Imagine what would happen if the Pittsburgh Penguins traded away Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin within a matter of hours, a day before the draft and a week before free agency.
Imagine the Vancouver Canucks ridding themselves of the Sedins next year if the team fails to win a Stanley Cup.
Imagine the Philadelphia Flyers getting rid of their captain and top scorer a year after these players nearly hoisted Lord Stanley’s Cup.
These scenarios, two fictional and one real, would all intuitively bring to mind one word, a word dreaded by die-hard hockey fans.
Rebuilding.
Rebuilding is the process of getting rid of established players and bringing in fresh faces, draft picks and players whose positive attributes still fall largely under the “potential” category.
The Flyers find themselves in a position, after jettisoning Mike Richards and Jeff Carter, where the team’s chemistry, confidence and capabilities may be called into question and they don’t know what kind of contributions they will get from players who have been used to Richards’ and Carter’s influence or have ne ...
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Article written by Dan Kelley
Philadelphia Flyers: Why 2011-12 Is No Rebuilding Year
September 3rd, 2011 by Dan Kelley Leave a reply »
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