Philadelphia Flyers Offseason: Is Getting Older and Younger the Answer?

To say that the last week-and-a-half have given Flyers fans plenty to ponder would be an understatement.

As the offseason began, the major questions that fans were asking themselves concerned the future of Jeff Carter and ways to rectify the embarrassing goaltending situation that contributed to the team’s second-round playoff exit.

And then Paul Holmgren made his move.

When the dust settled (and perhaps it hasn’t, yet), Philly mainstays Mike Richards and Carter were leaving town, goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov had signed a deal that would keep him in Philadelphia until he turned 40, hockey legend/washed-up forward Jaromir Jagr was commanding $3.3 million and all the other new faces on the team were faces few hockey fans would recognize on the street.

The acquisitions of Jagr and defenseman Andreas Lilja, as well as the long contract of Bryzgalov made the team older; the investment in Jakub Voracek, Wayne Simmonds and Brayden Schenn made the team younger. 

The loss of Richards and Carter rid the team of two players with that perfect mix of experience and youth.

There are too many implications to be discussed simply in one article; questions like, “What happens to Bobrovsky?” and, “How do the Flyers replace Richards’ and Carter’s 132 points?” will take time to answer. 

Right now, there is one question that stands out among the rest: Is this team better equipped to win than last year’s team?

Goaltending

When the Flyers were courting Bryzgalov, the speculation was that the 31-year-old former Coyote could serve as a mentor to future-star Sergei Bobrovsky. 

Last season, Bobrovsky proved that he was capable of playing at the NHL level but that he also needed some work on his game and couldn’t handle the workload of being a starter all season.

Even when the Flyers acquired Bryzgalov’s rights, it seemed logical that Bobrovsky was still the long-term investment.

The unexpected nine-year deal that Bryzgalov signed means that Holmgren sees Bryzgalov as the answer and essentially put a ticking clock on Bobrovsky’s future in Philadelphia. 

There is little doubt that Bryzgalov gives the team a better chance to win now. He can handle the workload, having started as many as 69 regular season games. 

He has a career save percentage of .916 and had an impressive playoff run in place of J.S. Giguere in Anaheim during 2005-06 and 2006-07, and his more recent playoff statistics maybe be slightly skewed by the team he played for and the teams he played against (Phoenix and Detroit).

But none of that changes the fact that this deal keeps Bryzgalov in Philadelphia until he is 40, and long-term investments in goaltending carry huge risks.

Defense

The Flyers’ defense was one of the team’s major strengths last season, and it would appear that the upcoming season will see similar success on the blue line.  The first five defensemen have not changed aside from getting a year older. 

Sean O’Donnell has been replaced by the less-aged Andreas Lilja, and younger players like Erik Gustafsson and Oskars Bartulis may see ice time this season.

Age will begin to become a factor in the next few years for the Flyers, as Chris Pronger and Kimmo Timonen begin approaching the 40 threshold.  But for now, the defense of the Flyers, as well as the goaltending, seem poised to win.

Offense

The Flyers’ big question mark comes on offense; while the blue line and goal line are poised to win immediately, the front 12 have the look of a long-term investment.

Brayden Schenn, 19, is one of the league’s most highly-touted prospects, Wayne Simmonds is 21 and has a high ceiling as a third line winger, 21-year-old Jakub Voracek may find that working with some of the more talented Flyers forwards speeds up his development in ways that his teammates in Columbus could not.

Claude Giroux is coming off a 76-point effort in 2010-11 and James van Riemsdyk poised himself to be a star by scoring seven playoff goals in 11 games.

Despite having room for high expectations, it would be a bit too optimistic for one to think that these five players are ready to step in a carry the offense immediately. 

Without the strength of the three scoring lines that the Flyers had last year, teams will have an easier time defending the key forwards like Giroux, JVR and Danny Briere.

With the exception of Briere, the players expected to make up the scoring—Jagr, Scott Hartnell, Giroux and JVR—simply may not be capable of doing that. 

Giroux and JVR have never had to carry the offense before in their careers.  Jagr has, but at 39, he would be lucky to hit his jersey number in point totals this season, even if he stays healthy. 

Hartnell has never surpassed 60 points in a season and has scored more than 24 goals only once; the Flyers will be asking him to find a way to do more.

Stanley Cup Bound?

Perhaps what is most confusing about the Flyers is the way the team has seemingly prepared themselves to win now with solid defense and goaltending, and they way they have structured their offense to hit its stride in a few years. 

It is difficult to picture the whole team firing on all cylinders next season.

Flyers fans are among the most vocal in the league, and after last year’s exit, the talk focused primarily on goaltending.  The Flyers have addressed this problem but at a price. 

The team has a completely new look, an entirely different approach to hockey and a combination of youth and experience that seems less reassuring than one would hope.

This offseason has been so confusing, so difficult to comprehend, that I find myself in the rare position that when I am asked, “Is this team better than last year’s?” I can only answer, “I don’t know.”