Eklund, the head honcho at Hockeybuzz, posts rumors that he hears about various teams in the league regarding potential player movement, coaching changes, etc. It’s difficult to gauge how real any of his rumors are, as general managers rarely tip their hand.
His latest post, though, intrigued me:
“The Flyers are looking to fill a MAJOR need which is viewed as the only thing standing in their way by some key higher ups. Also I have heard they may make this happen by moving a ‘key prospect’ already playing with the club.”
As Eklund lives in Philadelphia, I hold his rumors regarding the Flyers with some validity. The first sentence screams “goaltending,” and the second really doesn’t leave much to interpretation either. The four players that could be called prospects are Andreas Nodl, Ville Leino (which is a stretch), Oskars Bartulis and Sergei Bobrovsky.
Filling in the gaps, it sounds like the Flyers aren’t fully comfortable heading into the playoffs with a 22-year old netminder and a career back-up (though Boosh IS the man). All of this speculation leads me to believe that they are once again targeting a goaltender they have tried to grab before.
Tomas Vokoun.
In the final year of his contract with the Florida Panthers, the 35-year old netminder is 16-15-1 with a 0.920 save percentage. He is considered by many to be one of the best goaltenders in the league, but he has never played for a good team and thus has only five playoff appearances under his belt.
They attempted to acquire Vokoun last year at the deadline, but the asking price was Jeff Carter, who general manager Paul Holmgren covets like a prized childhood blanket. Bobrovsky and a first-round draft pick (not my preference but Homer hates draft picks) could be a reasonable trade for Panthers general manager Dale Tallon.
I’m not sure what it would take to fit Vokoun’s $5.7 million salary on the payroll, but if Bob’s $1.75 million came off the books along with Matt Walker’s $1.7 million, it’s possible that they could manage his daily cap hit. At the very least, it would be the coffin nail for Michael Leighton.
None of this is to suggest trading Bobrovsky is the answer, but it’s a legitimate possibility for the Flyers. Lord knows we’re a “win now” city, and Vokoun sounds more stable on paper.
I would suspect this year’s trade deadline will be much more active for the Flyers than last year, when the team’s lack of draft picks, prospects, and cap space made any potential deals unreasonable.
Hmm I do like Bobrovsky, would be a disappointment to see him go. But then again, Vokoun is a very good goaltender.
First, Eklund is not a good source to go to. The guy has about a 3% rate of success. Second and most important is, the Panther would not want Bobrovsky in return for Vokoun. They have highly touted prospect Jacob Markstrom.
So a Bobrovsky for Vokoun trade makes no sense at all for Florida.
But if you want to look at Bobrovsky as the possible trade chip (I personally think it would be Nodl for Vokoun). I think it would be to Calgary for Kiprusoff. He is signed for 3 years after this year and could afford to make that deal.
The Flyers also have another highly touted goalie prospect in the system in joacim eriksson. He is 20 years old and playing in the Swedish Elite League. He was ranked ahead of Bobrovsky. He was also ranked right behind Markstrom (Panthers) for Swedish goalies.
I don’t disagree that Eklund is hit and miss, but I have to imagine some of that is because he reports EVERYTHING he hears and most decisions are just that- talk. I also agree that with Markstrom, the Panthers wouldn’t really need another young goaltender. I picked Bobrovsky simply because he made the most sense out of the expression “top prospect with the club.” Nodl, as much as I like him, is not a top prospect. If Jeff Carter was the asking price for Vokoun last season, there’s no chance that he gets traded straight up.
I guessed Vokoun as well because he’s in the last year of his contract and the Flyers have gone after him before, but Kiprusoff makes a lot of sense as well. The Flames have been terrible this season and with Jay Feaster as the new GM, I’d expect major changes. Moving a goalie with a high cap hit ($5.83 million) for a good, young goaltending prospect that appears NHL ready along with whatever else Philly offers pick wise would be make sense.
I’ve also covered Eriksson on this site before. A quick search will pull up two pieces. I find that Teemu H, who now posts with Broad Street Hockey (probably the best web site for Flyers fans), often provides the best insight to the Flyers’ european prospects. He did a piece on there recently about goaltender Jakub Kovar, who is playing in the Czech Extraliga. The amazing part about Kovar is that he has yet to sit on the bench all season, including a recent game played while ridden with the flu.
http://www.broadstreethockey.com/2011/1/12/1930722/workhorse-jakub-kovar-enjoying-his-first-season-as-starter
dont see the flyers moving for a goalie unless they can make dreamland move of zheredev, carcillo, boucher, and walker for stillman and vokun. the defense (when pronger is back) makes up for the lack of goaltending. the flyers are alright with what they have, the only change i would make would be to add some kind of player like a stillman on the wing with richards.
Good points there with Kovar, Josh. I think if the Flyers did move Bobrovsky it wouldn’t be the end of the world since the Flyers FINALLY have some depth of young goalies. The future looks bright for goaltending.
In that article and in your post it points out Kovar has started every game. He does have a history of injuries and if I were the Flyers I would step in and protect my investment. They need to tell them to be careful with him. So far so good with no injuries though.
But with Bobrovsky, Eriksson, and Kovar all under 23 the future is finally bright at that spot. Looks like Neil Little knows what to look for in a goalie.
There’s not a whole lot they can do when it comes to Kovar’s playing time. They have to be thankful that he’s been playing somewhere at all, when you consider the lack of spots available in North America right now. Goalie Brian Stewart, who was just starting to make some progress at the AHL, had to get loaned to another ECHL team just to keep him playing somewhere. I have no idea, unfortunately, what the organizations plan is for Kovar, who I believe becomes a free agent after this season if not re-signed.