Word with Pyörälä

by Teemu H on Aug 24, 2010 12:01 PM EDT in Reports From Europe

Mika Pyörälä tells why he signed with Frölunda this summer, takes a quick look back on his season with the Flyers and also shares his thoughts on ex-teammate Johan Backlund.

"Nothing had happened at the end of July and there were many other players without a contract. I didn't hear anything, so I started thinking about Europe again."

"There were only two options; Sweden or Russia. I tried to look at the big picture. Gothenburg is a good city and it's a good organization there with a good team that has the chance to go far. That's why I chose to go to Frölunda."

Pyörälä signed a three year contract, but he can leave Frölunda if he gets an offer from the NHL.

Pyörälä had a strong start last season, earning a roster spot on the Flyers, but finished the season in the AHL.

"There were several different reasons for that. The team didn't play so well and they switched coaches right before the holidays. I played less than ten games under the new coach and I think we lost every single one of them. Then all of the injured players became healthy and they made changes in the team and when they started winning games I was eating popcorn in the press box."

"It sucked, but at the same time it was still a fun season and most of all a great experience."

"In the last game with their farm team I broke my collarbone. I would've been one of the Flyers black aces; six or seven farm team players who train with the team and are ready to jump in if someone gets injured. I had bad luck being injured so I couldn't do anything more but just rehab and watch the games."

The Stanley Cup finals were fun to watch nonetheless.

"It was just fantastic. The arena was sold out every game and you could see orange everywhere on the streets. The whole city was into it. Unfortunately they didn't win."

Pyörälä also believes in Johan Backlund's chances to become an NHL player.

"I believe he has a good chance to become an established player in the NHL. He played great all season in the AHL. We didn't have a good team and without Johan we would've lost many more games. I think the Flyers have a plan for him in the future."

Source: Hockeysverige

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I really wish Pyorala was given more of a chance. To me, he’s a perfect third line winger. Unfortunately, he bounced around all year and never got more than 12.18% of his playing time on any single line.

Imagine him with Richards and Giroux instead of Carcillo. Or, put Carcillo on the LCB 2.0 line instead of signing Shelley. Or have him as the 13th forward, putting Powe in the everyday lineup. No matter how it is, I like Pyorala on this team.

Man-crushin' on Boucher since 1999
Broad Street Hockey - Makin' it look mean since 1967.

by Geoff Detweiler on Aug 24, 2010 12:44 PM EDT reply actions

I wouldn’t mind him on the 4th line. He doesn’t cost much, doesn’t take unnecessary penalties and plays a solid defensive game. I do think he’s pretty easily replaceable though.

In the cap world, I’d just like to see cheap contracts in the bottom 6, which he would’ve been.

by Teemu H on Aug 24, 2010 1:16 PM EDT up reply actions

Exactly. I’d say 3rd because of the way the Flyers utilize their lines – penalty killers and ~~goons~~ agitators on the 4th line. He has some scoring touch, so it’s not a stretch to see him as a top-9 winger, like one of Powe, Carcillo, and Shelley will be all season. Pyorala is as defensively responsible if not more than all three, and he has more offensive skill than all three.

Man-crushin' on Boucher since 1999
Broad Street Hockey - Makin' it look mean since 1967.

by Geoff Detweiler on Aug 24, 2010 1:53 PM EDT up reply actions

I also would have liked to see him stay. Surely a league minimum contract with expectation to start the season in Adirondack could have been made.

I guess he’s replaceable by Nodl though

Backing Backlund for 2010-2011
Mourning Gagne forever.

by ToddtheFox on Aug 24, 2010 3:48 PM EDT up reply actions

He did want a one-way contract, though I don’t think it was a deal breaker considering he wasn’t offered any kind of a deal to begin with.

by Teemu H on Aug 24, 2010 4:51 PM EDT up reply actions

Ah ok. If he was with the Phantoms I would consider him to be the first guy to call up due to injury. How does an AHL contract compare to an Elitserien contract?

Backing Backlund for 2010-2011
Mourning Gagne forever.

by ToddtheFox on Aug 24, 2010 5:05 PM EDT up reply actions

I don’t know how much he gets from Frölunda, but I’m guessing it’s about four times more than he’d get from the AHL. He’s widely considered the best two-way forward in Elitserien.

Though in his case, I don’t think it was about money. He was pretty straight and open with his comments about the AHL last spring, so I think he just didn’t want to end up there again.

by Teemu H on Aug 25, 2010 2:41 AM EDT up reply actions

Regardless, that’s quite a bit more money. Good for him. It’s really unfortunate that he didn’t work out with the Flyers. He didn’t really get a fair go IMO

Backing Backlund for 2010-2011
Mourning Gagne forever.

by ToddtheFox on Aug 25, 2010 3:51 PM EDT up reply actions