Danny Briere/Team Inconsistancy
by FlyersGoalies1and27 on Nov 15, 2009 10:40 AM EST
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This is not meant to be a "stir the pot" post, just more of a "Food for thought"
Through the first 10 games the Flyers played, Danny Briere played in all of them and the team won half of those games. (Win-loss record of 5 - 5)
Then Briere suffered an injury and was scratched from the lineup for the next four games and the Flyers won all four (Win-loss record of 4 - 0).
Briere returns to the lineup and played in the last 2 games and the Flyers again win half (Win-loss record of 1 - 1).
I remember something like this happened last year, when the Flyers started off the season 0 - 3 - 3 (win-loss record of 0 - 6). Briere goes on the injury list and then the Flyers suddenly start to win consistantly.
I mean it's hard to complain about a guy who has scored 7 goals in 12 games played, but it's kind of ironic that Danny Briere parallels the inconsistancy.
Like he returned to the lineup and played well against Ottawa, and then against Buffalo, the team started the third period down 2 - 0 and then the Flyers get something going. They score to make the game 2 - 1, then get a power play opportunity that is suddenly wiped away when Briere gets a double minor for high-sticking. It was during Briere's penalty that the Sabres would score their 3 goal and put the game out of reach. And the Flyers go on to lose at home, against a team they thumped on the road.
I know Briere only plays one side of the ice....what do you think, about the Flyers inconsistancy mirroring Danny Briere?
Now the Flyers enter a stretch of games against some of the strongest teams in the NHL: New Jersey (who is not the same team you thumped 5 - 2 back in October; wow think about it, you thump Ryan Miller 5 - 2 on the road, then lose to them at home; you thump Martin Brodeur 5 - 2 on the road & now come home and possibly.....), Los Angeles (who are no push overs this season), San Jose (who the Flyers haven't beaten in at least the last 4 attempts), the Phoenix Jets (dangerous team), the Colorado Nordiques (playing very well), and then the New York Islanders (Ray Emery better watch out, Martin Biron will beat him up again).
The Flyers, who are currently 4 games over .500, could easily find themselves below .500 following these next stretch of games.
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I do think it’s interesting how well the team played without Gagne and Briere, but I don’t think it’s a large enough sample size (yet) to reasonably draw a conclusion from.
It is true that he doesn’t really fit in with the rest of the team in terms of physicality (“the Broad Street Bullies and Danny Briere”), so does that difference lead to some sort of disconnect in on-ice chemistry?
At the same time, he’s a really important piece of the Flyers’ offense. You can’t assume Laliberte or whoever the immediate call-up would be should he be injured or traded mid-season would be able to score like he can. Then again, his $6.5m in cap space could, in any given offseason, be more than enough to find someone who might fit in better with the team and be able to score on a close enough pace to him.
As for the penalty, well, it’s unfortunate. Briere takes more than his fair share of penalties (at least it seems that way), but he has to play like that if he wants to be effective at his size. Just always appears to take them at the wrong time. Course, the high-sticking last night wasn’t intentional.
by Ben Feldman on Nov 15, 2009 11:10 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Not sure if the word Ironic is being used correctly
Last year when Danny got hurt and was out for a long period something called “locker room chemistry” occurred. It happens every year and it will really start to occur now that we are going to play games on average every other day.
When he was about to come back the locker room chemistry was broken because everyone knew that thing would change when he returned. The cap hit he holds would definitely mean someone was going to not only lose a spot but also be shipped out of town.
Unfortunately Richard’s, Coach Stevens, or anyone else, could not steer the the team or the locker room chemistry back in time. (starting with the Calgary game, we never got it back)
Danny feeling that his return caused this added more pressure to his play. He second guessed himself and his play suffered. Fear gripped him and often you would see him pivot away from the offensive corner boards, letting the opponent pick up the puck, and then he would attempt to steal it.
I was hard on him, and he deserved the criticism
That was last year. If anyone wants to try and make parallels, I suggest looking at Gange. I would not bother but its safer than making an argument that the teams best goal scorer per game leader is the model for our teams inconsistancy.
He has busted his but over the off season. He is flying into the corners, taking a beating, and coming out with the puck. Yes the little man has been hurt but he will not be a catalyst for our self destruction this year…..if we self destruct.
We have Veteran leadership. Everyone knows their rolls, and almost everyone is adjusting to fit them. Even Hatrnell isnt dogging it to the bench….most of the time. Carcillo is learning to not cross the line as often, and Ray Ray is showing up for practice. Id like to have a word with Carter but thats for another post.
I dont want to lose my train of thought.
We go have to face a lot of good teams. Its a tough challenge but a great opportunity. Trust me they are not happy to see us either. Yes if we lose them we will be below 500, and if we win we will still be ranked 9th on ESPN power rankings. So what. We will come out of this with our chemistry set for the season, or if we never gel (which I doubt) we will probably see a coaching change just after the Winter Classic.
