Flyers First Round Analysis

I have to say I was quite surprised at the news that RJ Umberger was traded for the 19th pick of the first round on Friday Night, but GM Paul Holmgren did an excellant job in taking a step to make the team better. Entering the night with only 1 first round draft choice the Flyers acquired several draft choices in the later rounds, drafted Luca Sbisa a young defenseman for the future and acquired Steve Emminger, the Washington Dman who can step into the lineup next year filling voids left by Jason Smith and possibly Derian Hatcher.

The Flyers essentially traded Umberger for two young defenseman and a few picks in the third round and beyond. Yes, losing Umberger is a blow especially to the fans who loved his versatility, grit and toughness, but considering the salary cap and the fact that the Flyers have alot of depth at forward it makes sense. It also makes sense from the standpoint that the Flyers now will have money to spend on a mid-tier defenseman come free agency. If they had resigned Umberger they would not have had the funds to trade for a Steve Eminger (he is unsigned) or to go out and sign another guy. Even if the Flyers do not sign another dman they go into the season with a young defense that will only get better, quicker and more skilled in the next couple seasons.

Obviously the Flyers have several more picks throughout the draft I will give them a solid B for their first round. IN the world of salary cap you have to add by subtracting and thats what they flyers did yesterday adding defense and picks for Umberger a very good forward but a position at which they have a lot of depth.

Looking at next year the Flyers will now have the space to possibly add Claude Giroux to the lineup and while he does not have the versatility of Umberger he is certainly as skilled and can skate very well. The Flyers will essentially sub Gagne for Prospal and the teams forwards will remain basically the same from last season, one which saw them score alot of goals among the four different lines. The Flyers main weakpoint was their defense and looking at next year they will have Timmonen, Coburn, a newly signed Jones, a young Ryan Parent, newly acquired Emminger and possibly a free agent. This will allow the younger players to get alot of minutes, develop more rapidly, and will give them the ability to skate and move the puck much better than the past three seasons. All in all not a bad day if your the Fl;yers or a Flyers fan. The future continues to look bright under Holmgren's leadership.

While Claude Giroux is not as versatile as R.J. Umberger, he is a much more skilled player and, if his performance in juniors indicates, a much higher upside.   While I hated to see Umberger go (he brings a lot of passion to the game), he is at best a second liner whereas Giroux will most likely get his chance on the top line with Gagne and Briere.  We may have a potential star on our hands, a 40 goal + a year scorer.

Plus, the Flyers could not afford to lock in a 4 or 5 year deal with Umberger because James van Riemsdyk will almost certainly turn pro after next season.  Sadly, the salary cap makes juggling the roster much more difficult and decisions much more painful.  I think this will be a trade that will benefit both the Flyers and Jackets.  The drafting of Luca Sbisa, a player rising on the prospects chart all season, was smart.  As for Umberger, he will be a solid second liner for Columbus, a consistent 20+ goal scorer.

With this trade, I would not be surprised if the Flyers officially sign Jeff Carter this week.

I also liked the acquistion of Steve Eminger.  Another deal that will benefit both teams.  The Flyers get Eminger and the Caps get a soliud prospect in John Carlson (whom, ironically, I was hoping the Flyers would take at 28). 

I think Paul Holmgren, in free agency, will stay away from a bidding war for Brian Campbell, instead target possibly two solid second-tier free agent defensemen in John Michael Liles or Mark Streit.

Good luck, R.J.

Too many players. Flyers management is not sleepy, they are actively making decisions that allow them to go forward. So they created cap room and dealt with an issue of money for forwards.

For that they get Emminger and move up in a strong draft year to 19 from 28. Here is the player you all got. A defenseman who is smart and cacn move the puck. He was beginning to aclimatize to Jr and american/canadian hockey and had a good playoffs. 3-4 defensemen went before Carlson at 28 including the Flyer pick.

LUCA SBISA

From www.tsn.ca

<table class="statfull"> <tbody> <tr> <td valign="top" align="center" width="300" height="130"> </td> <td valign="top" align="center" width="200"> PROFILE
Pos: Left Wing
Shoots: L
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 190 lbs.
Born: 01/30/1990
From: Oberageri, Switzerland
Team: Lethbridge (WHL)
</td> <td valign="top" align="center" width="150"> RANKINGS
TSN: 17
CSB: 12 NAS
ISS: 11
RLR: 20
McK: 15
THN: 17 </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table class="statfull"> <tbody> <tr> <td valign="top" align="left" colspan="7"> Comparable: Tomas Kaberle

From TSN: Played better in Lethbridge with the Hurricanes than he did for Switzerland in international competition, there's no question his decision to play in the CHL will benefit his draft status. He's a solid two-way defender who averaged a point a game in the WHL playoffs.

From NHL Central Scouting: Luca is a poised and, sometimes, too poised a defenceman. One would say that a lot of times his calmness with the puck is misinterpreted as either slowness or laziness; that's not the case with Luca. He is a smart player who moves the puck at the right time and carries the puck correctly, supports the rush and is adjusting very well to the North American game.

</td> </tr> <tr> <th> Year</th> <th> Team</th> <th> GP</th> <th> G</th> <th> A</th> <th> Pts</th> <th> Pim</th> </tr> <tr> <td> 2007-2008</td> <td> Lethbridge (WHL)</td> <td> 62</td> <td> 6</td> <td> 27</td> <td> 33</td> <td> 63</td> </tr> <tr> <td> 2007-2008 Playoffs</td> <td> Lethbridge</td> <td> 19</td> <td> 3</td> <td> 12</td> <td> 15</td> <td> 17</td> </tr> </tbody> </table>