http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/5331 Recent articles about Vaclav Prospal en-us The Flyers traded forward Vaclav Prospal back to the Tampa Bay Lightening Wednesday for a seventh round pick in this year's NHL draft and a conditional draft pick in next year's draft. Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:06:01 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279685 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279685 Today the Flyers dealt Vaclav Prospal back to the Tampa Bay Lightning. The fact that Prospal is leaving the Flyers again should come as no surprise to anyone. He made it no secret that he enjoyed playing in a warm weather city and wanted to go back to one this summer. There were also rumors floating around last week that he was interested in returning to Tampa Bay since John Tortorella was fired. Even if Prospal wanted to stay here, there was slim chance the Flyers would have the cap space to sign him and other free agents Jeff Carter, RJ Umberger, and Randy Jones. So with all that in mind, GM Paul Holmgren was able to get some draft picks for him, namely a seventh round pick this year and a conditional pick in the 2009 draft. Wed, 18 Jun 2008 17:42:02 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279593 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279593 Paul Holmgren did it again, this time getting something for nothing. Vaclav Prospal, who the Flyers acquired from the Tampa Bay Lightning in February, was sent back to the Lightning for two draft picks: a 7th round pick this year and a conditional pick next year. Prospal had no interest in coming back to the Flyers and it was unlikely that the Flyers could afford him, so Holmgren essentially picked up some late draft picks for nothing. Prospal had a good run as a Flyer last year, but he was wildly inconsistent. Prospal and Danny Briere clicked at times to make for a dominant top line but they also would go silent for long stretches of games. Prospal will be replaced on the top line by Simon Gagne who hopes to return following a series of concussions. Wed, 18 Jun 2008 15:17:10 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279497 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279497 The Flyers may be playing their last game of the season tonight. In an effort to shake things up and get a spark, Coach John Stevens has rearranged the Flyers forward lines to look like this: Richards - Briere - Hartnell Umberger - Prospal - Lupul Upshall - Carter - Knuble Thoresen - Dowd - Kapanen Braydon Coburn also will not play tonight. Click the link for more on these latest moves. Thu, 15 May 2008 14:03:15 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/267339 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/267339 The wait is killing me. After only a day between the first and second rounds of the playoffs, the Flyers will end up going a full six days between games when they finally start their series with the Penguins. The Pens will have also been off for five days, so neither team will be carrying much momentum with them into Game One. I understand why the NHL wants to wait until the weekend to start the series, but they are really ruining the flow of the playoffs. Flyers fans have been salivating about a match-up with the team that ducked them at the onset of the playoffs for almost a month now and they are ready to get it started. We are still two days away from the start of the series, but it's time to take a closer look at what we are going to see when they finally drop the puck on Friday. Click the link for an in-depth analysis. Wed, 07 May 2008 20:02:34 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/264540 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/264540 Over a month ago, I discussed the possibility that Simon Gagne, who has been out since February with concussion symptoms, might return to the ice if the Flyers make the Stanley Cup Finals. Well, with the Flyers a mere four wins away from the Stanley Cup Finals, it now seems there is little hope that Gagne will be suiting up any time soon. When asked about Gagne's possible return to the ice, Flyers GM Paul Holmgren believes he's "not an option no matter how long this thing goes". Gagne was with the team in Montreal, but he hasn't done anything on skates yet and is still far from being able to return. Holmgren feels that it would be best for Gagne to wait until next season and not try to rush back. As I watch the Flyers this postseason, every now and then I wonder about how good this team would be with Simon Gagne in the lineup. He is a two-time 40 goal scorer and an offensive force. He would look really good on the top line, paired up with Danny Briere and Vinny Prospal. Click the link for more Mon, 05 May 2008 18:02:04 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/263711 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/263711 Things just keep getting better for the Flyers. Following last nights 3-2 win over the Canadiens, the Flyers also learned that one of the heroes of their first round win over the Washington Capitals is set to return. Mike Knuble, who hasn't played since Game 5 against Washington, believes he will be ready to play in Game 4 on Wednesday. Knuble, who suffered a partially torn hamstring when his skate got caught up in the ice, initially was expected to miss up to two weeks, and a return Wednesday would be slightly ahead of schedule. Knuble would add a nice lift to a Flyers team that is gelling at just the right time. He would likely push Steve Downie out of the line-up, which is fine by me. Knuble's scoring touch and leadership will be nice to have back and Downie, while he brings plenty of energy, still has a penchant for taking too many penalties. Knuble's return leaves just one Flyer out due to injury: Simon Gagne. Gagne said about a month ago that he could return if the Flyers make the Stanley Cup Finals. When he initially made that statement, I thought there was no way we would see him again this year, but with the way they are playing right now, the possibility is there. As much as I would cringe every time he was hit, getting a big time scorer like Gagne back would be huge. Could you imagine a top line of Gagne, Danny Briere and Vinny Prospal? UPDATE: Knuble is confirmed to return for Game 4. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:39:43 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261158 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261158 The Flyers just can't seem to hold on to 2 goal leads. For what only seems like the 8th time in the playoffs, the Flyers jumped out to a 2 goal lead in tonights opening game of the second round, only to see the Canadiens battle back, force overtime, and win 4-3. It happened several times in the Washington series, and it happened again tonight. Every time the Flyers pull ahead by 2, they seem to fall back and allow the other team to dictate play. It's a recipe for disaster, and something they can't do against a team with as much firepower as the Canadiens. The refs had a hand in this one, making two very questionable calls that helped the Canadiens make their comeback. Click the link for much more analysis, including video highlights featuring both of the controversial calls in the game. Thu, 24 Apr 2008 21:54:41 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256775 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256775 The season was on the line for the Washington Capitals on Saturday, and they came out like it. They played with a no-holds barred energy and knocked the Flyers back on their heals. During the second period, Mike Knuble, who was the hero of game 4, went down to block a shot and injured his hamstring in the process. He will miss the rest of this series. Game 6 is Monday back in Philadelphia. Sat, 19 Apr 2008 23:42:55 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/244195 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/244195 The Capitals played their most complete game at just the right time, staving off elimination by beating the Flyers 3-2 in Game Five. The win pushes the series to a Game Six that will be played back in Philadelphia on Monday. The Flyers need to finish this series off at home on Monday. This Capitals team has proven that if you give them a small opening, they will storm right through it. Allowing the Caps to win Game Six and then letting them go home to Washington again would be killer for the Flyers. Expect the Flyers to come out with a ton of energy on Monday, and it will be the Capitals turn to weather the storm. I still stand by my prediction before the series of the Flyers in six. Click the link for more analysis of this game. Sat, 19 Apr 2008 15:52:28 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/243585 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/243585 After splitting the first two games in Washington, the first round match up between the Flyers and Capitals moved to Philadelphia. After completely shutting down and shutting out Washington on Sunday, Philadelphia had the momentum. Highlights included. Wed, 16 Apr 2008 08:54:23 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/238964 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/238964 Washington Capitals' fans should file a missing persons report for Alexander Ovechkin, because he was nowhere to be found in today's 2-0 win by the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers defense shut down the usually potent Ovechkin, who managed 5 shots on goal, but generated very few chances in his nearly 27 minutes of ice time. Martin Biron played a great game in goal, turning aside 24 shots en route to his first career playoff shutout. He needed to make several big stops in the second period when the Capitals were firing a number of shots on goal, but he also had long stretched of time where he could relax, including six minutes in the third period when the Capitals didn't tally a shot on goal. Sun, 13 Apr 2008 16:02:29 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/236403 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/236403 Game 1 of the first round matchup between the Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals had everything that everyone was expecting. There were lots of goals, plenty of hits, and the emotions were running high. Sat, 12 Apr 2008 00:27:50 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/235695 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/235695 Ovechkin scores the game winner to put the Capitals up 1-0 in the series. The Flyers played great hockey...for 40 minutes. What went wrong? Well...there's plenty to talk about there... Sat, 12 Apr 2008 00:17:38 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/235691 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/235691 It almost seemed inevitable. The game was tied 4-4 late in the third period, and Alexander Ovechkin had yet to score a goal. Somehow, everyone knew that he was going to make his mark in this game, his first ever in the NHL playoffs. Sure enough, Ovechkin netted the game winning goal in the final five minutes of play. He created the whole play on his own, striking with an unassisted goal after he took the puck away from Lasse Kukkonen in the Flyers' zone and punched it past Martin Biron to win the game for the Captials 5-4. Click the link for more, including video highlights of Ovechkin's goal. Fri, 11 Apr 2008 21:13:13 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/235600 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/235600