Philadelphia Flyers 2014-15 Season Primer

The Philadelphia Flyers are next up in our Metro division season primers. The Flyers are hoping to get off to a faster start this season.

Use the below Tabs to view Flyers info for this upcoming season, as well as some numbers from last year.

2013-14 record: 42-30-10, 94 points
Where they finished: 3rd in the Metropolitan; 6th in the East; 13th in the NHL; lost 4-3 in the first round of playoffs to the Rangers

Player Salaries: $76,846,190 (24)
Cap Payroll: $73,936,429
Bonuses: $1,500,000
Cap Space: -$4,936,429
Forwards: $37,150,000 (13)
Defensemen: $31,341,429 (9)
Goalies: $5,100,000 (2)
Source: CapGeek.com

In: Andrew Gordon RW, Blair Jones C/W, Michael Del Zotto D, Nick Schultz D, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare LW, R.J. Umberger LW/RW, Rob Zepp G, Ron Hextall GM , Zack Stortini RW

Out: Adam Hall RW/C, Ben Holmstrom C, Bruno Gervais D, Kris Newbury C/LW, Scott Hartnell LW, Steve Downie RW, Tye McGinn LW

2014-15 Team Outlook:

The 2013-14 season saw Philly start the year with captain Claude Giroux struggling to the point of minor trade speculation, but ended much better.

For one, Giroux finished the season with 28 goals and 86 points in 82 games, and second, the Flyers nearly beat the eventual Eastern Conference champions New York Rangers, in the first round of the playoffs, losing by a score of 2-1 in game seven.

The offseason has been fairly quiet in terms of player movement, with the biggest move of the offseason for the Flyers coming in the front office. Former general manager Paul Holmgren was promoted to team president, and new GM Ron Hextall was promoted from assistant general manager to fill the vacant spot.

It didn’t take Hextall long to make his stamp on the line-up, trading former all-star winger Scott Hartnell to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for a familiar face in R.J. Umberger.

On offense the Flyers top line will once again feature at centre Giroux and on the wing Jakub Voracek, with Umberger or possibly Michael Raffl on the other wing. The second-line will likely see Brayden Schenn in the middle with wingers Wayne Simmonds and one of Umberger or Matt Read. The bottom-six will see Sean Couturier at the pivot on the third-line with wingers Umberger, Read and/or  Raffl. Vincent Lecavalier could fit in on the wing somewhere or he could even centre the fourth-line. Other fourth-line candidates include Ryan White, Jason Akeson, Jay Rosehill, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare and Zac Rinaldo. Other forwards with shots at making the team are veterans Blair Jones, Chris VandeVelde, and Andrew Gordon, along with prospects Scott Laughton, Petr Straka, and Nick Cousins. Laughton will likely get the longest look of any player, as he is the team’s top offensive prospect who already possesses NHL skill and size at the age of 20.

Defensively, the Flyers have a massive amount of NHL quality depth. The back-end has given the Flyers trouble in recent years, hence why the team keeps drafting, trading for, and signing defenseman after defenseman, hoping to find a combination that works. Although Chris Pronger is still listed as an active player and counts against the cap listed above, his career is all but over and he will be added to the LTIR which will see his $4.9 million salary disappear off the books. On top of Pronger, defenseman Kimmo Timonen was recently diagnosed with blood clots in his lower right leg and both his lungs, meaning he is likely out for an extended period of time as well. As it stands right now the Flyers defense should have a top four of  Andrew MacDonald, Mark Streit, Braydon Coburn and Luke Schenn. Newcomer Michael Del Zotto (signed just hours after it was announced Timonen would be missing significant time) could be slotted along side defensive-defenseman Nicklas Grossmann on the third-pairing. The seventh defenseman will undoubtably be former Blue Jacket Nick Schultz, while prospects Mark Alt, Shayne Gostisbehere, Robert Hagg, Samuel Morin, and Travis Sanheim will try to force GM Hextall into keeping them around.

In net the Flyers will use the same tandem as last year, with Steve Mason as starter, backed up by Ray Emery. The combo provided enough support last year for the Flyers to win some games, with Mason doing most of the work. Mason appeared in 61 games to Emery’s 28, posting a 2.50 goals against average and a .917 save percentage to Emery’s 2.96 and .903

Philly has the offensive firepower to be a contender out of the East this season. On paper the team looks fairly deep, although we’ve been fooled by their “on paper” defensive depth in the past. Starting goalie Steve Mason needs to take another step forward this year if the Flyers truly want to make some noise during the playoffs; and yes, they will make the playoffs. If Mason can fully return to the form he showed the league during his rookie season, combined with the defense holding up, and Giroux leading a stellar offense, this team could be easily find themselves in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2014-15.

Written by Greg Stamper, who can be found on twitter @g_stamp91.

