DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN
The Flyers back to the future movement continued with the
reacquisition of Karl Dykhuis, who, like prodigal son Mikael
Renberg, departed Philly in the original Chris Gratton trade.
I think it's now officially time to ask "what the hell is going
on here?"
GM Bob Clarke has now effectively reversed the ill-fated Chris
Gratton trade, but why? Is all this recent wheeling and dealing
just some hair-brained attempt to convince Flyers fans that the
Gratton acquisition never happened? Or is Clarke following in the
footsteps of the Beatles and experimenting with mind-bending
drugs? I've heard worse explanations. Hell, this recent rash of
trades makes me think I'm on a bad trip myself.
Petr Svoboda was the man sent to Tampa in exchange for Dykhuis.
Although Svoboda's skills were clearly in decline and he was
losing more and more time to injuries, he was one of the few
big-game warriors left on the Flyers roster. And his consistently
spirited play and willingness to skate through his many injuries
made him one of the most respected players in the dressing room.
Add the fact that Dykhuis returned to the Flyers with the worst
plus/minus figure in the NHL and a well-deserved reputation as a
space cadet, and you have plenty of reasons to scratch your head
about the decision to swap Svoboda for him.
Fans who doubt Svoboda's importance to the Flyers need only look
at the team's reaction to the trade. Almost nothing manages to
rile the passionless Flyers, but Svoboda's abrupt departure had
many veterans seeing red. Most reacted to the trade with stunned
looks and irritated "no comment" responses that did nothing to
hide their true feelings.
Is it possible that the reacquisition of Dykhuis will help the
Flyers? Certainly. Dykhuis is considerably younger than Svoboda
and much more durable. But for some reason this trade reminds me
of the deals that banished long-time Flyers Dave Poulin and Brian
Propp to the Boston Bruins about 10 years ago. Like Svoboda,
Poulin and Propp were both respected veterans with declining
roles on the team. They were deemed expendable, yet they both
became vital cogs in the Bruin team that went to the finals
against the Edmonton Oilers. Meanwhile, the Flyers went into a
tailspin that saw them miss the playoffs for five consecutive
seasons.
Let's hope history isn't repeating itself.
THE STREAK
Don't look now, but all the recent roster turnover has resulted
in an impressive unbeaten streak. The boys in orange and black
are 8-0-5 in their last 13 contests.
Surprised? Small wonder. With the Flyers swapping players like
dollar bills, the streak has received only modest coverage in the
Philly papers.
The keys to the streak have been the rebound of goaltender John
Vanbiesbrouck and better scoring depth, particularly from wingers
Colin Forbes and Valeri Zelepukin.
Vanbiesbrouck has rallied from the awful four-game stretch he
suffered a few weeks back, posting a 1.03 goals-against average
and a .949 save percentage in his last 10 starts. Meanwhile,
Zelepukin has netted five goals (including three game-winners) in
the Flyers' last eight games and Forbes has three goals and two
game-winners during the same span.
The improvements have rocketed the Flyers past the Devils. The
team now sits in first place in the East.
