Carcillo vs. Sbisa By The Numbers

During the much maligned Daniel Carcillo era, the Flyers have gone 10-10-1, which makes for a 47.6% winning percentage.

During the Luca Sbisa era (October-January), the Flyers went 26-14-9, good for a 53.1% winning percentage. They also had a much greater percentage of their losses in OT, which of course is largely meaningless in playoffs, but speaks to the losses being closer.

All in all, good news. Unless you read between the lines...

The record during the interregnum between Carcillo and Sbisa? 8-4-1, good for a 61.5% winning percentage. That was the stretch leading up to the Upshall-Carcillo trade, since which the Flyers have only won 47.6% of their games. That's a drop-off of about 14 percent, which is pretty huge.

I promise I'll try not to say anything more about Scottie Upshall the remainder of the playoffs. I'll try to try. But it's so hard...

Game #80 Review: Flyers 1 @ Rangers 2 4/9/09

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Eh, we'll get em on Sunday.

• What a horrible way to start a hockey game. Biron gets shoved into the net, and there's no whistle, and the Rangers take the lead in the first minute. The Flyers played pretty well (though they're not finishing their chances well), and deserved better than to have the game marred by that crap.
• This is the second time that I've blamed the officials for a loss, which is pretty low. The only other time I blamed the refs? The last game at Madison Square Garden against the Rangers. Hmm...
• Daniel Carcillo is certainly persona non grata in these parts, but he was alright tonight. Scoring just one goal will cure a lot. Not that I'll stop dumping on him, but at least this unimpressive stat will go away: Carcillo has scored zero goals in eighteen games as a Flyer. But in his one game against the Flyers this year as a Coyote, he managed to score a goal. Not cool. Oh, and Scottie Upshall managed to score again tonight...
• Martin Biron looked good--neither goal was his fault, and he didn't get rattled from that BS first goal.
• Hurricanes lost for the first time in forever, which keeps the Flyers tenuous hold on fourth in tact. Pittsburgh won, though, so there are now three teams tied at 96 points. The Flyers have two games left to Carolina and Pittsburgh's one apiece, but as of now have the fewest wins of the three, which is the tiebreaker.
  

Only two more games left in the entire regular season, at Islanders on Saturday and vs. the Rangers on Sunday. Saturday is a potential trap game, and would be incredibly easy to overlook, with the Rangers and a little thing called the playoffs on the horizon.

Just to Twist the Knife a Little More...

See that guy scoring that clutch game winning goal? Yep, that's Scottie Upshall. Remember him?

It was Scottie's sixth goal with the Coyotes in fifteen games with them. That's a goal every three games.

And Daniel Carcillo, who we gave up Scottie and a second round draft pick for? Well, since he joined the Flyers, he's averaging less than a goal every three games. To be more specific, he's averaging zero goals every fourteen games. The Flyers have gone a less than spectacular 7-7 since Carcillo's arrival, going 8-3-1 in the twelve games before he showed up.

"But Salmon, Carcillo is such a good fighter! And he leads the league in penalty minutes! And he fights!"

In case you haven't figured this part out yet, fights don't win hockey games. The way a team wins a hockey game is by outscoring the other team. A key part of that word, "outscoring," is "scoring." A key part of that word isn't "leading the league in penalty minutes."

Sigh.

Still Bitter

Scottie Upshall has scored three goals in his five games with the Phoenix Coyotes. Daniel Carcillo has scored zero goals in his four games with the Philadelphia Flyers.

And despite this, the Flyers have the gall to say that Carcillo is "a perfect fit." Perfect fits score goals. Perfect fits get more than one point in four games. Carcillo may like playing for the Flyers a whole lot, but for it to be a "perfect fit," it has to be a little more mutual.

I'm still willing to wait a little while longer before completely giving up on Carcillo. But patience is wearing thin. He better do something big this weekend in the two games vs. New York.

Or at least he can spill some of Sean Avery's blood on the ice.

With 100% of Precincts Reporting...

Democracy is as Philadelphian as driving to Delaware to buy cheaper booze. Flyers fans Philadelphian and non-Philadelphian made their voices heard in our entirely scientific poll, and voted in a strong plurality to dispose of Randy Jones. Although it is possible that sixteen or so of Jones' votes were cast by the Bergeron family.

And yet, despite the overwhelming mandate of the masses, Paul Holmgren sent away Scottie Upshall, who only got one vote, a vote which I know came after his trade had been announced.

