The mystery of Andrew MacDonald

As a casual Flyers watcher (I enjoy watching Giroux & Provorov) I am mystified by MacDonald's role on the team. He is a decent bottom pairing D. And probably a super-great guy. Overall, he pretty much stinks. The way the Flyers coaching staff seems to be in love with him is just weird. Provy & Ghost are like a shiny new Ferrari; and the guy right behind them is a busted 1996 Honda. Why not use him properly (aka in a limited role)?

 

He's the vet who brought in Ghost, then Provorov and now is paired with Sanheim; that's his greatest asset (mentoring the young blueliners).

 

I don't know about that. It seemed like by game 15 of his rookie season Provorov was mentoring MacDonald (or dragging him around like a dead weight, whichever you prefer), not the other way around.

 

lol.. First of all he is playing with Hagg.. Second, he does not monitor anything...

 

I meant Hagg; but my point remains...Macdonald is paired with a rookie blueliner each year to help bring them along.

 

He does not freaking help... He freaking ruins.. how is the guy who cannot even monitor himself monitors others.. come on man..

 

Evidence shows that the rookies he pairs up with does help their NHL development; his skill might not all be there but he is the veteran and I am certain I have read articles indicating that he is one of the teams leaders inside the dressing room and off the ice.

 

I'm guessing the dude just has a great personality and the coaches love him. Same deal happened when he was on the Islanders, frustrated us too. You hit the nail on the head more or less, he's a fine bottom pairing player but is just trash when played more than that.

 

He did not freaking help Provorov and Gost.. Hagg needs therapy after playing with him for a year...
Dude.. just stop..
Another thing he is not fine bottom pairing.. he should not be on our team and if not for his big ass contract he would not be...

 

obligatory

 

Many past articles online showing Macdonald is a mentor...

-----------------
It’s that kind of unnoticed work that has made MacDonald invaluable to his teammates.

“Mac is doing a great job of leading and he leads by example,” Flyers’ defenseman Radko Gudas said. “He does the kind of things young guys should follow, because he does all of the right things and all of the small things that win hockey games. It’s a real treat to have him on our team and he’s been a true leader for us.”
--------------------------------------

 

He makes 5 million dollars per year. Mystery solved.

 

He's actually pretty dependable when healthy, he's also from Cape Breton and Capers are universally loved

 

Andrew MacDonald is a great locker room player

 

What do you mean “evidence shows”? There’s no way to prove that playing with him made these young defensemen better

 

MacDonald is like their training wheels.

Training wheels that self-remove mid-ride and explode releasing shrapnel everywhere.

Why do you think those young d-men are so good now?

 

Every team has an Andy MacDonald.

 

Every teams wants to get rid of A.MacDonalds.

If not for MacDonald we would not have Provorov?

 

It's not that hard to figure out. Hakstol is an awful coach who has no business being in the league and the Flyers are one of the worst organizations in the league when it comes to hiring coaches or earning coaching roles based on merit. To the point where we have retained the head PK coach responsible for a PK that is predictably bottom 3 in the entire league every season for years now with no end in sight.

 

I’m just glad it’s now “the mystery” instead of “the curious case of”.

 

If you're in the US you probably have the Center Ice free preview right now, so tune in. MacDonald is doing his thing tonight...I counted 3 turnovers that led to Avalanche shots in the first period alone, but I might've missed another couple.

 

He is Hakstol's love slave.

 

Andy Farmer has horrible in game instincts.

 

MacDonald is garbage but the organization has a giant blind spot for him. The organization props him up by being some “rookie whisperer” when in reality the young guys make him look better than he is & they do better when finally away from him there’s actual tangible evidence of this in advanced stats & not some fairy tale variety.

 

Not every team plays their Andy like he's their Karlson