The depth chart listed below was taken from NHL.com’s 30-in-30. (posted before Timonen went down with the blood clot and Del Zotto’s signing)

FORWARDS
Michael Raffl – Claude Giroux – Jakub Voracek
Jason Akeson – Brayden Schenn – Wayne Simmonds
R.J. Umberger – Sean Couturier – Matt Read
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare – Vincent Lecavalier – Zac Rinaldo
Jay Rosehill

DEFENSEMEN
Kimmo Timonen – Braydon Coburn
Andrew MacDonald – Luke Schenn
Nicklas Grossmann – Mark Streit
Nick Schultz

GOALTENDERS
Steve Mason
Ray Emery

Forwards POS HT WT DOB BIRTH PLACE
Jason Akeson R 5′ 10″ 190 3-Jun-90 OTTAWA, ON, CAN
Sean Couturier C 6′ 3″ 197 7-Dec-92 PHOENIX, AZ, USA
Claude Giroux C 5′ 11″ 172 12-Jan-88 HEARST, ON, CAN
Vincent Lecavalier C 6′ 4″ 215 21-Apr-80 ILE BIZARD, QC, CAN
Michael Raffl L 6′ 0″ 195 1-Dec-88 VILLACH, AUT
Matt Read R 5′ 10″ 185 14-Jun-86 ILDERTON, ON, CAN
Zac Rinaldo C 5′ 11″ 169 15-Jun-90 MISSISSAUGA, ON, CAN
Jay Rosehill L 6′ 3″ 215 16-Jul-85 OLDS, AB, CAN
Brayden Schenn C 6′ 1″ 190 22-Aug-91 SASKATOON, SK, CAN
Wayne Simmonds R 6′ 2″ 183 26-Aug-88 SCARBOROUGH, ON, CAN
R.J. Umberger C 6′ 2″ 214 3-May-82 PITTSBURGH, PA, USA
Jakub Voracek R 6′ 2″ 214 15-Aug-89 KLADNO, CZE
Defensemen HT WT AGE DOB BIRTH PLACE
Braydon Coburn 6′ 5″ 220 29 27-Feb-85 SHAUNAVON, SK, CAN
Michael Del Zotto 6′ 0″ 195 24 24-Jun-90 STOUFFVILLE, ON, CAN
Nicklas Grossmann 6′ 4″ 230 29 22-Jan-85 STOCKHOLM, SWE
Andrew Macdonald 6′ 1″ 190 27 7-Sep-86 JUDIQUE, NS, CAN
Chris Pronger 6′ 6″ 220 39 10-Oct-74 DRYDEN, ON, CAN
Luke Schenn 6′ 2″ 229 24 2-Nov-89 SASKATOON, SK, CAN
Nick Schultz 6′ 1″ 203 31 25-Aug-82 STRASBOURG, SK, CAN
Mark Streit 5′ 11″ 191 36 11-Dec-77 BERN, CHE
Kimmo Timonen 5′ 10″ 194 39 18-Mar-75 KUOPIO, FIN
Goalies HT WT AGE DOB BIRTH PLACE
Ray Emery 6′ 2″ 196 31 28-Sep-82 HAMILTON, ON, CAN
Steve Mason 6′ 4″ 217 26 29-May-88 OAKVILLE, ON, CAN

A look at the Philadelphia Flyers top prospects heading into this season. Each source may use different classifications as to if a player is deemed a prospect or has graduated on from a prospect.

RK NHL.com ESPN
Corey Pronman
Dobber Prospects Hockeys Future The Hockey News
1 Scott Laughton Scott Laughton Jason Akeson Scott Laughton Scott Laughton
2 Robert Hagg Robert Hagg Scott Laughton Sam Morin Travis Sanheim
3 Shayne Gostisbehere Travis Sanheim Shayne Gostisbehere Shayne Gostisbehere Sam Morin
4 Sam Morin Shayne Gostisbehere Sam Morin Travis Sanheim Shayne Gostisbehere
5 Anthony Stolarz Sam Morin Nicolas Aube-Kubel Robert Hagg Nicolas Aube-Kubel
6 Travis Sanheim Oscar Lindblom Petr Straka Mark Alt Nick Cousins
7 Mark Alt Taylor Leier Anthony Stolarz Nicolas Aube-Kubel Mark Alt
8 Taylor Leier Anthony Stolarz Robert Hagg Nick Cousins Anthony Stolarz
9 Nicolas Aube-Kubel Nicolas Aube-Kubel Taylor Leier Mark Friedman Robert Hagg
10 Brandon Alderson Nick Cousins Travis Sanheim Anthony Stolarz Taylor Leier

* Dobber Prospects – Prospects based on relevance in a fantasy-hockey keeper league, not actual talent on the ice.

