Simmonds and Things

It's been a very tough week for Wayne Simmonds.  First the now infamous banana incident, and then he finds himself on the other end of a bad situation with Avery/homophobe incident.  You couldn't blame Simmonds for simply wanting to move on from the banana incident, though it's a little harder to ask everyone to simply forget a similar incident in which you are the perpetrator.

There is no excusing Simmonds alleged (likely) use of homophobic slurs.  It's not right and no provocation justifies it.  The whole thing is just unfortunate for a lot of reasons.

Truthfully the situation fits Avery's modus operandi perfectly.  Agitate, physically and verbally, then when a response finally comes, cry to the referees instead of finishing what you started.  This pattern was on full display in the game a few days, as microphones clearly caught Avery repeatedly yelling "he was going ****ing kill Giroux," and cheapshotting Simmonds with a punch in the face at the bottom of the pile when Simmonds is defenseless.  Later Simmonds challenges Avery to a toe-to-toe fight, and Avery turtles drawing a penalty.  As I said, his typical bag of tricks.

Where things change here is that, where Avery usually agitates then cries to the referees for a penalty, here he agitates then rats out a player to the media.  This is against all acknowledged NHL players codes, that what happens on the ice stays on the ice.

Avery is no angel.  He has previously been accused of using racial slurs against black players, was suspended by the league for commenting to the media that other players were having his sloppy seconds by dating his ex-girlfriend, and has at various other times been accused of crossing the line with his trash talk, delving into player's personal lives and wives.  Additionally, it has been reported that unnamed officials say they hear language like Simmonds is accused of 10 times a game.  Clearly, all of this generally vile behavior underlines that trash talk that is not fit for public consumption is an everyday part of life in the NHL.

Again, this doesn't excuse Simmonds behavior, but the prevailing culture cannot be ignored.  It is not practical or even fair to come crashing down on Simmonds at this time.  This is an uncomfortable subject that will come up again around the league, but for now the NHL is content to let it blow over and merely put everyone on notice.

General Preseason Notes
-The consensus is that Matt Read has won himself a spot of the roster, quite likely in the top 9 forwards.  He's shown a ton of jump, and is playing smart in all situations.  This would be great news for the Flyers if he can stick as a reliable, productive player.

-Schenn has underwhelmed a bit this preseason, and is now hurt.  The widespread expectation was that he would make the team, but the way things are going I wouldn't be shocked if he starts the season down in the AHL.  He is exempt from waivers so the Flyers can send him up and down as they please.  Also, the Flyers cap situation is very tight, and his $3m+ contract is not a trivial number.

-Couturier has shown very well, but it was always going to be an uphill climb for him to make the squad at 18.  I'd be very surprised if he sticks past the 10 game mark, when players his age must be sent back to juniors or else the Flyers will lose a year to his free agency status.

-The 7th defensemen spot battle still seems pretty wide open.  Matt Walker has the most NHL bona fides, but also a much bigger contract than Gustafsson and Bartulis, so he will have to be that much better than them to make the team.

-Good stuff from Bobrovsky thus far.  I previously said the Flyers would've been crazy to give the keys to the team this season, which I still definitely believe, but a year as a backup could be great for him.  Especially if he plays like this for an extended period.

Flyers do some tweaking

The Flyers have waived Matt Walker, removing his $1.7 million salary from their cap hit.

Panaccio also tweets;

As I speculated weeks ago, sources say the Flyers would make a play for Erik Cole at deadline. Walker move may be start

CAR would not deal Cole if Rutherford feels he has a chance. Month away from deadline but #Flyers are interested in him

Erik Cole is 32 years old, pending UFA with a $2.9 million cap hit. He's not a high end scorer, but he complements high end players well, and can be a physical and productive player in that role. His best years came when playing with Eric Staal in Carolina, under then Carolina coach Peter Laviolette.

I have no reason to doubt what Panaccio reports. The trickier part is where the teams can meet on a deal. As with the Langenbrunner trade interest, the Flyers forward situation remains crowded, and they don't have much trade bait. What Carolina wants back in a trade could vary widely by how close they are to a playoff spot.

Aside from the Flyers probably throwing some picks to Carolina, the most easily identifiable trade candidates on the Flyers are Carcillo, Zherdev and Nodl. Personally, I wouldn't trade Nodl. He's young, cheap, is one of the best skaters on the team, strong on the puck, and is smart and very good defensively. Second, I really can't see the Canes having much interest in Carcillo, though I could be wrong there.

That leaves Zherdev. The chances of him resigning with the Flyers are very low I think. He's scored some pretty goals this year, but hasn't yet staked out a clear role on this team. Might Zherdev's high-end offensive ability tempt the Canes? Possible.

Zherdev and a mid-round pick for Cole seems the most plausible possibility to me. Either way, no trade will be imminent, and both the Flyers and Canes will see how things play out the next few weeks and reassess their needs and options.

Return of Leighton is Like Awkward Dinner Guest

Michael Leighton is back playing, and the Flyers successfully appealed to extend his conditioning stint in the AHL. As long as he is stashed in the AHL, his salary does not count against the cap. This arrangement can only last a few games however.

How the Flyers arrive here is kind of strange. I think the Flyers jumped the gun on signing Leighton this offseason, the day before free agency. In many ways Leighton saved the season, but he was not good in the Stanley Cup Finals, and I can't imagine many teams were hoping to pounce on him in free agency. I think the Flyers would've been better off bidding for other goalies, and if that didn't work out, Leighton would likely have still been available. Either way, the Flyers signed him 2 years at $1.55m/year.

Given the free agent goalie market this offseason, that proved to be an overpayment, as more desired goalies went for basically the same price. The Flyers either believed in Leighton, or they misread the market. Given what's happening to Leighton now, I suspect it's the latter. Of course Leighton showing up to camp injured surely must've rubbed management the wrong way.

The Flyers aren't too anxious to have him back on the roster. They can absorb his salary by doing something with Walker, who has yet to dress for any games, or putting Laperriere on LTIR. Still, that leaves the Flyers with 3 goalies, which is never a desirable arrangement.

I suspect one way or another, Leighton will get in a few games, but his leash will be short. Everyone is Bobrovsky crazy right now, even if it's still very early for him. I don't think much of Leighton personally (he's been released or traded for a bag of pucks 6 times, including being waived by the Flyers in 2007--all those teams can't have been wrong), but I think the Flyers owe him at least at look after last season, and Bobrovsky and Boucher are hardly a bulletproof tandem.