So should Paul Holmgren get a pass? Sam Cardichi and Flyers Goal Scored By... seem to think so. I'm not so sure. Daniel Carcillo hasn't been terrible by any means, but he hasn't been great. Upshall wasn't putting up huge numbers either. They've been about the same. In the long run, Carcillo for Upshall will probably be a pretty even trade.

Except that the deal wasn't just Carcillo for Upshall. It was Carcillo for Upshall and a second round pick. And picks, except for the occasional James Van Riemsdyk, are worth holding on to. I don't think anybody can honestly say at this point that the deal has worked out well for the Flyers yet. If Carcillo catches fire down the stretch and into the playoffs, then it's time to be giving the deal a thumbs up. But not until then.

We still love ya, Homer. You took the Flyers from 30th to the conference finals in one season, which was totally unprecedented and unexpected. And it's just hard to stay mad at a guy whose hair manages to stay at such sharp right angles.

Well, At Least He's Happy

I realize I've been pretty obsessive over the departure of Scottie Upshall. He's getting a lot more coverage here now than he did when he was actually on the team. And until this deal proves to be anything better than horrendous, that's the way it's gonna stay for the forseeable future.

On the heels of that sad sad sad airport interview, it's sorta nice to see Scottie already so chipper with his new crew. Then again, I don't like that he could get over us so fast. Mourn a while, bud, for our sakes.

Scottie's part of the vid starts around the 1:00 mark.

Game #63 Review: Flames 5 @ Flyers 1 3/5/09

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So this is how good the Flyers are after the trade deadline. Pathetic.

• While the Flyers were busy giving up FOUR goals in the first period, a guy you may have heard of named Scottie Upshall was busy scoring a goal up in Boston, and leading his lowly Coyotes to a win over the mighty Bruins. Remember when he was scoring goals for the Flyers? That was nice. The video is below, if you wanna twist the knife some more.
  
  
• As much as I'm ready to hate him, Daniel Carcillo wasn't all bad tonight. Didn't do much special, but didn't do anything worse than anybody. Then again, his new teammates set the bar perilously low.
• This was the second REAL bad first period in a row for Antero Niittymaki in as many home games. Gave up four to Calgary after giving up three to Montreal. The goalie carousel keeps turning...
• These Flames look damn good with their new acquisitions. You gotta like their chances of making it out of the West.
• Riley Cote fought early for a reason. He really has to prove his relevance now with two capable fighters in Arron Asham and Carcillo in the line up, both of whom can occasionally put a puck in the net. Something Riles can't even imagine doing.
• More on the Briere injury disaster later. I don't hate myself enough to write about it now.

In conclusion, this game was absolutely gross and horrible. Paired with wins from Pittsburgh and the Rangers, this night went just about as badly as it possibly could have.

Game #63 Preview: Flames @ Flyers 3/5/09

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The Calgary Flames are a real nice team to watch. They're tough and orangey, easily the Flyers of the West. They've got a stud goalie in Kiprusoff, and a stud star in Iginla. They're physical and scrappy, and easily my second favorite team in the league (though obviously way out of first place).

Why The Flyers Will Win:

• The Flyers are coming off their best game of the season on Tuesday, and no reason that momentum doesn't hold.
• I'm not sure who gets the start for the Flyers tonight goaliewise, but if it's Niittymaki that's great because he's been so good lately, and if it's Biron that's great since he has something to prove.
• The Flames are exactly the kind of team Briere should do well against. Look for him to have a big night.
• Remember all the excitement about how healthy the Flyers were for the Boston game? They're still just as healthy.

Why The Flames Will Win:

• Morale in the Flyers locker room has to be weird right now, with the departure of Upshall. Carcillo is said to be a popular guy in Phoenix, but a lot of the Flyers probably miss their boy.
• With the departure of #9, the Flyers now have only two players on their roster with single digit numbers, Coburn (#5) and Jones (#6). Not sure what that means, but I'm guessing it's not good.

No prediction, can't really get a good feel for this game. Could be real good, could be real bad. Meh.

Oh Yeah, This Guy Came Too

In the little time since I stopped sobbing over the departure of Scottie Upshall, I found out the Flyers made a seemingly much better deal as well today, this one a sixth round pick in exchange for San Jose's Kyle McLaren. McLaren is a very solid defensemen, and a sixth round pick is nothing. And McLaren will clearly love living in Pennsylvania, because it's obvious from the above picture that the dude is Amish.

