Random News, Notes, and Thoughts Thread

[Flyers2001]

Originally Posted by LeafsFanForever

Esche
Nittymaki

Hatcher Pitkanen
Rathje Johnnson
Desjardins Therien

Gagne Forsberg Knuble
Handzus Primeau Kapanen
Sharp Richards Radivojevic
Brashear Carter Stevenson

I think you may see Carter and Richards switch lines at times but I feel Hitch may go with his six most experienced forwards as his top two lines and use his youth and grit for lines three and four.

I am Leafs fan and am in no position to be ridiculing any club, hahaha but as much as the Flyers look awesome and a hell of a team to break down, I feel they may not have enough offensive punch to go all the way. That is of course unless Richards and Carter prove to be quick at adapting to the game, then you lads will be set.

They won't have enough punch if you have Carter playing on a line with Brash and Stevenson. Carter is a top 2 line guy at this point and will be a number 1 for sure in the near future if not now.

Offense will be fine. By adding Knuble, Foresberg, and Stevenson, you may get a tiny bit less productivity overall than with guys like Leclair, Amonte, JR, and Fedoruk. But thats with out including Carter and Richards which so far in their respective leagues have shown that they can put up some points.

[Ciccarelli]

Originally Posted by Flyers2001

They won't have enough punch if you have Carter playing on a line with Brash and Stevenson. Carter is a top 2 line guy at this point and will be a number 1 for sure in the near future if not now.

Offense will be fine. By adding Knuble, Foresberg, and Stevenson, you may get a tiny bit less productivity overall than with guys like Leclair, Amonte, JR, and Fedoruk. But thats with out including Carter and Richards which so far in their respective leagues have shown that they can put up some points.

Is Carter really that good? I was surprised that so many of you put Carter on the first or second line. I never saw him playing and I haven't heard anything about him.

[iratebob]

Originally Posted by Ciccarelli

Is Carter really that good? I was surprised that so many of you put Carter on the first or second line. I never saw him playing and I haven't heard anything about him.

http://www.hockeysfuture.com/prospect/jeff_carter

Jeff Carter
Prospect Grade: 9.0 B
9 - Elite forward / defenseman / goaltender -- possesses the potential for greatness, a perennial All-Star throughout his career. Think Joe Sakic, Jeremy Roenick, Niklas Lidstrom, Rob Blake, Dominik Hasek, Martin Brodeur.
B - Should reach potential, could drop 1 rating - likely to reach potential, but may have a hole or two in his game that will keep him from reaching his full potential. The potential rating is multiplied by 90 percent, which indicates slightly less certainty about a player’s future performance.
If Carter drops to an 8 (9*90%=8.1) then
8 - First line forward / No. 2 defenseman / No. 1 goaltender -- players with definite skill that might be just a cut below elite status, but still possessing All-Star potential. Think Patrik Elias, Keith Tkachuk, Mattias Ohlund, Adam Foote, Sean Burke, Olaf Kolzig.

History

Jeff Carter led the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in both goals and points in 2002-2003 and was a member of the gold medalist Canadian team at the under-18 WJC. The Flyers picked the player slightly higher than his projected draft rankings, passing up more hyped Guelph right wing Dustin Brown.
The Greyhounds struggled for much of the 2002-03 season and Carter got off to a slow start. He also struggled in the post season as well, putting up just a pair assists and a -5 rating in four playoff tilts. Nevertheless, Carter impressed scouts and his coaches by the way he continually worked hard all season at both ends of the ice. He finished with a team high 35 goals and 71 points in just 61 regular season games.

He played midget hockey in London and junior B in Strathroy before moving up to Sault Ste. Marie.

Read Hockey's Future's April 2004 interview with Carter here.

Talent Analysis

Carter's intriguing combination of size, speed and hands give him the potential to be a solid offensive contributor at the NHL level.
He has an arsenal of different shots and good hand-eye coordination. A mature young man with strong work habits, as he fills out, the lanky pivot should be able to add strength to his assets, although he is not an especially physical player.

For his present level of play, he already is a responsible defensive player, a good faceoff man and a strong forechecker. Neverthless, Carter should further refine these areas and add to his offensive game as he gains additional experience.

If he stays healthy, could be a very good NHL player. The muscle will come with age and his all-around stats should follow suit.

Future

This lanky pivot is well on his way to becoming an impact player at the pro level. That’s not to say he is ready to be a star now, but without a glaring weakness, Carter has a fairly complete game. He just needs to keep on doing what he’s doing and add some muscle to his 6’3 frame and the orange and black will have themselves a worthy successor to their high profile centers.


His DOWNSIDE looks pretty good. The Flyers have a future star here!!

[Ciccarelli]

Thx. Looks pretty impressive. With all the hype about Ovechkin, Malkin, Crosby some maybe even better prospects didn't get the attention they deserved, so I never thought of Carter being that good.

