http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/5094 Recent articles about Randy Jones en-us Flyers' captain Jason Smith signed a two-year, $5.2 million contract with the Ottawa Senators Monday. The 14-year veteran was an unrestricted free agent. According to Philly.com, The Flyers had let Smith know that with the contracts of Randy Jones and newly acquired Steve Eminger, he would not fit into team's budget for next season. Smith earned $1.9 million last season. In 77 games for the Flyers last season, Smith had 204 blocked shots and 142 hits, tops on the team. He had one goal, nine assists, and 86 penalty minutes. My response to this is, what the hell? The Flyers were very clear that they were not going to re-sign Smith, but I have to say I really don't understand why. This guy was their captain last year, and an integral past of their success. Who is going to take his place? Is eventual captain Mike Richards' time now? Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:36:38 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/287524 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/287524 Rookie defensive end Bryan Smith signs a 4 year contract. Only top picks DeSean Jackson, and Trevor Laws remain unsigned. (Bleed Eagles Green) Phillies' opening day starter Brett Myers is now pitching for the Lehigh Iron Pigs. So much for having "two aces". (The 700 Level) Atlanta Hawks' restricted free agent Josh Smith met with the Sixers today. I am all [...] Mon, 07 Jul 2008 12:16:46 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/286585 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/286585 Amidst all the free agent signings and trades, the Flyers also found time to sign a pair of restricted free agents yesterday, defenseman Randy Jones and forward Riley Cote. Jones signed a two year deal worth 5.5 million overall while Cote signed a three year deal worth 550,000 per year. These signings likely round out the Flyers roster, which, if the season started today, would look something like this: Gagne/Briere/Hartnell Lupul/Richards/Giroux Upshall/Carter/Knuble Cote/Metropolit/Downie Timonen/Coburn Hatcher/Jones Eminger/Parent Extras: Vaananen, Kukkonen, Thoreson (?), Kane The Flyers have plenty of defensemen but they seem to be one quality forward short. Patrick Thoreson is listed as an extra skater because he has yet to sign with the Flyers, although he is a restricted free agent. Signing him, if they have the money, would push Cote to a lesser role, meaning he could suit up only when an enforcer is necessary. Barring a trade, the Flyers appear to be done making moves this off-season. There is still a possibility that Derian Hatcher could retire, which would free up 3.5 million dollars to sign another player, but that doesn't seem likely at this point. What you see above is probably what your 08/09 Philadelphia Flyers will look like. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 12:38:16 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/285110 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/285110 What will the New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins be up to come July 1st? Will the Flyers be able to keep their young talent? How many players will the Penguins manage to keep in tow? Who will the Rangers overpay this year? Will the Devils finally find some offense? Thu, 19 Jun 2008 21:20:39 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/280173 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/280173 The Philadelphia Flyers are still trying to figure out a way to keep last years intact and improve. That task is going to be a lot harder then most Flyers fans would think. The salary cap currently stands at $55 million for next season. To be able to keep the Big Three free agents and sign a top flight defense man need to occur. Wed, 18 Jun 2008 14:23:28 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279474 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279474 With Kimmo Timonen likely out for the remainder of the playoffs, the Flyers have to face the reality of playing an offensive juggernaut like the Penguins without their best defensive player. In Timonen's absence, the Flyers have completely re-shuffled their defensive pairs. Derian Hatcher, who has played well recently, will move up to the top pairing with Braydon Coburn, causing every pairing to be altered. Jason Smith will now be paired with Randy Jones and Jaroslav Modry is back in the lineup in the third pairing with Lasse Kukkonen. On the powerplay, Randy Jones expects to get most of the time in Timonen's spot on the top grouping. Completely changing all of your defensive pairings at this time of the year is usually not a good thing, but in this case it was necessary. There is no getting around the huge void that Timonen leaves on this team. He was the one player that was irreplaceable in an already thin defensive unit. If any one forward goes down, the Flyers have several options that can step right in, but there is no one with the all-around skill level of Timonen that can step into the back six. Click the link for more..... Fri, 09 May 2008 15:25:15 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/265286 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/265286 The Flyers hopes to get past the Penguins and into the Stanley Cup Finals took a huge blow