I wouldnt say this Flyers team was "bad" they got a lot healthier.
Oh but there blueline... Ouch. Having a good transition game is extremely important in the game today. When our blueline makes big and glaring misstakes, thoose guys makes small ones every shift. But as a Rangerfan I really like how they are coached...
Flyers will ALWAYS bring their best game against the Rangers regardless of the standings. This was a good game. Esche played well, Forsberg played well...lots of hitting....
RE: Girardi, i dont think he had a particularly strong or weak game. he had an average game, but, most importantly, he always looked to make the safe, smart play. NEVER underestimate a kid willing to do that. I firmly believe in giving guys several chances before you praise or comdemn him, but Girardi certainly looked better than Malik.
I like they a least showed a little backbone when the Flyers tried to get physical today. It woyuld be nice to not have to watch Prucha get road kiled 5 times a night without someone stepping up and doing something about for a change.
I like they a least showed a little backbone when the Flyers tried to get physical today. It woyuld be nice to not have to watch Prucha get road kiled 5 times a night without someone stepping up and doing something about for a change.
I only saw that through 2 periods. It seemed to me that in the third we were getting knocked around pretty good without much response.
RE: Girardi, i dont think he had a particularly strong or weak game. he had an average game, but, most importantly, he always looked to make the safe, smart play. NEVER underestimate a kid willing to do that. I firmly believe in giving guys several chances before you praise or comdemn him, but Girardi certainly looked better than Malik.
To be honest, I didn't notice him, which for a D-man, isn't necessarily a bad thing. Aside from the communication between him and Tyutin in the 1st, there wasn't too much to notice about him.
To be honest, I didn't notice him, which for a D-man, isn't necessarily a bad thing. Aside from the communication between him and Tyutin in the 1st, there wasn't too much to notice about him.
Other than Tyutin, we don't really have any impact defenseman right now, so I'm thiking that not noticing the play of a D-man is a good thing. It's like a solid but unspectacular offensive line in football- just cover your assignments, let the playmakers make plays and everything works out.
I know not allot of people will agree with me. Malik had one really bad giveaway up center ice, he got beat wide once.
But other then that, I don't think I've seen Malik looking this "healty" the entire season. He skated well. Made a couple of really good plays. Had a few really good passes. Even landed a couple of big hits. Though more important then anything he skated better then I have ever seen him in NY. Defenitly been working out hard during the break. I have to give him allot of credit for that, he looked awful early in the season.
Gooing on tonight, Malik vastly outplayed Aaron Ward for example.
I know not allot of people will agree with me. Malik had one really bad giveaway up center ice, he got beat wide once.
But other then that, I don't think I've seen Malik looking this "healty" the entire season. He skated well. Made a couple of really good plays. Had a few really good passes. Even landed a couple of big hits. Though more important then anything he skated better then I have ever seen him in NY. Defenitly been working out hard during the break. I have to give him allot of credit for that, he looked awful early in the season.
Gooing on tonight, Malik vastly outplayed Aaron Ward for example.
Ward was terrible. But I can't think of any big hits or great plays that Malik made, just some turnovers, plays where he was slow to get to his man and then the obvious huge mistakes that you mentioned. I just didn't see it today Ola.
Other than Tyutin, we don't really have any impact defenseman right now, so I'm thiking that not noticing the play of a D-man is a good thing. It's like a solid but unspectacular offensive line in football- just cover your assignments, let the playmakers make plays and everything works out.
Rozival played like a true nr 1 D tonight. He stopped Forsberg several times. Played rock solid defensivly. Moved the puck really well and got involved offensivly.
Why he didn't shoot on the 4 on 3 standing alone in the middle of the slot with nobody on him is beyond me, though overall he played a really good game, defenitly on par with many other 1st D's in this league, at the same time far behind guys like Tomas Kaberle, Lidas and Niedermayer, but a very good solid hockey game.
At the same time, as much as I would love to see a better 2nd line center, what I miss the most is exactly a Kaberle type of D...
I only saw the third period but with all their injured players back, the Flyers didn't look like a really bad team
I know...that's not a team devoid of talent when they're healthy...three young forwards like Richards, Carter and Gagne...Forsberg as your #1 center...Knuble, Umberger, Kapanen, Sanderson...Zhitnik, Pitkanen, Gauthier and Hatcher on D...someone actually referred to that as a bunch of AHL scrubs.
