COULD IT BE?
These are heady days indeed. The Flyers have lost once in
their last 24 games, three lines are scoring, they hardly
ever give up a shot on goal, and they're sneaking up on the
Dallas Stars in the race for the President's Trophy.
And as if those facts alone aren't enough to put even Bob
Clarke in a cheery mood, it gets even better. Hear the one
about the team that knocked the Flyers out of the playoffs
last spring? Yeah, the one with the flea and tick infested
buffalo on their sweaters. Word is that their big-mouthed
"catalyst" Matthew Barnaby is demanding a trade and their
pointy-eared demon elf goalie (no introduction required)
is impersonating Pete Peeters in his final geriatric days
as a Flyer.
How great is life? Put this all together and it's enough to
make a man want to run around skipping, whistling "Zippity
Doo Dah," and randomly helping old ladies across the street.
I haven't even kicked a cat for 3 or 4 days.
Although it's still WAY too early to start planning a parade
down Broad and Pattison, there are genuine reasons to be
optimistic about the springtime in Philadelphia.
For starters, their defense is vastly improved. Eric Desjardins
is having an All-Star-caliber season. Chris Therien remains
a consistent contributor. Luke Richardson has improved his
play. Karl Dykhuis is outperforming Petr Svoboda. But perhaps
most importantly, Dan McGillis has arrived as a force to be
reckoned with.
Remember how Clarke got flambéed for for swapping Janne Ninnimaa
for Dan McGillis a year ago? Remember how Jackass King Glen
Sather tooted his own horn about robbing old #16?
I wonder if Sather is laughing now. McGillis has become a rock
on the Flyers blueline, a punishing hitter with a surprisingly
deft touch with the puck. He leads the Flyers in hits by a mile
and seems to make at least one jaw-dropping pass a game. Meanwhile,
out on the frozen tundra, Ninnimaa has been impersonating Paul
Coffey - and not the 20-something model with the 100-point
seasons and Stanley Cup rings.
You have to hand it to Clarke for this one. I hope he took the
opportunity to impersonate Beavis playing "Peek-A-Boo" the
last time he got within spitting distance of Sather. "Hey Glen,
look at this!"
Clarke also deserves a lot of credit for upgrading the Flyers
at the right wing position. Isn't it hard to believe that Trent
Klatt was number 1 at that spot for most of last season?
Now, with Keith Jones, Michael Renberg, and newcomer Andrei
Kovalenko on board, the Flyers have 3 legitimate 30-goal threats
on the right side. That should help considerably come May.
Some of Trader Bob's other acquisitions have also worked out
nicely so far. John Vanbiesbrouck has added some stability
to the Flyers net, and the recent play of Valeri Zelepukin
has helped to alleviate Rod Brind'Amour's persistent and
terrifying Chris Gratton nightmares.
All things considered, this looks like a much stronger Flyers
team than the one that exited the playoffs quicker than the wind
from a duck's ass last spring. But the key factor in their
success or failure come playoff-time will still be the play
of Lindros, Leclair, and Brind'Amour - not their goaltender.
Why is it that Flyers fans always blame the goaltender for
playoff losses despite the fact that their top 3 scorers
usually look like the anorexic guy from "Friends" out there?
Even God, or Bernie Parent, would have trouble winning consistently
on a team that scores about 1.5 goals a game when it counts.
If the Flyers are going to do it this year, they need the Big 3
to look more like Mark Messier than Mark Recchi in the playoffs
this year. Will they do it? I guess we'll have to wait until May.
THANK YOU, JOHN, MAY I HAVE ANOTHER?
Ever get the impression during recent Flyers-Canadians games
that Serge Savard is down on his hands and knees getting paddled
by a man in a robe like Kevin Bacon in "Animal House?"
Maybe it's never struck YOU that way, but I'm sure old Serge
knows what I'm talking about here. By my count, he's gotten at
least 20 whacks from John Leclair in the last few years. That's
the number of goals #10 has banged home in the 17 games against
his old team since coming over in the trade that reinvigorated
the Flyers 4 years ago.
I'm sure it's enough to make the former Canadians G.M. want
to sit on the corner somewhere drinking hair tonic. Come to
think of it, I think that's what he's doing these days.
