The Philadelphia Flyers announced that they have signed 5’11”, 195-pound defenseman Erik Gustafsson from Northern Michigan University to a contract which will begin at the start of the 2010-11 season, according to club General Manager Paul Holmgren.
Gustafsson, 22, recently completed his third season of play for the Northern Michigan University Wildcats of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), where he registered 32 points (3G,29A) and 26 penalty minutes in 39 games. He also served as team captain for the Wildcats, while also leading all CCHA defensemen in scoring with 32 points, while his 29 assists led all CCHA defensemen and tied for third overall among all CCHA players. For the second consecutive season, Gustafsson was named the CCHA’s Best Offensive Defenseman.
Gustafsson is an excellent skater and plays a very intelligent game, helping to make up for his lack of size. At just 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds, Gustafsson's stature might not strike fear in opponents, but his ability to move in the defensive zone and outskate opponents makes him an extremely reliable partner and provides him with the ability to jump in and contribute offensively without giving up opportunities coming the other way. The sophomore also eats up almost 30 minutes of ice time per game with partner T.J. Miller and will play as many minutes as coach Walt Kyle can give him.
I like this strategy here....instead of overpaying for draft picks, Homer is trying to find some gem out of College. He'll probably find a few who could play for the Flyers next year and some of them might develope well.
Is it just me or does Homer seem to be signing A LOT more FAs out of college this year? Is this normal?
Well, we have a lot of contracts coming off the books...and no draft picks. Fresh meat, I suppose.
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Originally Posted by SHartnell19
I like this strategy here....instead of overpaying for draft picks, Homer is trying to find some gem out of College. He'll probably find a few who could play for the Flyers next year and some of them might develope well.
are we going to have enough room for all of these guys?
Yeah, the 50 contract issue the team ran into a year or two ago has largely been cleared up and, like people have said, it's not like we will be signing draft picks...
You hope that two pan out. Out of the group I think only Testwuide has a legitimate shot. That group includes Pither and Harper. Maybe Hutton, but he's a long-shot and the fact that I really like him probably clouds my judgement. Hutton isn't even signed yet though.
You hope that two pan out. Out of the group I think only Testwuide has a legitimate shot. That group includes Pither and Harper. Maybe Hutton, but he's a long-shot and the fact that I really like him probably clouds my judgement. Hutton isn't even signed yet though.
It's worth the effort to try and develop a couple of these kids.
Gustafsson and Lehtivuori are clearly in the track to 'replace Kimmo or Carle' eventually as one of the offensive-minded smaller Dman.
Bertilsson, Marshall and Bodrov are smaller d-men too, but more d-minded too.
That's really all the room we have for smurf D in the system, now and in the foreseeable future.
We need to draft and/or sign a couple big bruisers in the next year or two to have them in the AHL by the time Pronger is ready to retire....
It's worth the effort to try and develop a couple of these kids.
Gustafsson and Lehtivuori are clearly in the track to 'replace Kimmo or Carle' eventually as one of the offensive-minded smaller Dman.
Bertilsson, Marshall and Bodrov are smaller d-men too, but more d-minded too.
That's really all the room we have for smurf D in the system, now and in the foreseeable future.
We need to draft and/or sign a couple big bruisers in the next year or two to have them in the AHL by the time Pronger is ready to retire....
I agree. John Scott from Minnesota is set to be UFA. Doesn't get much bigger or bruisier than that. I have sort of a man crush on him though. I think he would be a good 6th or 7th Dman. That would give the Flyers some more size on the blueline and he is a legitimate enforcer too. Nothing against the guys we have now who drop the gloves, but none of them are heavyweights.
I agree. John Scott from Minnesota is set to be UFA. Doesn't get much bigger or bruisier than that. I have sort of a man crush on him though. I think he would be a good 6th or 7th Dman. That would give the Flyers some more size on the blueline and he is a legitimate enforcer too. Nothing against the guys we have now who drop the gloves, but none of them are heavyweights.
To the extent we need a heavyweight, I'd much rather it be a 12th forward than a d-man.
The Flyers have also drafted that Lauridsen who plays at St.Cloud State. The whole need for bruisers is something that is completely over rated. Just look at the Wings and Pens. The Wings don't have a bruiser and the only real bruiser in ****tsburgh is Orpik, but he's a real good defensive defenseman. The days of the Hatcher/Rathje type defensemen are done and over with. People need to move on......
The theory with college UFA is that you sign 5 of them (in our case, probably more), and you hope 2 of them pan out.
As opposed to 7 draft picks where you hope 3-4 pan out (obviously different depending on round). Guys who go undrafted but then get noticed by the NHL late into their college careers like this have become more common in recent years. They're "late bloomers" in one way or another, but are usually getting close to their physical/athletic peak age, and are cheap.
As for this guy, I don't know much about the lesser known CCHA and WCHA schools, but I've heard a little bit about Gustafsson. Defintely on the small side, but a very smooth skater. Skating and passing ability are things that make translate to the pro game very well, good signing.
You hope that two pan out. Out of the group I think only Testwuide has a legitimate shot. That group includes Pither and Harper. Maybe Hutton, but he's a long-shot and the fact that I really like him probably clouds my judgement. Hutton isn't even signed yet though.
Possibly right, but Gustafsson has a lot of offensive potential that could allow him to break through. I've seen him play quite a bit and have liked what I've seen. He has a great first pass and has a knack for always getting his shot through to the net. The biggest thing that will hold him back is his lack of physicality, but you don't bring in a player with his offensive gifts with the expectation that he will carry the load physically. Very nice signing by the Flyers organization!