[Flyers2001]

Originally Posted by Ciccarelli

Thx. Looks pretty impressive. With all the hype about Ovechkin, Malkin, Crosby some maybe even better prospects didn't get the attention they deserved, so I never thought of Carter being that good.

To add a bit, he came up with the Phantoms for their championship run and led the team in goals, and points and was second in assist.

From what I know his junior team was not that good and once he was surrounded with talent on the Phantoms his game increased tremendously. Surrounding him with a Forsberg and Gagne, I think would put him in a running for the calder trophy.

[PhlyerPhanatic]

Originally Posted by Ciccarelli

I never thought of Carter being that good.

He led the AHL in playoff scoring with 23pts in 21 games on the way to the Phantoms winning the Calder Cup. Remember this kid is still only 20yrs old. He was the leader of Team Canada in last years World Juniors in goal scoring with 7 (led tournament). This kid can perform. IMO he has an outside shot at winning Rookie-of-the-Year. With all the hype on Crosby,Ovechkin and Malkin a guy like this could quite easily slip under the radar. Much like Ryder did in his rookie season for the Habs.

[Fotiu]

Originally Posted by fridge29

The only number that isn't retired that NOBODY is worthy of is #31, and that should never be worn again!!

I agree.
Was he ever honoured in any way?

[PhlyerPhanatic]

Pelle was honored in a ceremony immediately following the tragic accident,which is customary. The Flyers have never issued #31 since Pelle died. I think the fact that they honor him this way speaks volumes,but I agree Pelle's number deserves to be retired. He was taken from us too early and I feel had he not died,Flyers fans would not be searching for their 1st cup in 30yrs. Pelle most definitely would have put up HOF numbers.

[Brash]

I'm fairly confident that for part of the year, Carter will be playing the wing with Forsberg and Gagne. When he was drafted, Carter was 6'3" and about 177 pounds. At the WJHC, he was listed at 6'4" and 207. He's more of a shooter than a playmaker or puck carrier, so you can be sure he'll be converted to wing. The kid has great wheels and a nose for the net. Also, he's been adding the strength to handle the pro game, as evidenced by his outstanding performance in the Calder Cup playoffs.

Mike Richards is going to be the fourth line centre, and will likely play with Stevensen and Sharp. Primeau is going to be paired with Kapanen, they played together for years in Carolina, they played together most of last season, I doubt Hitch will break them up - they're the best defensive tandem Philly has. Look for Knuble and Carter to alternate on the wing - the huge year Prims had in the post season in 04, the second line is his to lose.

My feeling is, the top two on D is going to be Hatcher and Johnsson - Hatcher always logs a tonne of minutes, and he was Hitch's captain in Dallas. Rathje and Pitkanen would be my prediction for the second pairing, with Desjardins and Seidenberg as the third pair. Hitch was never a big Chris Therien fan so I can imagine him being used sparingly.

[Humpzilla]

The Flyers are looking to lose a center, and according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Michal Handzus appears to be the odd man out.

Handzus, who is set to earn $2.1 million this year and next, could be on his way to Edmonton for winger Ryan Smyth, claims the paper.

Flyers GM Bob Clarke has long coveted Smyth, who has yet to sign his one-year qualifying offer of $2.7 million.

The veteran winger is apparently looking for a three-year contract worth around $12 million.

[fridge29]

It'll take a little more then Handzus.

[paxtang]

Pure speculation from Timmeh, and one that doesn't make much sense. Flyers can't really put on any payroll, and they would with Smyth. Someone had a deadline and needed to make up a story.

[Brash]

Yeah, that rumor raised my eyebrow a bit too. Hitch and Clarke are both very high on Handzus, they like the idea of having two huge centers that are great on face offs and are among the league's defensive elite. the big knock on Handzus is he's pretty slow, but I think he sticks around at least most of this year.

[Flyers2001]

Originally Posted by Brash

Yeah, that rumor raised my eyebrow a bit too. Hitch and Clarke are both very high on Handzus, they like the idea of having two huge centers that are great on face offs and are among the league's defensive elite. the big knock on Handzus is he's pretty slow, but I think he sticks around at least most of this year.

They are high on Handzus, but losing him to gain Smyth is not that bad at all. It would be a decnt trade. Carter is 6'3" and can do very well on face-offs. I don't think they would be losing much in that sense. They also have Umberger for the future, though i heard his name thrown around in this deal. Losing 2 centers wouldn't make sense.


Paxtang, losing Handzus and gaining Smyth for this year would only add 600,000 to the payroll which certainly fits in their cap. Next year would be the year where thy would need to open up pace to resign Gagne and Johnsson. But Brash and Kappy will probably be gone.

[swflyers8]

Oiler fans won't take Smyth for Handzus straight up. Think he is like Wayne Gretzky. Some suggest that this would need to happen to get Smyth:

Gagne & Pitkanen for Smyth.

Whatever.