Cote=Important?

by Parduno on Sep 24, 2009 6:08 PM EDT

In the NHL, there are certain enforcers who are called "heavyweights". These category of fighter includes Georges Laraque, Donald Brashear, Eric Goddard, Colton Orr, Mitch Fritz, Shawn Thornton, Micheal Rupp, David Koci, Andrew Peters, and thats just the Eastern Conference.

Cote might not win a lot of fights, but sometimes thats not the point. Cote has proven that he can hold his own and he can stand up to all of these heavyweights. If Cote does not make the final cut of the roster and goes on waivers or down to the Phantoms, who on the Flyers stands up to these guys?

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Arron Asham, Dan Carcillo, and Ian Laperriere, I would imagine.

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by Geoff Detweiler on Sep 24, 2009 6:56 PM EDT reply actions

I was thinking maybe Asham or Lappy, but I’m not sure about Carcillo. He usually fights guys who are about his size, and most of those guys I stated above are some of the biggest guys in hockey. I

by Parduno on Sep 24, 2009 7:07 PM EDT up reply actions

That’s all well and good, but Cote is only two inches taller than Asham and Carcillo, 1 pound heavier than Asham, 8 heavier than Carcillo, 9 heavier than Laperriere.

I see what you’re getting at, but I’m not sure the size is that big of a difference. Cote’s willing to fight anybody, whereas Carcillo might not be so willing. I can’t, but I’m sure opponents can recall times he refused to fight. That might be an issue, but Asham, Lappy, and Carcillo can out play those guys, so refusing a fight and forcing them to skate might not be the worst thing either.

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by Geoff Detweiler on Sep 24, 2009 7:47 PM EDT up reply actions

In 3+ years of watching Carcillo in Phoenix and then with the Flyers, I can never remember Carcillo turning down an opponent (sometimes you wish he would). I saw him get in the face of Raitis Ivanans of the Kings a few years back and he was giving up a good 6 inches. The guy is pure gristle, and a great locker room presence.

I know Flyers fans weren’t thrilled with what Carcillo brought at the end of the season, but I think he gives the team a lot more than Cote and definitely will be willing to stand toe to toe with anyone…

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by Jordan Ellel on Sep 25, 2009 2:30 PM EDT up reply actions

Lappy will assume the roll just fine and contribute more at the same time
Loved watching him in CO when I was in Santa Fe, and was so psyched when we picked him up here.

by Prometheus74 on Sep 24, 2009 7:12 PM EDT reply actions

Arron Asham is a better fighter and not useless on the ice. Total upgrade.

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by Ben Rothenberg on Sep 24, 2009 8:50 PM EDT reply actions

As far as pound-for-pound toughness, Cote is better than Asham. But that just means Riley can take a punch real well.

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by Travis Hughes on Sep 25, 2009 1:18 AM EDT up reply actions

Emery??? jk but most likley Carcillo, Asham, Lappy, hell Danny will win more fights then Cote

by JpH89 on Sep 24, 2009 10:37 PM EDT reply actions

Cote is a character guy in the locker room, the coaches and GM already expressed gratitude towards Cote. I think Jones should be waived and that should hopefully open up a spot for Cote, even if he is a healthy scratch some nights. I agree the team has plenty of toughness in Carcillo (one punch knockdown last night) Asham, Lappy. Just put Cote in the line up when the team plays against these heavyweights. I believe he will see less time this year given the fact that its pretty much Stanley cup or bust.

by phillyflyersfan on Sep 25, 2009 9:16 AM EDT reply actions

but it comes down to this question, would you rather have Cote in the lineup or JVR/Mika? The team has toughness all around and i would rather have the better scorer then Cote.

by JpH89 on Sep 25, 2009 1:18 PM EDT up reply actions

I’m not against Cote being the 13th forward/healthy scratch. Dress him up for 20 games or so and keep him around for practices and 4th line injury replacement.

by SanDiegoScraps on Sep 25, 2009 1:41 PM EDT reply actions

According to Sam Carchidi, Cote will Start the Season with the Flyers

But GM Paul Holmgren said Cote will start the season as part of the Flyers’ roster.

by SanDiegoScraps on Sep 25, 2009 1:52 PM EDT reply actions

According to this article, dealing Jones to the Ranges might be an option.
I actually like this idea, gives us probably some draft picks plus six good games out of Jones during the regular season…

by sudhaus on Sep 25, 2009 4:49 PM EDT up reply actions

They will ship Cote out for good 2 days after the Flyers Wives Carnival is over.

by Prometheus74 on Sep 25, 2009 4:38 PM EDT reply actions

Cote in the lineup keeps Pronger from having to lose time in the box. You need someone out there against a team like Toronto to fight. You don’t want to lose Pronger, Laperriere, or even Carcillo to a fighting major.

And I ask again: Why does it matter if Cote wins his fights?

by MarioDi on Sep 25, 2009 5:54 PM EDT reply actions

i donno, why is it important that that our centers win facoffs, or a D blocks shot, or goalies make saves? If your going to have a fighter, you want him to be good at fighting.

by JpH89 on Sep 25, 2009 7:57 PM EDT up reply actions

Are you kidding me?

Because faceoffs lead to puck possession, necessary both to scoring goals and preventing goals against.

Because blocking shots reduce goals against by keeping the puck away from the net on both the initial shot and rebounds.

Because if you have a goalie who can’t make saves, you give up goals against.

By contrast, the act of fighting is what impacts a game, not the winner/loser of the fight.

by MarioDi on Sep 25, 2009 11:48 PM EDT up reply actions

The difference between Cote and those other “heavyweights”, is some of those “heavyweights” not only fight, but every now and then they help their team by chipping in with an assist or goal.

Other than fighting, Cote has like 1 goal in two seasons and six assists.

I think they could add Cote to the roster, but use him as a healthy scratch and only plug him into the lineup when needed.

Instead of one heavyweight, we got a team of feather-weights in Asham, Carcillo, Briere, Laperriere, Richards.

So where some teams have one big goon, the flyers will have a handful of smaller goons. So, how are teams going to stick up to all our little goons?

by FlyersGoalies1and27 on Sep 26, 2009 10:25 AM EDT reply actions

Asham is a pretty good heavyweight. He beat Cote in their two fights.

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by Ben Rothenberg on Sep 26, 2009 4:06 PM EDT up reply actions

Maybe Asham can sit on Carcillos shoulders and then we have a really big 4 armed goon to fight the big boys with.

by SanDiegoScraps on Sep 29, 2009 2:15 PM EDT up reply actions

You don't need a heavyweight...

In todays NHL, there is no more intimidation or players truly policing the cheapshots that occur during games. Heavyweights generally can’t do much more than fight. Brash can hit, Orr and Thornton aren’t true heavyweights, so those guys bring a little more to the game, but Goddard and Peters won’t see much ice time this year, if any. Peters is still trying to sign with the Devils. What guys like Carcillo and Cote bring to the table is the ability to play hard on the fourth line without being a liablility.

by Eskimo Joe on Sep 27, 2009 11:04 PM EDT reply actions

I agree with Eskimo Joe. The most successful team over the last few years has been Detroit and they have really had that heavyweight.

That said, it wouldn’t be a bad move to have Cote as a 13th forward on the roster. He’s cheap and it doesn’t kill you to have him on the ice for a few minutes every night.

Overall, there really may not be a need for a “heavyweight.” There are still fighters on this roster and we are littered with tough, aggressive players who won’t exactly be taking crap from other teams. It’s not like Pittsburgh who needed Laraque to protect Crosby.

by NickC3 on Sep 28, 2009 1:48 AM EDT reply actions