People who questioned my comment about Ryan O'Reilly it is really a joke. I don't expect him to be wearing a Flyers jersey anytime soon but he is one player who I wold love on this team.
Also, the people talking about the other teams in our division. Pittsburgh got better, Ernhoff is better than both Niksy and Orpik. They lost Neal but gained two players who can help out offensively but also play defense as well. They also don't take as many penalties as Neal does. Neal had 25 minors to Horny's 14. Similar to what the Flyers did with Hartnell. Biggest addition, they have a new coach. He is the wildcard but you see how every Pens fan reacted when Disco Dan was let go of. New coach brings new philosophies and I expect them to be better this year.
The New York Islanders- They improved majorly. They added Grabo and Kuli who will be a perfect third line or second line combo for them. Gives them a little more offensive depth as well. They didn't add a defender yet but it seems like Snow is hunting for one. They added Halak which is huge because they actually have a starting goalie. They might be the one team who improves the most this year. They lost JT to injury for some time last year as well, he will be fully healthy again. I think they have a chance at the playoffs, they just need to get rid of their dumb ass coach
New York Rangers- This is a tough one but they still are a great team for two reasons, elite goaltending and elite defense. Remember we were off to a horrible start but Lundy as well was dreadful in the beginning of the year. When he rebounded that team started to really come together. They lost Richards but he was being more detrimental than actually helping there. Nash can't be as bad as he was last year can he?? I don't think so.
New Jersey Devils- It's a shame we always right them off because they always make us look foolish. I have stopped saying they won't be in the playoff picture because they always seem to fight to get in. They are coached very well and they added a goal scorer. Contract aside, Cammy makes them a better team
Carolina-Meh as other have said, they are not a good team. They lack the depth to be a good team.
Columbus-They are just building upon the foundation and added a 20-30-50 guy with Hartnell. They will have Horton back next year as well, they could very well be a better team than us next season.
Washington Caps- They got better. They solidified their defense even if the contracts are terrible. Better coach now as well. Oates was arguably one of the worst in the league. Their defense is much improved now and they always are a threat with Ovie and Backstrom. If Holtby becomes what they want him to be, they have a legit shot at being a top seed in the east I believe.
I am not saying we will absolutely miss the playoffs, I feel like our chances went up more than they were last year though. I actually would be okay if we did though because the top end of this draft class will be special. If we can manage to squeeze into the top 10 or even the top 5, we will be set on defense and offense for the next 8-10 years. I believe our depth just isn't that great but improvements from our younger players hopefully make up for that. I think if we see Mason/Giroux/Couts go down for any elongated time period, we will be in some significant trouble.
