Philadelphia Flyers: 40-16-6, 86 pts, 1st in East, 1st in Atlantic
Status: Buyers
The Flyers, owners of the best record in the Eastern Conference and seemingly unchallenged rulers of the Atlantic Division, made themselves even better midway through February when they picked up versatile winger Kris Versteeg from Toronto in exchange for their first and third round picks this June. Versteeg’s addition makes lazy Russian winger Nikolai Zherdev expendable, and gives the Flyers three lines that are virtually interchangeable.
The Flyers’ best strength is down the middle, where they have three first-line quality centers in Jeff Carter, Claude Giroux and Mike Richards. Their wingers aren’t too shabby either, as Scott Hartnell, Ville Leino, Danny Briere, James Van Riemsdyk and Versteeg are all capable scorers and, in most cases, solid defensively as well.
The only area of concern for the Flyers may be there goaltending. Michael Leighton and Brian Boucher went on an incredible run last season, backstopping Philly all the way to the Cup Finals, but Leighton is out and Boucher’s role has been vastly diminished in the face of some strong play from previously unknown rookie Sergei Bobrovsky. Still, there are plenty of rumors that the Flyers don’t want to take any chances with what should be another run to the Cup Finals, and if anything can derail a good team in the playoffs, it’s shaky goaltending.
Florida netminder Tomas Vokoun’s contract is up at the end of this season, and would likely be a great fit for the Flyers, should they be so inclined, but it would be interesting to see what they would have to give up to get the proven keeper. Without their first and third round picks, it would likely have to be a player off their current roster, probably somewhere along the lines of James Van Riemsdyk or one of the other younger players, as the Panthers are looking to rebuild.
