LCS Hockey - Renny Comes Home

Renny Comes Home
by Chuck Michio, Philadelphia Correspondent

Well, he's back. After weeks of rumors, Flyers G.M. Bob Clarke finally pulled the trigger and shipped underachieving Chris Gratton back to Tampa Bay in exchange for the key player he was traded for a season and a half ago. Confused? Small wonder. Apparently Bob Clarke is, too.

Last week's trade, which brought former Legion of Doomer Mikael Renberg and Daymond Langkow to the Flyers in exchange for Gratton and the similarly struggling Mike Sillinger, was essentially Clarke's admission of guilt that he never should have made the ill-fated decision to bring the squirrelly, fair-haired Gratton north to blue-collar Philly. In fact, Clarke even answered the question, "So does this mean that you were wrong to bring Gratton here in the first place?" with an emphatic, "I would say so, yes."

That larger issue aside, does bringing Renberg really help the orange and black, or is this just a move designed to appease the legions of disgruntled fans at the Corestates Center?

Well, the move should legitimately help to improve the team's offensive depth, at least in the short run. Although Neilson briefly reunited Renberg with his former Legion of Doom linemates for his first shift back as a Flyer, Renberg has played primarily with Rod Brind'Amour and Valeri Zelepukin since returning to Philly.

That's bound to me a move that should please Brind'Amour, who's finally free to play center every night. Gratton's desire to play center and his well-known distaste for playing left wing forced coach Roger Neilson to experiment with Gratton in the middle and Brind'Amour on the wing for much of the past year and a half, an unfair move since Brind'Amour is one of the best two-way centers in hockey and Gratton is only slightly more valuable than the proverbial head of cabbage. To his credit, Brind'Amour took his time on the wing with a grain of salt, shut up, and continued to help the team.

Now, with Renberg back and Gratton gone, that configuration problem is history. Look for Brindy in the middle every night, where he plays his best hockey by far.

The speedy, shifty Renberg should help Brind'Amour to become even more productive offensively, too. Although Renberg has only one goal and one assist in his first four games back with the Flyers, he obviously has more chemistry with Brind'Amour than Gratton did. The two have already combined for some key goals, notably Brind'Amour's tally in the 2-2 tie with Tampa Bay. Renberg's fantastic neutral-zone backhand pass to Valeri Zelepukin started the rush that led to Brind'Amour's tap-in.

The return of Renberg is obviously popular with the Philly fans, as well. Not only did the deal exile their favorite whipping boy, it also brought home an ever-smiling symbol of recent Flyers glory. Who could forget the crucial role Renberg played in the Flyers emergence from the ashes of five consecutive playoff misses or that he was the hardest worker on the storied Legion of Doom line? Or the fact that he constantly refers to John LeClair as "Yon?" Maybe his sheer presence can help remind the Flyers of how close they were to the Stanley Cup just two seasons ago.

All that happy talk aside, there are reasons for Flyers fans to be deeply disturbed by Renberg's reacquisition. He's clearly an upgrade from the overpaid and underachieving Gratton, but it's distinctly possible that he is no longer the impact player he once was. Injuries have cost him significant parts of the past two seasons, and he managed only 16 goals and 22 assists last year, a sub-par output even considering the pitiful state of the "team" around him in Tampa Bay. Renny also closed the season at -37, one of the most nausea-inducing plus-minus figures in the league.

Renberg's declining effectiveness is one downside of this deal, but what's more disturbing is the fact that it was so obviously a face-saving maneuver by Clarke. Although the Flyers carefully scouted Gratton, he turned out to be a terrible fit with the Flyers, unable or unwilling to adapt to the wing, shoot the puck, or use his size along the boards.

And as if the mere acquisition of Gratton wasn't enough of a mistake, Clarke compounded it by completely giving up on him and dealing him for a player whose best days are likely behind him. Gratton's complete regression must have hurt his market value somewhat, but I have to believe that a 23-year-old former 30-goal scorer is worth more than Mikael Renberg and Daymond Langkow. And combined with the Wayne Cashman fiasco a year ago, this latest blunder really calls Clarke's ability to be a decisive, effective decision-maker to task.

Not many general managers have the type of job security that allows them to admit blunders of that magnitude, but Clarke's status as Ed Snider's foster son has helped to shield him from the type of accountability that normally comes with such a crucial job in the development of a hockey team. Maybe it's time to put Clarke on the hot seat again. Although the Flyer players certainly deserve their share of the blame for the team's recent playoff self-destructions against Detroit and Buffalo, Clarke's inability to find the right coach to motivate the team or the right players to change its emotionless nature makes him a deserved target of criticism.

So does the Renberg acquisition mark a return to the glory days or just more ill-advised tinkering with the Flyer lineup? I'll hedge my bet and say let's wait and see. My hunch is that Renberg will fail to become the impact player he was in his first tour of duty with the team, but only time will tell for certain.

It's also possible that the mere exit of Gratton will lead to a happier, closer-knit Flyers squad. It's no secret that the enormous bonus Clarke gave Gratton and his subsequent failure to produce alienated veteran stars such as Lindros, LeClair, and Desjardins, whose own salary negotiations with Clarke have been acrimonious at best. So maybe this deal will prove to be just what the doctor ordered even if Renberg turns out to be a shell of his former self.

Regardless of how his second tenure in Philadelphia goes, I'll be rooting for Renberg. Throughout his career, he's been the epitome of the "good soldier," playing hard, playing hurt, and playing for his teams alone. That's more than you can say for many of the Flyers so-called stars, and especially impressive considering the nightmarish run Renberg has suffered in the past couple seasons. From his trade to Tampa Bay, to the wrist injury that hampered his effectiveness there, to the embarrassment of being named captain of the Lightning and then demoted, Renberg has endured some hard knocks. Here's hoping that his story has a happy ending with the Flyers.

And this just in, tonight when the Flyers line up against the Bruins, number 19 will take his place alongside Eric and Yon on the Legion of Doom line once more. Who says you can't go home again?