With that introduction out of the way, time to get back to crying. Scottie got beamed up, and he didn't even know. This video of Scottie at the airport from CSN Philly (click "Scottie Upshall is Sad to Leave Philadelphia - 3/4") makes it abundantly clear that he doesn't want to leave at all. Sad sad sad.

ETA: Vid is up on YouTube now, for your convenience below

Great Moments In Scottie Upshall History

It's a good thing this blog already is cloaked in black, because we're going to be in mourning over the death departure of Scottie Upshall for a while.

Scottie Upshall had an absolutely phenomenal last game for the Flyers, but he really showed his chops as a Flyer in the playoffs last year, scoring three pretty huge goals. And here they are.

Huge momentum shifting goal in Game 7 vs. Washington

Huge deflating goal in Game 3 vs. Montreal

Huge series clinching goal in Game 5 vs. Montreal

Not only can he score, but the dude also likes cheesesteaks. And we hear the Phoenix cheesesteak scene ain't so hot.

And lastly, who can forget when he commentated on Sergei Brylin's whining with "what a fucking pussy."

Sigh, good times.

Pack Up That Crib, Scottie

Scottie Upshall (and a second round pick) was the only Flyers castoff today on deadline day, going in a trade no one saw coming to Phoenix for Daniel Carcillo (WTF?).

This trade sucks on so many levels. Everybody liked Upshall. He was a quick pest with a great shot, who was huge in the playoffs last year and a great energy guy. He was on an exciting new line with Giroux and Briere that looked great. There was nothing wrong with him (note how he got ZERO votes on our scientific poll of who the Flyers need to get rid of).

Carcillo, if we're lucky, is a Steve Downie 2.0. On paper, he's absolutely the last thing the Flyers need. A guy with only three goals and seven assists in 54 games. Not to mention the league leading 174 penalty minutes, which the Flyers were apparently after in an attempt to be short handed the entire game as opposed to just half of it. For those of you keeping score at home, he's got four fewer goals than Upshall, seven fewer assists, and way more penalty minutes.

Did the Flyers need another fighter? We already have one too many, dressing both Asham and Cote regularly. I know we have a reputation to protect, but dressing three enforcers is just absurd.

AND we gave up a second round pick for this chump. You know who once came to the Flyers via a second round draft pick? BOBBY CLARKE.

Scottie now has to move to Phoenix (big downgrade) to play for the Coyotes, who are pretty much out of playoff contention. Plus he's gotta pack up and move out of this sweet crib.

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Hope you come back to Philly during your free agency this summer, Scottie. You'll be missed.

Game #62 Review: Flyers 4 @ Bruins 2 3/3/09

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Huge.

Huge.

Huge.

Big big game. Right to it.

• This was a real reassuring game for a team with a whole lot of drama surrounding it. The drama won't necessarily end in these last fifteen or so hours before the deadline, but this game might take away some of the urgency Holmgren is probably feeling.
• I'm one to play favorites, but I really haven't had one Flyer stand out for me since Sami Kapanen left. I'm not looking for like a Carter or Richards who everyone knows is awesome, but somebody whose name isn't on a lot of jerseys. And damn, Scottie Upshall sure was that guy tonight. He's not big but absolutely leveled people out there, and he's not known for being a great goal scorer, but he had a real nice goal tonight, and if you remember he got a game-tying goal in Game 7 against Washington and the series winning goal vs Montreal in Game 5. He gets stuck on the third line mostly, but if he was on one of the top two lines he'd most certainly have ~25 goals a season.
• The NESN announcers made some reference to Scottie Upshall complaining that the media is obsessed with his good looks and should focus more on his hockey abilities. Did I miss his anointing as the Anna Kournikova of the NHL? Someone more informed on puck bunny culture needs to catch me up here.
• If they trade Scottie Upshall tomorrow after my above slurping, I won't be amused.
• Simon Gagne had a huge game too, with two goals. Overshadowed now by the younger guns, but Gagne is a real reliable veteran presence that will be huge come playoff time, guaranteed.
• Kimmo Timonen makes such a huge difference. It still makes me slam my head into walls thinking about how that Penguins series would have gone had he been healthy for all of it...
• Here's how it had gone the previous four games. Great Niittymaki game, great Biron game, bad Niittymaki game, bad Biron game. And now, on the eve of a trade deadline game, a great game from Niittymaki. It might just be luck of the draw for Niittymaki, sort of a "she loves me, she loves me not" situation where his name happened to come up on the last petal. Biron's name has been swirling around more than anybody's most recently, and he's awfully pricy to be a backup. Niitty getting the start tonight and capitalizing on it might be the straw that puts Biron on a plane tomorrow night.
• Randy Jones might have been the only player with a real bad game tonight. I haven't been as hard on him as a lot of people have, but this was bad. He has to be pretty distracted by the trade rumors, and his morale is probably low from seeing the results of the poll here (53% of the vote as of now...ouch).
• But right after I write that, I see that Jones was a team leading +3 on the night. I'm full of crap, clearly.
• Daniel Briere, the biggest name potentially on the trade block, had a pretty decent game given that it was only his second back. That Giroux-Briere-Upshall line is a thing of beauty, and should definitely see more time together.