Other than Tyutin, we don't really have any impact defenseman right now, so I'm thiking that not noticing the play of a D-man is a good thing. It's like a solid but unspectacular offensive line in football- just cover your assignments, let the playmakers make plays and everything works out.
That's what I was getting at in my first sentence.
Ward was terrible. But I can't think of any big hits or great plays that Malik made, just some turnovers, plays where he was slow to get to his man and then the obvious huge mistakes that you mentioned. I just didn't see it today Ola.
Hehe, they were more like somebody skating right into him...
But, he made a few plays were he broke up passes in the neutral zone. He went back a few times under pressure but sheilded away the forecheckers and made a few simple but good passes. Playing with Jagr and Nylander its always a bad option to just lift the puck out, one can aruge that while its a bad option its a helluva lot better then giving it away with a bad turnover, and I agree, but Malik tonight for example played like a perfect defensive D partner on that unit should play, for 85% of the time.
Though I am fully aware that this is the Flyers, and that he constantly is a misstake waiting to happend. Just pointint out that I think he is looking better then he did early in the season.
BTW, I have to ask, they showed a reply of Jagr's 5th hole attempt on Esche in the 3rd on the Swedish broadcast, the two experts on Swedish TV and me were 99% sure the puck was in and hit the "centerpost" area back in the net and bounced out.
They said like "thats defenitly in" and thats what I thought too, either it were some kind of freak blurb on the broadcast that looked like a puck or it defenitly was a goal. You could see the puck in the net... The reply shown was made by the Swedish network during the comercial break in US.
Wasn't this talked about on MSG??? You never know with thoose ComCast ********, wouldn't be suprised if they didn't show it just so nobody would notice it...
BTW, I have to ask, they showed a reply of Jagr's 5th hole attempt on Esche in the 3rd on the Swedish broadcast, the two experts on Swedish TV and me were 99% sure the puck was in and hit the "centerpost" area back in the net and bounced out.
They said like "thats defenitly in" and thats what I thought too, either it were some kind of freak blurb on the broadcast that looked like a puck or it defenitly were a goal. You could see the puck in the net...
You know, I wondered about that, too. It seemed to come straight out of the net.
Consensus is that he was solid, in that he played a safe, positionally sound game. Had no problems in his own end, although he did knock a Flyer into Henke on one series. He was trying to clear the crease (which no one else on our team does) so it's debatable whether or not that was a mistake. All together, he looked fine.
BTW, I have to ask, they showed a reply of Jagr's 5th hole attempt on Esche in the 3rd on the Swedish broadcast, the two experts on Swedish TV and me were 99% sure the puck was in and hit the "centerpost" area back in the net and bounced out.
They said like "thats defenitly in" and thats what I thought too, either it were some kind of freak blurb on the broadcast that looked like a puck or it defenitly was a goal. You could see the puck in the net... The reply shown was made by the Swedish network during the comercial break in US.
Wasn't this talked about on MSG??? You never know with thoose ComCast ********, wouldn't be suprised if they didn't show it just so nobody would notice it...
didnt look like that to me, i didnt notice it go in at all.
didnt look like that to me, i didnt notice it go in at all.
I didn't thought it was a goal too during play, but after watching the reply, if that wasn't a goal its the oddest thing I've seen watching hockey. You could see the puck go through the legs of Esche cleary, then as always its not perfectly clear on a reply in slowmo, but the two tv guys saw it hit the center post inside the net, and bounce out on the left side of Esche, and it sure as hades looked like that to me too. Not like "that could have been a goal" but like "thats defenitly a goal". Not only did the reply show that it hit the inside of the net, you could see how it bounced out on the left of Esche...
Its especially strange that none of the players saw it, if anyone usually does its them. But this time its either a goal or some kind of freak illusion/blur thing...
I didn't thought it was a goal too during play, but after watching the reply, if that wasn't a goal its the oddest thing I've seen watching hockey. You could see the puck go through the legs of Esche cleary, then as always its not perfectly clear on a reply in slowmo, but the two tv guys saw it hit the center post inside the net, and bounce out on the left side of Esche, and it sure as hades looked like that to me too. Not like "that could have been a goal" but like "thats defenitly a goal". Not only did the reply show that it hit the inside of the net, you could see how it bounced out on the left of Esche...
Its especially strange that none of the players saw it, if anyone usually does its them. But this time its either a goal or some kind of freak illusion/blur thing...
Interesting...because when MSG showed one replay of that shot, it looked odd and did not look like it hit the post. Can someone find some video of that play?
