The departure of Mike Knuble is a very tough one to call. This is a guy who played in all 82 games in three of his four seasons with the Flyers since signing via free agency in 2005.
Knuble averaged 28.5 goals per season and was a 1st line winger for the majority of his stay. Where he was most impressive was on the power play where he averaged 12.3 goals per season. Mike Knuble is the type of character guy that all teams covet.
Knuble’s departure from the club had less to do with his on-ice ability and more to do with the Flyers need to fill other holes with shrinking cap space. For better or worse, this is the product of the new NHL. The new NHL was designed to create parity in the league by forcing teams to make tough decisions with their personnel and the departure of Mike Knuble is a perfect example of this. The Flyers were forced to make a decision based on where they felt the direction of the team was heading and Mike Knuble did not fit into Paul Holmgren’s vision.
The Flyers are no longer the cycle team of the 90’s. Last season showed that the Flyers were able to play more of a west coast-type game and rely on their quick-strike scoring ability. However, this type of game often left Knuble exposed in five-on-five situations. Without a true commitment to the cycle, Knuble was not able to fully embrace his normal role.
Knuble was most successful in his first season with the Flyers because he had a semi-healthy Peter Forsberg who was a wizard with the puck. Forsberg was a unique player because he was able to slow the game down and draw defenders in to create space for guys like Knuble who are known for their ability to get to the front of the net. Knuble’s job was much easier that season; all he had to do was stay on the top of the crease, keep his stick on the ice and expect the unexpected.
Despite the change in style from years past, the Flyers are going to miss Knuble’s power play presence due to his menacing ability to stake out in front of opposing netminders. Any player who is able to pay the price that it takes to get into this area of the ice is of great value to an NHL team. A successful power play unit is one that can move the puck to open up shooting lanes and from there, get traffic in front, crash the net and jam in the rebound. This is the most basic philosophy in hockey and has been the Flyers mantra for as long as I can remember; if a goalie cannot see the puck, he cannot stop the puck. This is an area of the game where the Flyers may sorely miss Knuble.
The Flyers are hoping that Scott Hartnell can help in this department and replace the void that the Knuble departure has created. They are also banking on youngster Claude Giroux to continue in his maturation process and be a major component for next year’s squad. This is not implying that Giroux’s style is anything like Knuble’s but his clever playmaking abilities should be a handy and necessary tool for the Flyers powerplay unit. If Giroux and Hartnell are able to pick up their production on the power play, Knuble will be in afterthought to Flyers fans.
Knuble had excellent power play numbers last year which was impressive considering the Flyers inability to stay out of the penalty box. The Flyers were the most penalized team in 2008-09. They averaged 17.5 penalty minutes per game and virtually took Knuble’s strongest attribute and turned it against him. Instead of Knuble focusing on screening goalies and tipping pucks, he was focusing on blocking shots on the penalty kill. This is a very concerning aspect of the Flyers game that must be addressed moving forward. Taking undisciplined penalties handcuffed the Flyers down the stretch. This was not only evident with Knuble, it impacted players like Mike Richards and Jeff Carter, as well. The Flyers were not able to put their best players in a position to succeed offensively because they were spending too much time defending in their own zone.
Knuble’s power play totals should increase next year with a very good Capitals power play unit. The Caps were the 7th least penalized team last season and Knuble should have a very good opportunity to thrive in this new environment.