Predicted 4-3, got 4-2. Not bad. The most Flyersy Western Conference team, the Calgary Flames, come to town on Thursday. Should be a good show.

Knuble, Richards, Timonen, and Stevens post-game reactions here for ya

Game #58 Review: Flyers 4 @ Capitals 2 2/24/08

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My cell phone photography skills are unparalleled.

• Arron Asham's goal was real pretty, but what doesn't get talked about enough on that play was what a horrible effort it was by Jose Theodore. Theodore started solid, but once the goals came they came hard and fast. As much as they don't like to agree with the rest of the league telling them this, Caps need a goalie at the trade deadline.
• You know who doesn't need a goalie at the trade deadline? The Flyers. Antero Niittymaki has really locked up the starting job barring any huge collapse. The Flyers need to be ready to remove him from the role if necessary, but it's gotta be his for now.
• Huge night for Riley Cote, which I don't think anyone expected. Riley was a +1 for probably the first time in his life, getting an assist on Asham's goal AND avoiding getting his face broken in half again by Donny Brashear. NO idea why Stevens put him on the ice with under eight minutes left in a one goal game, but the demoralization his playmaking caused was probably the highlight of the night.
• The Flyers depth on defense is amazing. As good as Kimmo Timonen, the Flyers really didn't miss a beat with their #7 d-man, Ossi Vaananen, in his place.
• Jeff Carter was the #1 star, but really didn't deserve it after that horrible turnover that led to Ovechkin's goal. The #1 star should have been...
• ...Claude Giroux, who clearly has studied at the Daniel Briere school of standing next to the net behind the goalie. The Flyers don't need Briere with Giroux playing this well (though one of those angles he took a shot from was absurdly acute).
• Scott Hartnell (erroneously second star) still has one of the best shots on the Flyers (probably second behind Carter), but needs to start being fined for these penalties. He now leads the league in minor penalties (link I found all by myself, I'm awesome)

Flyers play the Kings tonight. Dangerous opponent, could very easily be a letdown game. Kings won in a shootout in Minnesota last night, so did way more traveling. Hopefully Flyers ride this wave well, and hopefully Martin Biron feels like he has something to prove, because he does.

Game #42 Review: Maple Leafs 1 @ Flyers 4 1/10/09

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Stars align

There's something about watching the Flyers on Hockey Night in Canada that just feels right. It's like listening to music on vinyl, or like reading the bible in Hebrew or something.

And the Hebrew is even more fun when it tells the story of the Flyers winning.

• Getting outshot by a lot (42-30) yet winning convincingly makes for my favorite kind of games. Like most every game in the Montreal series last year. The shot count really didn't reflect control of the game. This win never felt in danger.
• Martin Biron was super solid, again. This is nothing like the Biron we saw at the beginning of the season, and it's easily a Biron we could see real deep into the playoffs.
• Talk of Jeff Carter's slump led to him scoring twice to reach an NHL-leading 29 goals, breaking what had been a three-way tie with Vanek and Ovechkin. Remember when Toronto was about to get Carter at the trade deadline last year? Yikes.
• I predicted Scottie Upshall would have a great game, and he did. He didn't score like I wanted him to, but that pass to Andrew Alberts (for his first goal in 162 games) was a thing of beauty.
• Kimmo Timonen notched his 24th assist on the first Carter goal. That's a whole lot. Biron got his third assist on the same goal. Is that a lot for a goalie? I really don't have any idea.
• As much as I hate the Yankees, they serve a purpose. Having the Yankees be relevant is important for baseball, just like having the Maple Leafs relevant is important for hockey. And these Maple Leafs are totally irrelevant. Luke Schenn is good, though.
• Flyers are now only two points back of the Capitals. With a game in hand. Booya.
• Who was it who predicted a 4-1 Flyers win? I wonder...

Two days off, then Penguins. We beat them convincingly and Michel Therrien is most certainly fired. Sounds like motivation enough for anyone.

Game #42 Preview: Maple Leafs @ Flyers 1/10/09

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After looking solid yet sloppy against the Wild, the Flyers get the great pleasure of continuing their homestand againstg one of the worst teams in the conference, the Toronto Maple Leafs. This will be the second meeting between the two teams, the first being won by the lowly Leafs 4-2 in Toronto

Why The Flyers Will Win:

• Flyers have to be enjoying life at home. Winning breeds winning, and that's exactly what the Flyers do at the Wach, winning seven straight. Fans, too, are sure to be fired up, as they get to hear two anthems for the price of one tonight.
• Jeff Carter probably just realized he has only one goal in eight games. He's sure to remedy that.
• Martin Biron is playing with as much confidence as ever.
• The Leafs suck, the Flyers don't. That counts for a lot.

Why The Maple Leafs Will Win:

• For whatver reason, the Flyers have not played well against Toronto in a while, losing their last three.
• Though they won against Minnesota, it really was not textbook stuff. Thinking that was good enough is unlikely, but on the off chance it happens it would be bad.
• Biased Hockey Night in Canada officiating.

Prediction: Flyers by three, either 4-1 or 5-2. And Scottie Upshall will score at least one.

Nine Best of 2008 -- #7

The only game on the countdown from the 2008-2009 season comes in at #7. Odd scheduling made it so that all four regular season games vs. the Carolina Hurricanes were to be played across only a sixteen day span. The match-up was a good one for the Flyers, and saw the team come away with seven of the eight available points.

No points came in more dramatic fashion than the final two. Flyers dug themselves into a 5-1 hole after two with generally crappy play, especially from Antero Niittymaki. But things started to turn around in the third, with the Wachovia Center remarkably not empty.



Scott Hartnell's first of what would be two hat tricks in a week got the Flyers to 5-3, and goals by Scottie Upshall and Simon Gagne tied the score, helped by way more solid play from Niittymaki.

Flyers won the shootout easily, 2-0, on goals from Gagne and Mike Richards, meaning that the Flyers put six unanswered pucks in the net.

With the Flyers currently in third and the 'Canes in seventh, a first round playoff meeting between the two teams is not totally out of the question. And based on this game, it's safe to say there's no one I'd be happier facing.

Game #41 Review: Wild 1 @ Flyers 3 1/8/09

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Home is where the win is.

The Flyers got plenty of fan support during their road trip (six games, six sellouts), but nothing compares to playing at home in a building full of the best hockey fans in the country.

A slow start and a buttload of penalties weren't enough to stop the Flyers at home, where the Flyers have now won seven straight.

• I remembered during this game why I never watch the Wild. They play the most boring post-lockout hockey imagineable. It's like New Jersey during their cup years, but without as much physicality.
• The Flyers played as well on special teams as any team possibly could. 1-for-1 on the power play, and 8-for-8 on the penalty kill. That's 9-for-9 as a team, and conversely 0-for-9 for the Wild. Nice stuff. But of course, giving up eight power plays is totally unacceptable, especially on so many dumb penalties. Especially the too many men penalty during a penalty kill.
• Nice to see Scottie Upshall get on the score sheet for the first time in way too long. It was only his sixth goal of the season, but it sure was a pretty one. First star, too.
• How awesome was the straight out of the penalty box fight between Arron Asham and Erik Reitz? Don't know that I've ever seen players go straight from the penalty box to each other before. Well, at least not in a game from this decade.
• Nicklas Backstrom set a Wild record for longest shutout streak at just short of 150 minutes. He was solid in the first half of the game, though once the streak was broken, he was decidedly less than tremendous.
• Martin Biron, on the other hand, was very solid, for the second straight game. This is the kinda play we need from him down the stretch and into the playoffs.
• Luca Sbisa was not missed. And as long as the team stays reasonably healthy, he really shouldn't be needed the rest of the year. Let him bulk up and develop with the Phantoms.
• I know it's not as important with a two-goal lead, but that was a really pathetic effort to get the puck in the empty net. Especially by Simon Gagne. Be a little more eager to pad your stats, dude.

That Gagne nonchalance spoiled my prediction of a three-goal win. But I'm still pretty happy with my clairvoyance.

Toronto, who got crushed tonight, are up next on Saturday, for a little Hockey Night in Canada action.