NHL Hockey – New Look Flyers Considered Among The Top Stanley Cup Contenders

When Philadelphia Flyers’ general manager Paul Holmgren decided to take the team in a different direction in the offseason, there were more than a few fans in the city of Brotherly Love that voiced their displeasure, and for seemingly good sports betting reason. Holmgren had shipped two of the Flyers’ best players and biggest names out from a team that was just one year removed from a Stanley Cup finals’ appearance, sending captain Mike Richards to the Los Angeles Kings and Jeff Carter to the Columbus Blue Jackets. In return, The Flyers received Wayne Simmonds, Jakub Voracek, young center Brayden Schenn, and a couple of high draft picks. Holmgren used those picks to select center Sean Couturier in the first round with a second round pick in 2012 still in hand. Perhaps most importantly, Holmgren used the cap space that he had freed up after moving Carter and Richards in order to bring in free agent additions Ilya Bryzgalov and Jaromir Jagr, two key pieces that may have elevated Philadelphia back to the status of the top contender in the Eastern conference.

After mixed sportsbook reviews throughout the offseason, Flyers’ fans have undoubtedly taken to the product on the ice, and for obvious reasons. Philadelphia has looked dominant throughout the first couple of weeks of the season, with three straight wins to open the year including victories over each of the two teams that played in last year’s Stanley Cup finals. The changes to the roster have made for a seamless transition with a renewed depth and determination throughout the lineup, and the possibility of negative cliques in the locker room that had been talked about so often now gone. With a franchise goaltender between the pipes in Bryzgalov, the Flyers have given up an average of less than two goals per game through four contests, while a stacked offense has scored an average of three. Led by new captain Chris Pronger on the blue line, Philadelphia’s defense core is the perfect blend of size, experience, and offensive potential with six players that are all capable of playing solid hockey at both ends of the ice. Perhaps the most notable difference is the size up front, as five of the top-six forwards are all above six-feet with a list that includes Jagr, Simmonds, Voracek, All Star Claude Giroux, and James Van Riemsdyk. The addition of some sandpaper to the fourth line with Max Talbot from the Pittsburgh Penguins is another key, as Holmgren has put together the pay head pieces of what he feels is a championship puzzle.

There is no denying how strong this Flyers’ team is, and it will be interesting to see how they come together throughout the remainder of the season. Philadelphia fans watched two years ago as their team fought hard before falling to the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup final, so the transition will be one that is hard to accept at first, but there is reason to believe that if they continue to play the way that they have started, fans will continue to rally behind this NHL year’s Flyers.