Can Flyers Be Trusted With Next Goalie Decision?

In an ironic twist of fate, it might just be the reasoning behind the Flyers buyout of goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov that perfectly encapsulates this team’s continuous and pervasive habit of mismanaging their net minders. Though few in Philadelphia are finding fault in the organization’s decision to cut “Bryz” loose just two years into a nine-year contract that was to pay $51 million, and for good reason, the logic that general manager Paul Holmgren cites as his reasoning (and apparent reluctance) to enact one of his two compliance buyouts available via the collective bargaining agreement is at least a tad curious.

According to multiple reports, Holmgren’s decision to exile the goaltender (and pay him more than $1.6 million per season until 2027 to play elsewhere), was purely financial. Think about that. Shouldn’t there be more to it than the money? Shouldn’t his overall play have been a factor as well as his and his well-known alienation of teammates for a squad that struggled mightily to find consistency throughout  a shortened 2012-13 season that saw them finish 10th in the Eastern Conference count for something? It doesn’t, from what Holmgren has said.

“It’s hard to fault him. I still believe he played pretty good,” he told the AP this week. “But in a salary cap world, you need to make decisions from time to time that put you in a better light moving forward, and this is one of those.”

It’s hard to determine what we’re exactly supposed to assume here — that Holmgren is just providing lip service to allow the 14-year veteran as graceful an exit as can be possible, or if he’s simply letting finances dictate his decision to let what he considers to be a “pretty good” goalie go from an organization that hasn’t had a franchise-type player at that position in … well … that’s up to debate, since the Flyers have had, juggled, and released goalies over more than the last decade who’ve done statistically better than Bryz for less money. Did Brian Boucher fit the “franchise” mold in what was his first term here? Or has it really been since Ron Hextall’s first or second stint? John Vanbiesbrouck was supposed to be of the franchise variety, but ultimately did not prove to be the financial bargain during his two-year stint in Orange and Black that the club predicted him to be, at least in the postseason, when they opted to sign him over Curtis Joseph in 1998. Granted, