Catching Up

Since I have not posted in a few months, I thought I should update on some of the biggest things that have happened so far.

Head coach Peter Laviolette fired and Craig Berube hired:

After only 3 games the head coach was fired. This move was not surprising to me, but happened a lot earlier than I thought. It really made no sense when he could have just been fired over the summer. If they do that, the team has more time to learn a new system under a new coach. This may have been a more effective move because after the coaching change the team was still playing poorly.

Max Talbot traded for Steve Downie:

It was not until after October 31 when the Flyers traded Max Talbot in exchange for a former Flyers draft pick, Steve Downie, that things started picking up for them. I believe the Flyers got the much better player (although some only remember him for this dirty hit). Downie brings physicality and a bit of playmaking where Talbot was just a 4th line penalty killer for the team.

Unfortunately, in his debut game back he suffered a concussion. A few games later he returned on a line with Sean Couturier and Matt Read where all three played extremely well. They continued to play well until Downie got hurt again. Since returning from his last injury he has not been as good, even getting benched a few games. Hopefully the long Olympic break will allow him to recover more. 

Steve Mason:

The biggest and most important player on the team this year (besides point leader Claude Giroux) has been goaltender Steve Mason. He has been outstanding in net & the best player on the ice, even stealing a few undeserved wins. His record is currently at 23/14/5 (W/L/OTL) with 3 shutouts and a 2.49 GAA. It looks like the Flyers finally got a good starting goalie. He will continue to be the Flyers starting goalie for the next 3 years, after signing a contract extension on January 18.