Now as we’ve heard before this move for an affordable defense man is to open up room for depth at right wing. In one of our late night chats, Paul and I spoke about who the Flyers should bring in to fill the position. We mostly discussed Petr Sykora and Miroslav Satan. Paul liked the latter more than the former and I would have to agree for the same reasons but why only look at these two guys to fill that spot? Sykora disappeared in the playoffs last year to the point where Pittsburgh kept him a healthy scratch to bring up Satan. Paul reminded me of the work ethic that Satan has shown his entire career and the lack there of that Sykora shows. So if these were the only two that the Flyers could afford or were interested in, Satan would be my choice. But, for the sake of argument, let’s look at some wingers that are still out there.
Maxim Afinogenov – Not a good year due to injuries which in turn could lower his asking price significantly. He played quite a few years with Danny Briere so he has a friend on the team. Turning 30 in September, Afinogenov managed 20 points in 48 games. Like I said not a good year but does bring something to the table.
Mike Grier – A little older than Afinogenov, Grier is 34 with a solid work ethic and he could complete a checking line. He’s a player I can only compare to Ian Laperriere. He kills penalties, fights, checks, he is a general momentum player. 23 points in 62 games with a +8plus/minus rating is pretty decent for a 34 year old 3rd or 4th line player. Also with the major waves of signing well gone his asking price has fallen I’m sure.
Now those two are about the only right wingers that the Flyers should be interested in. Slim pickings there but there are quite a few left wingers that they could rotate to the right side. After all if your only job opportunity was to play right wing instead of left you would take it right? Alex Tanguay is obviously the biggest name available next to Brendan Shanahan. Tanguay price is far more than the Flyers can afford and Shanahan has set his sights on New Jersey or New York. So those two will not make the list unfortunately.
Kyle Calder - Former Flyer. Someone that I felt actually made a difference to the team. Again, not a stellar scorer. 27 points in 74 games played. One big bonus is his discipline. 41 PIM in those 74 games. A solid winger who can kill penalties with guys like Laperriere.
Mark Bell – Split last year between the Toronto Marlies and the Hartford Wolfpack of the AHL. A fair amount of controversy off the ice, not many teams are interested. Only 28 years old he posted 18 goals and 41 points combined with his two teams last season. I’ll probably get a little negativity from this suggestion since we have the controversy filled career of Ray Emery but I think Bell could be a solid contributor.
Most of this was just talk about who was out there to grab. I would still expect to see Satan be the guy they signed, but still keep a look out for any of these names to pop up. Whoever they do decide to bring in let’s hope he can fill the void at wing for us. Enjoy your day and LETS GO FLYERS!!
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Sup Justin. :)
I have to say I learn a lot from our little chats. There's always something new to talk about and it's fun to have someone who doesn't shoot down every possibile scenario.
Other than the fact that Afinogenov isn't on the Flyers radar, he takes WAY too many shots. For what it will probably take to sign him, it'll be too much.
The checking line will be fine with a combination of Carcillo, Cote, Asham, Powe and Nodl (once he signs). Although, I'd probably put my own Mother on the checking line over Carcillo if she was under contract.
The thing about Kyle Calder is, if you're looking to him for depth, I think you're looking in the wrong direction. 21 points in 59 games is bad even on the 3rd line.
Out of these 4, Bell would probably be the one I'd prefer. Of course he has controversy. If athletes were followed like movie stars, you would see a ton more controversy than what we do see. He's a presence at 6' 4", 220 lbs and has shown he can score and set up the play. Him with Briere and Asham on the 3rd line would work wonders.
I'm not gonna go on the controversy rant right now, I'll save that for another day. ;)
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