today when their best defenseman, Kimmo Timonen, was diagnosed with a blood clot in his ankle, effectively ending his season. Timonen's ankle felt sore ever since he was hit by a shot during the series with the Canadiens, so he went in for an exam today and the blood clot was discovered. This is a big setback for the Flyers. Timonen and Braydon Coburn have done an excellent job neutralizing their oppositions best offensive players throughout the playoffs. It's the worst timing possible with the Flyers preparing to play a team with the offensive firepower that the Penguins feature. Expect more playing time for Randy Jones and Derian Hatcher and for Jaroslav Modry to get back on the ice after missing most of the last series. Click the link for more..... Thu, 08 May 2008 17:56:50 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/264979 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/264979 No question this season there has been some nasty hits. Starting in exhibition play when Philadelphia Flyers Steve Downie hit on Ottawa's Dean McAmmond. In the regular season Philadelphia's Randy Jones hit on Boston's Patrice Bergeron which Bergeron hasn't returned. Chris Simon at the time of the New York Islanders stomping on Pittsburugh's Jarrko Ruutu's foot. Just last week, Anaheim's Chris... Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:59:01 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/210329 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/210329 The bad news just keeps coming for the Flyers. In the last three games, not only have the Flyers lost, but they have also had three players injured. Derian Hatcher, Randy Jones and R.J. Umberger are the latest three Flyers to be banged up, and all three are expected to miss some time. Hatcher's injury is the worst of the three. He fractured his right leg while blocking a shot in the Boston game on Saturday. He is expected to miss at least a month, so unless the Flyers go deep into the playoffs, he is likely done for the year. Sun, 16 Mar 2008 21:28:47 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/204080 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/204080 With the regular season about two months away from finishing, it is time for fantasy hockey owners to start building their teams in preparation for the ever-important March run. The amount of parity in the NHL will benefit fantasy owners as we should not have to worry about players "taking it easy" in preparation for the playoffs as every team (except for Detroit) is genuinely fighting for a spot or some positional advantage in the playoffs. Therefore, now is the time to start making smart moves off the waiver wire in order to bolster the depth of your squad. In this edition of What the Puck? we will look at some of the higher ranked players on the wire and what great or little benefit they could be to your squad. Fri, 15 Feb 2008 16:12:28 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/144354 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/144354 The Pittsburgh Penguins lost to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night by a score of 4-3. For the Penguins, it was just their 2nd regulation loss since December 23rd. Ty Conklin got the call for the Penguins and made 29-saves on 33 shots to move his record to 10-2-2. The Penguins (27-18-4) have lost all 4-meetings with the Flyers this season, after sweeping them in 8-games last season. With 59-points, the Penguins are still just 1-point behind the Atlantic Division leading Devils and Flyers (1st place tie). ...click the link for the full article.... Fri, 25 Jan 2008 03:24:01 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/84288 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/84288 With the NHL season nearly halfway in the books, and the 2008 half approaching, there are a few teams that could use a new start in the New Year. Most of these teams will wish for the season to start fresh or to go back to the offseason, whereas others need to be thankful with what they have and be careful not to overplay their hand too soon. FIO writer Tim Hays gives you Five New Year's Resolutions for some NHL teams as we look forward to the second half of the NHL season. Mon, 31 Dec 2007 22:15:08 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/57464 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/57464 After signing defenseman Braydon Coburn to a long-term deal, Ed Moran of the Philadelphia Daily News reports that Philadelphia Flyers GM Paul Holmgren is working on signing the club's pending free agents to contract extensions. Sun, 02 Dec 2007 16:53:00 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/40002 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/40002 As much as I despise the Flyers (normal rivalry instinct)....has the media and league gone overboard and underboard on them at the same time? Maybe the real message is this...PHYSICAL IS BACK! Wed, 28 Nov 2007 16:06:23 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/39162 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/39162 A well written, well argued take on the NHL's reaction to the Randy Jones-Patrice Bergeron situation. Well worth the time it takes to read it! Thu, 01 Nov 2007 00:59:30 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/33875 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/33875