Grading the 2009 Flyers: Braydon Coburn

by Travis Hughes on May 1, 2009 1:18 AM EDT in Philadelphia Flyers Season Grades

This is the first part of what will be a multi-part series here at Broad Street Hockey, grading the 2009 Philadelphia Flyers on an individual basis. There will be no real order to this thing -- you know, just to keep you on your toes. Props to David at Mile High Hockey for the idea.

Grade: B

2009/09 Salary: $1.2 million - 2008/09 Cap Hit: $1.3 million

2009/10 Status: Under Contract

Paired with:

Matt Carle on 58.8% of even strength shifts,
Kimmo Timonen on 17.9%.
Also played on penalty kill and power play units.
Averaged 24:37 of ice time per game.

Depth Chart Ranking: #2 on defense

[Broad Street Hockey Profile Page] - [Hockey Reference Profile Page]

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2008 - Braydon Coburn	80	7	21	28	7	97	3	0	0	1	130	5.4

Ever since he was stolen away from the Atlanta Thrashers for Alexei Zhitnik in 2007, Braydon Coburn has had the potential to be one of the best defenseman we've seen in a Flyer uniform quite some time. In 2007/08, his first full season in Philadelphia, Coburn took major steps toward fulfilling those expectations by leading the team in plus/minus rating with 17 and playing consistent first pairing minutes Kimmo Timonen.

When both he and Timonen went down with injuries in the Eastern Conference Finals, it became widely known how important he was to the Flyers defense, if his contributions hadn't been known already. So returning to the Flyers for his second full season, expectations were even higher for the 24-year-old defenseman. He has shown that he can rise to those expectations.

He led the Flyers in ice time this season, averaging almost 25 minutes per game. He was extremely solid in the defensive zone, as expected, all year, and his work on the power play and penalty kill was crucial in allowing each of those units to rank among the NHL's elite. It cannot be overlooked that his partner, Matt Carle, came to the Flyers via trade as a player who had not reached his full potential. By season's end, Carle was an integral, important, and solid piece in the Flyers defensive jigsaw puzzle, and Coburn's presence no doubt helped Carle realize some of his potential.

Perhaps the biggest criticism of Coburn during the first year and a half of his tenure in South Philly has been the knock that he doesn't use his big frame as well as he could. Some have even called him soft. But beginning around the start of the second half of this season, Coburn was clearly playing a more physical brand of hockey. He was fighting for pucks in corners and laying strong, punishing body checks on opponents when necessary. It came at a time when the Flyers needed a solid physical presence on defense, and while he can still develop this portion of his game more, he made excellent steps in the right direction this season.

Coburn earns a B because of the steps he took this past year, but he doesn't get a higher grade because there is still so much more he can do. He can be even more physical and he can definitely become a more solid performer on the offensive side of things. His defensive attributes are stellar and will continue to get even better, but if he can develop a presence on the offensive end of the ice, the sky is the limit for Braydon Coburn.

Next up in our Grading the Flyers series is forward Joffrey Lupul.

Poll

How would you grade Braydon Coburn's 2009 season?

A

71 votes

B

228 votes

C

61 votes

D

1 votes

F

3 votes

364 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

I like this concept of grading the players. cant wait to see what you have to say about Randy Jones lol.

The word in the media this season was that Coburn had somewhat of a dissapointing year. I disagree with that because I think he really grew up as a player. He may not have been as dominant defensively as we expected him to be after his great performance in the playoffs last season but he really came a long way in honing his offensive skills. He really displayed his slick skating ability and did a great job leading the rush and on the power play.

We forget that Coburn is still incredibly young. wasn’t 08/09 just his second season? Once he learns how to really throw his weight around he will be an elite NHL defenseman. The size and skills are all there. I really hope we can resign him after the upcoming season.

by njh3293 on May 1, 2009 9:35 AM EDT reply actions

Yes

This was his second full season in the NHL. For this I have cut him some slack.

In some areas he progressed, in others he regressed. This is the classic “sophomore slump” that many players go through.

I expect a better year from him next year. Same is true for Matt Carle. I think they’re going to be a dynamic pair.

