Cote or Pyorala?

As the Flyers think about finalizing their roster as the end of the pre-season draws near, it looks like a final roster spot at the forward position may come down to a choice between enforcer Riley Cote and newly-signed Finnish prospect Mika Pyorala. The Flyers’ decision here could say alot about their direction as a team. Pyorala has looked good in camp, scoring some goals, showing some speed, and showing a knack for getting to the holes. He is a little older than most prospects at age 28 and has experience playing in Europe. I think he should have a roster spot. Typical Flyers’ mentality would give the spot to Cote, as they have always liked tough grinder/mucker/fighter types. That’s why they have three such players on the roster: Cote, Aaron Asham, and Dan Carcillo. They don’t need three fighters. Cote scored three points last season and lost half his fights. Asham and Carcillo provide enough toughness and have more offensive skill. They Flyers need scoring after losing Mike Knuble and Joffrey Lupul and it looks as though Pyorala can provide some. Now is the time for Cote to go. The team needs to change its thinking and choose skill over toughness in this case. It’s not the 70s anymore.

Flyers to Unveil Winter Classic Jersey this Friday

The Flyers have announced that they will unveil the jersey that they will wear during the Winter Classic game this Friday at 2:00 PM, prior to a rookies game against the Capitals. The unveiling will take place in an unusual way: Three Flyers will shoot pucks at a block of ice which contains the jersey. Supposedly the Flyers are considering several designs and the one that they will probably go with is a white version of the retro orange third jersey they introduced last season:

Another option being considered is an orange version of the jersey worn by the Philadelphia Quakers during their only season, 1930-31:

The Flyers are pretty conservative as an organization so I doubt it will be the Quakers jersey. We’ll find out on Friday.

Penguins Fans Highly Irritated

I received a comment to one of the posts that evidently was from a Penguins fan. I must surmise that it was from a Penguins fan because (a) it took exception to other comments on the blog which called Sidney Crosby’s gender and toughness into question and then defended him as the youngest captain ever to win the Stanley Cup and (b) it was filled with a great deal of profanity, thereby demonstrating the general lack of verbal ability that typically identifies Pittsburgh hockey aficionados. As I happily deleted the comment I wondered if the evident anger with which it was written, along with the diminished eloquence, was representative of the current emotional state of the majority of Penguins’ athletic supporters. If it is, I would expect them to be in a better mood since, as the inarticulate author of the comment pointed out, the Penguins did win the Stanley Cup last season.

Now Crosby was indeed the youngest captain to win the Cup and is a good hockey player, but remember that he was surrounded by other good hockey players who benefitted from a timely coaching change and shrewd dealings by general manager Ray Shero, the son of the Flyers’ coach when they won their Stanley Cups. How’s that for irony? (I’ll define irony later for the benefit of any Penguins fans who may have difficulty with that word). I don’t believe that Crosby is particularly tough, however, and he certainly plays the game with less passion and apparent enjoyment than Alexander Ovechkin, for example. The author of the comment was quite certain that Crosby was indeed tough and that the Flyers would continue to have difficulty handling him. He must have forgotten that the Flyers acquired defenseman Chris Pronger over the summer. I will be anxiously waiting to see Crosby’s supposed toughness on display in that match-up.