Philadelphia Flyers Draft History from the past five years

2014 Draft
Rd. Draft # Player Pos. Team Ht. Wt.
1 17 Travis Sanheim D Calgary (WHL) 6′ 3″ 190
2 48 Nicolas Aube-Kubel RW Val D’Or (QMJHL) 5’11” 187
3 86 Mark Friedman D Waterloo (USHL) 5′ 10″ 185
5 138 Oskar Lindblom LW Brynas Jr. (SWE) 6′ 1″ 191
6 168 Radel Fazleev C Calgary (WHL) 6′ 0″ 176
7 198 Jesper Pettersson D Linkoping (SWE) 5′ 9″ 187
2013 Draft
1 11 Samuel Morin D Rimouski (QMJHL) 6′ 7″ 205
2 41 Robert Hagg D MODO (SWE) 6′ 2″ 205
3 72 Tyrell Goulbourne LW Kelowna (WHL) 5′ 10″ 195
5 132 Terrance Amorosa D Holderness HS (NH) 6′ 1″ 185
6 162 Merrick Madsen G Proctor Academy (HS NH ) 6′ 4″ 177
7 192 David Drake D Des Moines (USHL) 6′ 3″ 155
2012 Draft
1 20 Scott Laughton C Oshawa (OHL) 6′ 0″ 170
2 45 Anthony Stolarz G Corpus Christi (NAHL) 6′ 5″ 200
3 78 Shayne Gostisbehere D Union College (ECAC) 5’11” 160
4 111 Fredrik Larsson D Brynas Jr (Swe) 6′ 3″ 172
4 117 Taylor Leier LW Portland (WHL) 5’10” 174
5 141 Reece Willcox D Merritt (BCHL) 6′ 3″ 184
7 201 Valeri Vasiliev D Spartak 2 (Rus) 6′ 1″ 203
2011 Draft
1 8 Sean Couturier C Drummondville (QMJHL) 6′ 4″ 195
3 68 Nick Cousins C Sault Ste. Marie  (OHL) 5′ 9″ 155
4 116 Colin Suellentrop D Oshawa (OHL) 6′ 1″ 190
4 118 Marcel Noebels LW Seattle (WHL) 6′ 2″ 195
6 176 Petr Placek F Hotchkiss School (CZE) 6′ 3″ 175
7 206 Derek Mathers RW Peterborough (OHL) 6′ 3″ 225
2010 Draft
3 89 Michael Chaput C Lewiston 6′ 2″ 194
4 119 Tye McGinn LW Gatineu 6′ 2″ 205
5 149 Michael Parks F Cedar Rapids 5’11” 188
6 179 Nicholas Luukko D The Gunnery 6′ 2″ 180
7 206 Ricard Blidstrand D Aik Jr. 6′ 3″ 202
7 209 Brendan Ranford LW Kamloops 5’10” 182
Player GP G A P +/- PIM PP SH GW S S%
Claude Giroux 82 28 58 86 7 46 7 0 7 223 12.6
Jakub Voracek 82 23 39 62 11 22 8 0 2 235 9.8
Wayne Simmonds 82 29 31 60 -4 106 15 0 4 209 13.9
Scott Hartnell 78 20 32 52 11 103 9 0 3 207 9.7
Mark Streit 82 10 34 44 3 44 4 0 2 121 8.3
Brayden Schenn 82 20 21 41 0 54 4 0 6 178 11.2
Matt Read 75 22 18 40 -4 16 0 4 3 151 14.6
Sean Couturier 82 13 26 39 1 45 0 1 2 165 7.9
Vincent Lecavalier 69 20 17 37 -16 44 8 0 3 132 15.2
Kimmo Timonen 77 6 29 35 5 32 1 0 1 152 3.9
Michael Raffl 68 9 13 22 2 28 0 0 3 101 8.9
Braydon Coburn 82 5 12 17 -6 63 0 1 2 122 4.1
Andrej Meszaros 38 5 12 17 1 34 0 0 0 62 8.1
Steve Downie 51 3 14 17 -3 70 2 0 0 62 4.8
Nicklas Grossmann 78 1 13 14 -6 55 0 0 0 71 1.4
Luke Schenn 79 4 8 12 0 58 0 0 0 78 5.1
Erik Gustafsson 31 2 8 10 7 6 0 0 0 30 6.7
Adam Hall 80 4 5 9 -15 23 0 2 0 61 6.6
Tye Mcginn 18 4 1 5 -1 4 0 0 0 16 25
Andrew Macdonald 19 0 4 4 -3 16 0 0 0 20 0
Zac Rinaldo 67 2 2 4 -13 153 0 0 1 54 3.7
Maxime Talbot 11 1 1 2 1 2 0 0 0 14 7.1
Jay Rosehill 34 2 0 2 -8 90 0 0 0 14 14.3
Kris Newbury 4 0 1 1 0 7 0 0 0 1 0
Chris Vandevelde 18 0 1 1 -3 6 0 0 0 8 0
Jason Akeson 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 0
Hal Gill 6 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 0
Goalie GPI GS MIN GAA W L OT SO SA GA SV%
Steve Mason 61 60 3486 2.50 33 18 7 4 1751 145 0.917
Ray Emery 28 21 1398 2.96 9 12 2 2 711 69 0.903
Calvin Heeter 1 1 64 4.69 0 0 1 0 38 5 0.868

Performance and Usage Charts for the Philadelphia Flyers from last season, from Extra Skater.

Exit mobile version