But enough about the Pens. The Flyers won't have any time to get in game shape, as its trial by fire with an incredibly busy schedule, kicking off with 5 games in 8 days. Fortunately, there is a lot of consistency with last year's roster, and most player's on the roster have been playing in Europe or the minors. However, with Briere out and Meszaros questionable, the exact lineup is still a work in progress. It appears the Flyers will start the season with the following:
The big questions on my mind;
-That lineup is scary young down the middle. At 25, Giroux is the old man. Cooter, Laughton and Wellwood only have 136 career NHL games between the 3 of them!! Things will look a little different once Briere comes back (with his 921 games played), but in some ways, he is the least reliable of all of them.
-Will Scott Laughton stick around? He was hardly a prized draft pick, but he looks to be one of the few players from this year's draft to play in the NHL this year. After he plays in 5 games, the Flyers must send him back to the juniors, or lose a year on his entry-level contract. Due the condensed schedule, that is only 8 days.
-How much can be expected from Cooter and Schenner? They put up solid numbers on a dreadful Phantoms team in the AHL. That should be expected from top prospects, and basically they were the entire offense for the team. Cooter is still only 19 however. I think it's time for Schenn to live up to his billing from the last few years. I recall that I thought he was the Flyers's best player in game 1 versus Pitt last year, until Asham ran him and slowed him down.
-Who will be the 6th defensemen? Right now it's newly signed Kurtis Foster, who looked to be having a promising career until it was derailed by injuries over the last few seasons. I wouldn't mind seeing the big man wind-up on the PP a few times though. A total x-factor is the possibility of signing Redden. He's been parked in the AHL the last 2 years due to his enormous contract, but the Rangers have now bought him out and he's free to sign anywhere, likely on a one year deal. He's 35 now, and I'm not sure how much he has left, but I presume he could fit in on several teams' bottom pair. I don't know how real the Flyers interest in him may be, but they sniff around everything and there's not much to lose with a one-year deal. Either way we'll find out today. If he does sign, he'll battle it out with Foster for the #6 spot, and Gervais will be the 8th defensemen.
-Can Simmonds match the pace of his career high in goals? Can Hartnell match the pace of his career high in goals? Can Read avoid the sophomore slump? I'll say yes, probably slightly off, and yes.
-Is Bryzgalov focused and ready? It's not unusual for big ticket signings to struggle in their first season in a new town. No doubt, Bryz bungled it in many ways. Still, I think he can turn it around and be a top goalie again. He didn't impress as a third wheel in the KHL during the lockout, and it seems he was never really focused there honestly. It won't all be smooth sailing, but I think he'll have a solid season. If not, I'm not sure what the Flyers will do. Lure Tim Thomas out of his sabbatical?
-Will Laviolette tighten things up defensively? I wrote about this last year, and I was hardly the only one to point it out. This year, it appears that Snider expects the team to tighten up on defense, and help Bryz more. I don't know if they're going to do that, but I think it would be a good idea.
The Flyers are saddled in the toughest division and hockey. The Rangers and Pens are probably the two biggest favorites in the East, and the Devils are coming off a trip to the finals. Expectations for the Flyers won't be as high, and maybe that's a good thing. Either way, it'll be interesting...
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