Articles by Kevin Durso (5321)
For the second straight week, Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher addressed the media. There were some typical announcements, one on an injury update for a goalie prospect and the news that the training camp roster would be released on Saturday. But there was also a very unexpected nugget that Fletcher revealed: Sam Morin is switching to left wing.
Training camp begins for the Flyers in just three days, starting with physicals and off-ice proceedings on Jan. 3, then the first on-ice workouts on Jan. 4. As the calendar officially turns to 2021, here are five New Year’s Resolutions for the team.
Claude Giroux has been captain of the Flyers for eight seasons, his ninth set to begin on Jan. 13, the day after his 33rd birthday. Giroux’s career has had its peaks and valleys from a production standpoint, but he’s remained durable, very rarely missing action, and is respected as a leader by his teammates. To him, the age he will reach one day before the season opener is nothing but a number.
As 2020 draws to a close, here are some of the topics discussed in the State of the Flyers, a short playing year with a lot of progress made.
Though the circumstances are very different, the NHL has been here before when it comes to shortened seasons, and not too far in the past either. The NHL saw the 2012-13 season shortened to 48 games after a lockout. Sean Couturier remembers that season well, and how a slow start can turn things sour quickly.
Both the USA – with Flyers prospects Cam York and Bobby Brink on the roster – and Sweden – with Emil Andrae on the roster – are playing in Group B. Through Monday, Sweden sits atop the standings in the Group, with two wins in two games. The US is in a three-way tie with Russia and Czech Republic with one win and one regulation loss.
Take the emotion of playoff hockey and bottle it up into a 56-game schedule where you play the same seven teams all season and it’s a recipe for rivalry. The 2020-21 season schedule will be the strangest we’ve seen so far, but it has a chance to restore some divisional rivalries for the Flyers.
Shortly after the NHL released the schedule, Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher spoke to the media, covering a range of topics surrounding the 2020-21 roster and how the Flyers will manage things in a shortened season.
The Flyers are set to open the 2020-21 season on Wednesday, Jan. 13, at home against the Pittsburgh Penguins. View the full Flyers schedule here. The start time for all games is TBA.
For Kevin Hayes, a newcomer to the Flyers last season, this was the reason he had signed in Philadelphia. He wanted a chance to win and saw the potential the Flyers really offered as a key part of their success, and he believes that last season’s playoff run is only scratching the surface.