Flyers may recruit goaltender John Grahame...from a rec league
by FrankD on Dec 14, 2009 11:32 AM EST
in News
15 comments
This is a story I caught wind of last night on SBNation.com and just had to share.
As Pens fans have experienced first hand this season, injuries can really bring some unexpected occurrences to a team's roster. What started as a seven-man defensive corp comprised of NHL-caliber blue liners quickly turned into a display of Pittsburgh minor league talent that may ultimately stand as a preview of next year's pairings. However, through thick and thin, the Pens were able to rely on a healthy farm team to get them through.
Now Philadelphia is starting to experience a similar bout with injuries. Just last week Ray Emery hit the IR for roughly four weeks with an abdominal tear. This left Philly with a dilemma: Do they promote the inexperienced, unchallenged Johan Backlund from the AHL, or do they look elsewhere for a fill-in behind the temporary starter Brian Boucher.
Take the jump. This is where it gets fun.
...the Flyers may be looking to settle on John Grahame, who has played a total of 224 NHL games and was a part of the 2004 Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning. For the last few years though, Grahame has been out of the league, playing half a season over in the KHL and most recently, in his local men's league.
Over his career, Grahame has accumulated stops in Boston, Tampa Bay and Carolina (under Flyers new head coach Peter Laviolette) before shipping off to the KHL's Avangard Omsk in 2008. His tenure in Russia didn't last long, as his contract was canceled by December 2008 for reasons that have been rumored to include a drinking problem. As of this past Saturday, Grahame is on a tryout contract with the Adirondack Phantoms, Philly's AHL affiliate. Before that signing he was playing for a men's rec league.
As the Philly.com article points out, despite a few stops in the NHL and an otherwise erratic career up to this point, Grahame does have his name etched on the 2004 Stanley Cup from when he was a member of the Lightning and Nikolai Khabibulin's backup. That's already a bigger claim than most of the Flyers can make.
Injuries can and will decimate teams from time to time. Combine injuries with the sort of situation that the Flyers face and you'll start to uncover some rather interesting scenarios such as this one.
Whether or not the Flyers sign Grahame isn't so much the focus of this piece as it is the fact that he's even being considered. And even if he doesn't make the team, you have to at least admire the entertainment value of this story.
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Sometimes it works out well
The story that immediately comes to my mind is the case of Joey Kocur, who played with the Red Wings in the late 80s, won a Cup with the Rangers in 1994, then retrired soon after. After the Wings got smacked down by the Avs in ’96, Scotty Bowman grabbed Kocur out of the beer league he was playing in to give the Wings some added muscle, and we took the Cup in 1997 and 1998.
Not saying Kocur was the reason for that success…but sometimes there are guys in the rec leagues who still have a bit in the tank.
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If he's only
backing up Boucher every four or five games for four or five weeks, he can’t do a lot of damage anyway. It’s not totally insane – and it’s not like the Flyers would be sabotaging a fantastic season.
if so why not rely on their young back-up… if I was him (Backlund) and the Flyers go looking for an old former NHL part-timer, supposedly alcoholic, instead of giving me a try, I’d be quite upset…
But… nice going Philly!:)
You have to see it for yourself...
That’s what I was thinking. I mean, the Pens gave Curry a shot for a few games last season. I’m sure he wasn’t ready for the NHL at the time but the Pens made it work while Fleury was out.
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Chronic Goonism
Yes is a disease endemic with Flyer’s Hockey. It’s a good thing that they haven’t waken up from the 1960’s. As long as Mr. Snyder keeps hiring ex-Flyers, as managers it will continue. Look at the record of some of the coaches they fired.Some were labeled “too soft” others “too hard” And now with Laviolette, they are making comparisons with Mike Therrien being replaced, last year and the Pens going all the way.
Not even close, Therrien with his known problems, has to be given credit for establishing a solid defense, and discipline to a young team emerging. No question that coach B has done wonders. In Philly the problem is with the players, however Holmgren is too hardeheaded or lacks the knowledge of how the game is played today. Keep dressing up guys like Carcillo and you’ll loose. I love it this could not have happened to a “better class of fans”. I went to watch a game years ago at the Spectrum, and it was an embarrassment for those so called fans. All kinds of obscenities, every time Mario touched the puck they where yelling for his head. This atmosphere is what demands, blockheads on the ice.
Heard some rumors about the flyers looking at Jaroslav Halak and Marty Turco. Probably both better options. Oh well…just another goalie for sid to toast.
by stoopidtom on Dec 14, 2009 5:42 PM EST via mobile reply actions
The Habs have mentioned they have an interest in shopping Halak. The Panthers have done the same with Vokoun. But I think the real issue here for Philly isn’t about landing a good goalie but more of an affordable one that is expendable (ie. drop to minors, has to clear waivers, trade bait) when Emery returns in 4 weeks.
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Why is Florida shopping Vokoun? Granted, he’s one of their most expensive players (with McCabe), but he’s also perhaps their best. Do they have that much faith in Clemmensen, or are they looking to bring Salak along sooner?
The article I read up on Fanhouse didn’t seem like it was exuding much confidence in Clemmensen, especially given his numbers so far this season. But as evidenced last season in his tenure with the Devils, Clemmensen is a capable goalie. It’s Florida’s defense that needs work. Craig Andersen struggled in Florida last season but still put up some big numbers. Look at him now in Colorado. I guess that’s the risk goalies take when playing for a team that’s given up the most shots in the league two years in a row.
Plus, the Panthers have this guy Markstrom ready to make the leap from the Swedish League next season. So really the release of Vokoun’s contract could help with some offseason moves. But I’m starting to notice that so many goaltenders will be on the market soon. If rumors hold true, then Vokoun, Giguerre, Halak and Marty Biron could be on the market soon. Of the four, Vokoun is obviously the best choice but also carries the bigger price tag.
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At this point, I’d be surprised if any goalie move is made. Boucher has been excellent and seems to thrive in these situations, and while Backlund looked terrible during the preseason, it seems to have been just a matter of getting used to North America. He’s been great with the Phantoms thus far this season.
As for Grahame, he’ll probably never see the Flyers. At least he better not.
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Yeah I didn’t see why they wouldn’t at least give the kid a back-up spot. I mean, I know things aren’t exactly falling into place right now for the Flyers, but if Boucher can keep it close and the offense is willing to help him out I think they can survive until Emery returns.
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Yeah… and even with the invisible offense, Boucher has held it together. They’ll be fine if they can start scoring.
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by Travis Hughes on Dec 14, 2009 11:50 PM EST up reply actions
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