In a little less than two hours, the Philadelphia Flyers will start their 2009-10 season against the Carolina Hurricanes. While last season didn't end the way the Flyers wanted it to, there is once again hope this year. Chris Pronger arrived from Anaheim in the biggest deal of the offseason, and Ray Emery is replacing Marty Biron in net. The Flyers still have Jeff Carter, Claude Giroux, Mike Richards, Simon Gagne, Scott Hartnell and a hopefully healthy Danny Briere. Even with the losses of Mike Knuble and Joffrey Lupul, the Flyers still have a very strong team.
The main question is, as it has been for as long as I can remember, the goaltending. Martin Biron is a New York Islander, so the Flyers brought in Ray Emery and former Flyer Brian Boucher to take his place. Emrey helped get the Ottawa Senators to the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals, but didn't play in the NHL last year and has a reputation of being a bit of a short fuse. If he starts out poorly, it's going to be interesting to see how the Flyers handle things this year. Boucher is a retread, and there are no other options at this point. The goalie situation could turn a bit ugly if things go south.
I'm feeling good about the Flyers this year. If anything, they're in for at least another trip to the playoffs, if not an extended stay. Chris Pronger upgrades the defense to a level that it hasn't been in ages, and the majority of the goal scorers are still here. James VanRiemsdyk will be seeing some playing time at the start of the year, and hopefully he can take advantage of it. The health of Gagne and Briere is a question, but if the Flyers can deal with that and the goalie situation doesn't go to hell in a hand basket, this could be a very good team.
Enough with the talking now...it's time to play some hockey!
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