Do you see what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps?

by mikefive on May 1, 2009 4:38 PM EDT up reply actions

Coburn

Nice eval

by Fr. Orange and Black on May 1, 2009 11:04 AM EDT reply actions

Major issues taking penalties

Coburn took a ton of penalties in the defensive zone – mainly hooking, holding, interference, etc… He did progress a bit but I expected him to break out and just didn’t see that.

by Alimbocl on May 1, 2009 1:14 PM EDT reply actions

I agree with Alimbocl. He needs to look at a guy like Timmonen. He seemed to be chasing the play a bit to much in his own end instead of just being in the right position, this is what led to most of his hooking/holding penalties. He is a great skater and good shooter and I think with more time his offensive numbers will reach 10-12 goals and 30-35 assists regularily. The main thing I tell this kid is to relax a bit more back there and to get into the passing lanes (much like Timmonen or Lidstrom), just be more positionly sound.

by blackandorange on May 1, 2009 1:59 PM EDT reply actions

GRADE B-

For as good of a skating player as he is supposed to be he took WAAAAYYYYY too many obstruction type calls. Isn’t moving your feet supposed to diminish that? Also, where did that howitzer slap shot go that he displayed last year. It was conspicuously absent for the vast majority of the season.

I thought he picked up his physical play the last 1/3 of the season, which was very encouraging, and did well taking care of the puck and not turning it over. But overall, he definitely regressed a step, rather than taking a step forward. He just wasn’t the force we needed him to be.

by Momus1 on May 1, 2009 3:22 PM EDT reply actions

Totally agree

Coming out of the playoffs last year, I thought we had a #1 Dman for next 10 years. Now, Im not so sure.

by philiafan14364 on May 3, 2009 9:46 AM EDT up reply actions

Does anyone else feel that we need to get Jones and his half of a hip outta here? I mean he looked like he was skating with a damn cinder blocked tied to his side. give sbisa a shot he can do it, I promise lol. i think we alll saw that. And did anyone else here how he was playing like 40 mins for his Jr team? and he didnt mind, kids a machine haha

by Dlance04 on May 2, 2009 11:29 AM EDT reply actions

The defense in general

With guys like Coburn, Timmonen, Carle and Parent all on the blueline, how was our D so bad this year? I know Jones and Alberts have to go, but with those 4, we should not have gotten outshot on a constant basis. Could it be that they all just needed a year to gel? Or is it that they overrated?
Next year we add Sbisa (hopefully) to the mix. If the D doenst get better, a shakeup has to be in order…

by philiafan14364 on May 3, 2009 9:44 AM EDT reply actions

The problem is that Parent was out until February (maybe that’s an exaggeration, but he didn’t get called up until late) and had never played with Timonen before. Carle and Coburn gelled really nicely at the end of the year and were a solid pairing. I think the problem with the D was laziness. A lot of the goals and shots came off turnovers that were really unnecessary. Some even came on just flat out blown assignments (Jones!) or odd-man rushes where someone – forward or defenseman – got caught.

I’m honestly looking forward to the Carle and Coburn pairing next year. Coburn seemed to regress a little in the beginning of the year (he lost Timonen by his side) but picked it up. And Carle is, IMO, very underrated. The guy blocks a ton of shots. And with Sbisa, we’ll have someone who can legit skate.

One thing: I want our breakout to change. Enough of having the center circle at the top of the crease while our winger stands on the boards at the blue line hitting him with a touch pass. Teams see that coming. it’s obvious. Too many turnovers resulted from that play – either picked off the pass to the wing or the center – yet it never changed.

by Geoff Detweiler on May 3, 2009 9:43 PM EDT up reply actions

Good point on the breakout. I was watching Detroit and was quite envious of their ability to breakout.
They have to come up with a more effective way of doing it . . .

by Mitchell Green on May 5, 2009 9:46 AM EDT up reply actions

Coburn needs to stay healthy

I think B sums up Coburn’s 2008-09 season. He may have been better if they paired him up with Timonen again..since they did well the season before…
But, early last season they were missing a lot of defensemen like Randy Jones, Ryan Parent, Darien Hatcher (who didn’t play at all)..and had some other “stiffs” like Steve Eminger (before they acquired Carle) and Ossi Vanaanen…so I think they paired Coburn else where to try and balance out the talent.
This season hopefully they will pair him again with Timonen…
he plays a lot of minutes….he contributes both to the power play and penalty kill….
and every now and then pitches in with an assist or goal.
I think like the rest of his teammates, Coburn needs to continue to stay healthy … and then go from there.

by FlyersGoalies1and27 on Aug 9, 2009 7:21 PM EDT reply actions