John Buccigross of ESPN plays General Manager stating what he would do if he was only GM. Actually this is part two of one.
Here is what he had to say about the Flyers.
Speaking of the Flyers, they are with Ottawa as the clear-cut best in the NHL. When healthy, it’s the Senators, Flyers, and then everyone else. No one can match the offensive flair and team defense of the Senators and Flyers. If the Flyers can get everyone back from the injured list for the start of the playoffs, they will enter the tournament with one of their best chances to end their 30-year Stanley Cup drought. Hey Philadelphia fans, out of your four pro sports teams, this is your most talented and most fun to watch. They have that perfect mix of veterans and prime and young players. The question is would Bobby Clarke overpay for a goalie like Jose Theodore or Roberto Luongo? I think it is still possible, but it will cost the Flyers at least Mike Richards or Jeff Carter, plus a defenseman and another prospect. It would be costly, but plunking a Roberto Luongo behind a Ken Hitchcock-coached defensive team would be frightening for the rest of the NHL.
Verdict: Everything up front is pretty set. Maybe an upgrade at left wing. Will Donald Brashear be relevant in the playoffs? He has one goal in 38 games and plays about nine minutes a night. Ask Hitchcock if he can win the Stanley Cup with his current crop of goalies. If he says yes, rename Broad Street Niittymaki Boulevard and get on with it. Because Richards and Carter are cap friendly for a few years, it doesn’t make much sense to trade them. They are cheap and will take a big leap in production next year. If I owned the Flyers, I would give them both no-trade clauses because I enjoy watching them play too much and wouldn’t want an emotional GM to trade either.
Would I overpay for a goalie like Theordore or Luongo? Nope, have to go with Frank and Chico.
Will Donald Brashear be relevant in the playoffs? I think he can, but it won’t be on the scoreboard. In the new NHL with the salary cap the Flyers are not getting their moneys worth out of him. I figure this will be his last season with the Flyers unless he is willing to take a big pay cut. If Primeau does come back I suspect Brashear will play on his line to help protect him. Next year I think Brashear will be gone and Eager will be the Flyers new tough guy.
Buccigross while talking about the Penguins thinks Recchi could end up back in Philly. But then according to Buccigross half the teams he talks about could use Recchi. The interesting part of the Recchi to Philly rumor is that Seidenberg wanted to wear Recchi’s number 8, but was told he could not. Buccigross also goes on and says that he could also see LeClair coming back to Philly replacing Brashear. I agree he would score more that Brashear, but energizing the fans? I don’t think so. Flyers fans want to see hard work and harder hits. Has LeClair’s physical game increased that much with the year off?
John LeClair currently has 7 goals, 13 assists and is -16 which is tied for second worse on the Penguins. From a cap standpoint along with energy and hunger I would rather go with Ben Eager. LeClair doesn’t need to make anymore money off the Flyers, he is older and slower and just not worth it.
As far as Recchi, let’s look at his numbers. 12 goals, second on the team, 23 assists third on the team, -24 last on the team. -24? Does he play any defense at all? With averaging over 20 minutes of ice time per game would he have any gas left in the tank if the Flyers would pick him up? He has more ice time then Sid does, what’s the deal with that?