ump gave no explanation and said no review would occur.Good thing they pay for instant replay......Saturday was over before the rain delay. Bastardo came back to earth and the Phils where down 5-0 before the heavens opened. Enough said.... Sunday the Phils had to deal with Boston...

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A Week of NHL Playoffs Has Taught Us...

By Alan Smodic | April 22, 2009 | MVN Outsider

A week into the NHL Playoffs and only one series has been decided as of today -- a sweep of the St. Louis Blues by the Vancouver Canucks. I didn't think the Canucks would sweep, but I did believe they'd win.With their series win in mind from last night, we'll begin there.Vancouver wins 4-0 against St. Louis - Hockey fans knew at the beginning of this series that Roberto Luongo was good. The sweep just cements that fact. Luongo is a beast between the pipes and it's not out of the question to think that he could carry the Canucks to another series win. It's too early to tell what team Vancouver would play in the second round, but don't be surprised if it's able to advance.Detroit up 3-0 against Columbus - This series is over. If it doesn't end in a sweep Thursday night, I'll be surprised. I picked...Read more

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Quest for the Cup, Who's Your Pick?

By Alan Smodic | April 14, 2009 | MVN Outsider

In keeping tradition with the bracketology craze of college basketball, Faceoff-Factor and The Pensblog joined forces with an idea to create "Rinkotology" in an effort to raise money for the Mario Lemieux Foundation.As the name suggests, it works just the same as your NCAA March Madness pool... simply go to Rinkotology and fill out a bracket. But please donate at least $5 -- the foundation is a very worthy cause.With the introduction out of the way, let me break down my Rinkotology picks and see where I think this NHL Playoff season may be headed. Keep in mind that I've never once won a pool like this and my picks will probably not even happen. And as a Pens fan, I hope they don't happen, because I'd like to see them win it all. But I digress...Western Conference:The West is always Detroit's to lose. Just because San Jose finished the...Read more

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NHL Stock Market - Gagne Keeping the Lamp Lit

By Grant Beery | March 24, 2009 | MVN Outsider

RisingSan Jose SharksThis team is finally remembering how to consistently win games. It couldn't have come at a better time, either. With a win over the Avalanche on Sunday, the Sharks are now in sole possession of the top spot in the league. Leading Detroit by just one point and Boston by four, San Jose has looked very good, winning four of their last five games. Nabokov has had only 6 losses and amassed 4 shutouts since the All-Star break, gaining a .921 save percentage along the way. However, the big story is the scoring touch captain Joe Thornton has found. He's netted 6 goals in his last ten games, including a 3 point night in Phoenix on St. Patrick's Day."For what reason, I don't know. I don't know if I'm shooting more. Once you get into a little groove like that, you realize that every time you shoot you...Read more

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Top 10 Nice Guys of the NHL

By Grant Beery | March 14, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Last week, I brought you the black sheep of the NHL. This week, to give both sides a fair shake, I'm going to show you the nicest fellas ever to play the game.10. Alexander OvechkinOvechkin is probably the one player that enjoys playing the most. With every goal he scores he shows sheer excitement in his celebration. At the most recent All-Star Game, Ovechkin took the opportunity to have fun and put on a show for the crowd. While some have criticized Alex's casual attitude as showboating, it's really just a player enjoying his time in the NHL.9. Mark MessierPlaying 25 years in the NHL and the last active WHA player, Messier exemplified an older style of hockey. One of the most accomplished players in the league as well, Messier won 6 Stanley Cups and is the only professional athlete to be the captain of two different championship teams.Off the...Read more

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NHL Rumor Mill - What Exactly is a Staged Fight?

By Grant Beery | March 10, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Right now the 30 general managers of the NHL are meeting in Naples, FL to discuss a multitude of topics, but fighting will be at the forefront. The GMs would like to get rid of staged fights during games, which are predetermined bouts between two players that aren't in retaliation for anything; they just fight because that's what they're paid to do.At least that's what I think it is. I asked some fellow hockey fans on Twitter to give me their take on what they think a staged fight is."A boxing match""Wrestling"Okay, so apparently the people I follow on Twitter are just a bunch of smart asses. Moving on...Number CrunchersHere's some data the league put together on fighting in the NHL:21.6% - Number of fights this season have happened immediately following a faceoff, which is a 30 percent increase since 2000.23.6% - Number of fights started in defense of...Read more

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Deadline Passes Without Blockbuster Deal

By Alan Smodic | March 4, 2009 | MVN Outsider

The 2009 NHL trade deadline passed about three hours ago. The top story this year? ... well, take your pick. It pretty much depends on what team you follow.This time last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins made the splash of the day, acquiring Marian Hossa from the Thrashers for a slew of players. A "sexy" deal, as one radio personality put it. An equivalent to that one was not pulled today.But that doesn't mean that some playoff-bound, or playoff-dreaming teams didn't improve their rosters. Some notables today:The Calgary Flames made arguably the biggest move, adding F Olli Jokinen and D Jordan Leopold. The Pittsburgh Penguins were back at it again. GM Ray Shero already added Chris Kunitz in the Ryan Whitney trade last week. Today, amid some other small moves, he added veteran winger Bill Guerin in exchange for a conditional draft pick.Eastern Conference leading Boston Bruins added some veteran presence...Read more

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NHL Rumor Mill - Trade Deadline Eve Edition

By Grant Beery | March 3, 2009 | MVN Outsider

It's a national holiday for any hardcore hockey fan. Some take the day off of work (like me) and anticipate the arrival of new gifts to teams around the league. I am, of course, talking about the NHL Trade Deadline; the last day for teams to complete player trades during the season. This year it happens March 4th at 3pm ET. Tis the season for rumors and I'll break down some of the bigger ones that have been floating around the league. Ryan SmythAs Colorado's position drops in the Western Conference, star Ryan Smyth's keeps rising. While he has a no-trade clause on his contract, the Avalanche could certainly benefit from unloading his contract. Making $6.25 million for the next three seasons, one might think that big of a contract might be tough to move, but remember this is Ryan Smyth we're talking about. He once again proved his worth...Read more

Read more | Discuss | Tags: Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, Chris Pronger, Colorado Avalanche, Martin Biron, NHL, Philadelphia Flyers, Phoenix Coyotes, Ryan Smyth, St. Louis Blues

The NHL Trade Deadline Edition of the Power Poll

By Bryan Thiel | February 26, 2009 | MVN Outsider

With the Trade Deadline just around the corner in the NHL season, you can imagine what this week's theme is.This week we took a look at who each team might be trading (which is for a majority of clubs because they either feature a tradeable player or are on the fringe of decided whether they're buying or selling) or in a few cases, what the team needs. We also tossed in a few speculations just for fun.30. New York Islanders--(-19 points, Last week: -20 points): The New York Islanders could've been making a few moves at the deadline, but after getting ravaged by the injury bug, it's hard to finger who might be moved.Both Doug Weight and Mike Sillinger had potential (being free agents this offseason) but a season-ending injury for Sillinger and a sprained MCL for Weight means the probability for a deal is low (for Sillinger there's nothing,...Read more

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