However it will not be because of Danny boy.
by Prometheus74 on Nov 15, 2009 12:17 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
I was thinking the same thing. In reading the post, I thought Gagne was a more apt analogy – this year at least.
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by Geoff Detweiler on Nov 15, 2009 1:07 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Danny played well in the Sabers game and had nothing to do with that loss. These types of trends have nothing to do with anything we were undefeated with Blair Betts in the lineup does that mean his is our MVP and should be getting paid like on NO. Missing JVR hurt a lot pushing us down to only 5 legitimate scoring forwards. Miller played a real solid game and hitting the 3 posts didn’t help matter eithers. The Flyers will probably go 0.500 on this road trip at the very least we are not going to drop 5 straight playing as well as we are. Yes Danny makes a lot of money but he has a knack for scoring big goals and is a point per game player in both the regular season and more importantly the playoffs.
In general you can expect the Flyers to split their series with the the top team they are not going to run the table this year and beat the teams that they should. The should equate to 105 points or so and get into good position for the playoffs. If the Devils would stop matching/surpassing or winning streaks we might be able to win the division. It always seems like when we win 10 in a row they will win 12 including the head to head matchup. Hopefully that will change tonight.
by chrislanci on Nov 16, 2009 10:23 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Briere had nothing to do with the Sabres loss?
It wasn’t Briere that took a high-sticking call in the midst of a Flyers Power Play (on opportunity to tie the game)?
Matter of fact, the referee was calling the cross-check on Briere, which would’ve given the Flyers a 5 on 3 opportunity. So, Briere slapped the Sabre in the face with his stick and caused him to slightly bleed, giving Briere 4-minutes instead of 2. The Double Minor not only wiped out the initial Power Play, the high-stick eliminated a possible 5 on 3, and gave the Sabres a Power Play in the clutch moments of the game.
But, the point of the Post was to point out for the second year in a row,the Flyers become consistant when Briere is absent from the lineup.
by FlyersGoalies1and27 on Nov 17, 2009 8:20 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
Hey, I know 16 year old girls that look like they can take Danny. If he is able to cut somebody that bad, they deserve a 4 min. penalty.
by JpH89 on Nov 17, 2009 5:29 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I agree with Prometheus. This year’s Danny (high-sticking penalty aside) has been completely different than last years’ Danny Briere – he is not the reason for the inconsistency.
by SanDiegoScraps on Nov 17, 2009 7:17 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Your numbers are correct, and it looks suspiciously odd, but it’s nothing more than coincidence. If there is going to be talk about inconsistency it has to fall on John Stevens and partially Mike Richards. Stevens controls things behind the bench and Richards is supposed to lead on the ice. It’s an old topic (not a dig at you) but it’s something we’re going to have to live with because I don’t see Stevens being fired or Richards being stripped of the C anytime soon. I can’t stand Stevens as a coach, he’s much better suited for the AHL and continues to be outcoached and Richards busts his but on the ice. We have new guys this year to help in the leadership role and this team just needed time to gel because lines are changed and players come and go as injuries happen. Briere is excellent and puts up good numbers, outworks a lot of players, isn’t as lazy or sloppy as some of the guys can be, but he’s also been the target for a lot of finger pointing in the last year. Something else to remember about Briere is that he’s only one guy…he can only do so much and he’s certainly put up decent numbers so far. I really do think this team is going to pull it together and become a real BEAST by playoff time. We’re starting to show signs now. My only hope is that we find a way to beat the Pens because chances are we’re going to have to play them at some point in the playoffs and I don’t think I can watch another exit as that whiny crybaby and his but-buddy Malkin skate off to the next round after they send us packing again.
by Kanayd on Nov 21, 2009 3:41 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
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| GP | W | L | OTL | PT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
New Jersey
|
57 | 36 | 19 | 2 | 74 |
|
Pittsburgh
|
59 | 35 | 22 | 2 | 72 |
|
Philadelphia
|
56 | 28 | 25 | 3 | 59 |
|
New York Rangers
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59 | 26 | 26 | 7 | 59 |
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New York Islanders
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58 | 23 | 27 | 8 | 54 |
(updated 2.8.2010 at 8:30 AM EST)
Flyers Schedule
Next 5 Games
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@
New Jersey
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Wed 02/10 | 7:00 PM EST |
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Montreal
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Fri 02/12 | 6:00 PM EST |
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Montreal
|
Sat 02/13 | 7:00 PM EST |
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Tampa Bay
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Tue 03/02 | 7:30 PM EST |
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Florida
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Wed 03/03 | 7:30 PM EST |
Last 5 Games
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New Jersey
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Mon 02/08 | U 3 - 2 |
|
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Minnesota
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Sat 02/06 | L 1 - 2 |
|
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Edmonton
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Wed 02/03 | L 0 - 1 |
|
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Calgary
|
Mon 02/01 | W 3 - 0 |
|
New York Islanders
|
Sat 01/30 | W 2 - 1 |
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