Philadelphia Flyers
Sergei Bobrovsky Creates Moral Problem for Flyers Fans
The Eastern Conference Finals for the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs have been set. On one side, former Philadelphia Flyers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky and his Florida Panthers. On the other, NHL villains Jacob Trouba, Matt Rempe, and the New York Rangers.
And despite missing the playoffs altogether, the Flyers and Flyers fans have a surprising amount of skin in these games. The pathos is simple.
At the cost of the hated rival Rangers winning the Eastern Conference and advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals, the Flyers will receive a higher draft pick, as the pick will be prevented from sliding any further. That pick—a 2024 first-round pick—was acquired in the 2022 Claude Giroux trade that brought top winger Owen Tippett to Philadelphia.
Giroux, of course, moved on from Florida after the 2022 postseason and subsequently signed with the Ottawa Senators.
Conversely, Flyers fans can devote some spare energy to cheering on Bobrovsky and the Panthers in the hope that another former Flyer will lift the Stanley Cup, or at least prevent the Rangers from doing so. And, in truth, there isn’t much parity between having the 28th overall pick or the 32nd overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
Oh, and when Bobrovsky was traded by the Flyers to the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2012, the Flyers used the second-round pick they acquired to draft Anthony Stolarz. Stolarz is now backing up Bobrovsky in Florida, and together, the two formed arguably the best goalie duo in the NHL this year.
In the 2024 playoffs so far, Bobrovsky is 8-3-0. Last year, he was 12-6-0 as he brought the Panthers to the Stanley Cup Finals.
Talk about perpetuating the heartache evoked by the dire mistakes of past regimes.
In fairness, Bobrovsky has always been up and down during his career, and especially so since joining the Panthers in 2019. The 35-year-old Russian won the Vezina Trophy twice after leaving the Flyers, though, including once under current Flyers head coach John Tortorella when the two were with the Blue Jackets.
Stolarz, meanwhile, has made his living as one of the NHL’s best and most reliable backup goaltenders. He’s expected to be highly sought-after if or when he hits the free agent market on July 1.
Together, the two former Flyers goalies could take down the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers. Or, if the draft is your thing, bring the Flyers the highest draft pick possible at this stage of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Whose side are you on?
There is no comparison as to which side you’re on. The Rangers and the Penguins are at the top of any hate list for a true Flyers fan. Hopefully the Panthers knock them out in six. The Hurricanes outplayed the Rangers at 5 vs 5 over the course of their series and it took power play goals in the third period and overtime of game two to turn the series in the Rangers favor.
If by some chance Florida fails, then whoever comes out of the west can hopefully knock them out.
I’m not sure what side I’m on, but thanks for recounting another one of the stupid moves made by Flyers management over the years.
That stupid move was purely at the feet of the owner, Mr. Edward Snider. He wanted the team to sign the best free agent goalie available and that is exactly what they did. They signed Ilya Bryzgalov to a massive contract. They are still paying him 1.63 million each year till 2027 since they bought him out years ago.
Yes, I remember. And I argued against it at the time.
Anybody but the Rangers. If Florida goes on to win the Cup, it will continue that maddening trend of another ex-Flyer winning the Cup outside the friendly confines of 3601 S Broad.
Why is that? Because most of those teams are built according to the new NHL standards.
The Flyers? They think that hiring ex-Flyers Has-Beens is the formula for success. Although to be fair… I can’t blame Danny Briere for the current state that team is in.
For that… we have to go back as far when Bob Clarke first became GM in 1984. 40 years later, the results speak for themselves.
Every Flyers fan should be pulling for Florida. I was born in Philly but lived my teen years during the 70’s in northern New Jersey and now live 15 miles from MSG. I played hockey in high school and college against New York hockey players .Saying I hate the Rangers and their fans is an understatement. Try going to MSG or Long Island with a Flyers jersey on. We should all be cheering for Florida, to heck with a late draft pick. I wish Giroux would still be there to score an overtime winner. “Moral problem”, you’ve got to be kidding!