James van Riemsdyk is off to a hot start for Flyers

The oft-maligned James van Riemsdyk is silencing his critics in every possible way thus far. There were plenty of touch times when he came back to the Flyers for a second stint. After posting a career high 36 goals for Toronto, van Riemsdyk signed a massive five-year/$35M contract to come back to the city where it all began.

It was fair to say that fans were expecting to see that kind of production, especially with that kind of contract. Unfortunately, van Riemsdyk was injured blocking a shot two games into the season. He would miss six weeks but go on to score 27 goals, his third highest output and his most in a Flyers uniform.

Things went down from there as he posted 19 goals the following season. He was still one of the team’s top scorers, but it was clear he wasn’t living up to expectations. He was challenged by Alain Vigneault and even scratched multiple times during the playoffs last year.

He is now hot out of the gate this season. After posting a four-point outing against the New York Islanders, van Riemsdyk has five goals and 13 points in 10 games. Eight of those points have come in the Flyers last four games. His four assists were the most he has posted in a game. It was also the second time he collected four points in a game.

Two of his last six games have featured multi-goal outings as well. van Riemsdyk has only gone pointless on three occasions. He was recently named the NHL’s Eastern Division Player of the Month.

“Getting some puck luck, some pucks are going in. I definitely feel confident in my game, though. I put lot of work in  in the off-season…It’s nice that I’ve been able to contribute and chip in offensively.

What has been more noticeable is van Riemsdyk’s playmaking ability. His last six points have been assists in games where he hasn’t been recorded with a shot. That came after a two-goal, seven shot affair against New Jersey. That wasn’t necessarily by design, though. It can all depend on the line combinations and what’s being made available in a given night, according to van Riemsdyk.

Either way, that consistency is something that the Flyers need to continue seeing from van Riemsdyk. Not necessarily because of the contract, but if the team wants to truly become a contender in their division and in the league. They are doing so right now as they sit first in the division fourth in the league.

While their 7-2-1 record may be hard to believe with how they’ve played thus far, van Riemsdyk is a big part of that. Coming into this season, a lot of fans thought that he was a candidate to be exposed to Seattle in the expansion draft. Even as a top scorer on the team, they weren’t seeing the consistency they wanted from him.

Now he producing on almost a nightly basis and helping the team get off to this strong start. While he could still be one of the players unprotected, it’s looking like it would be more of a loss than originally expected.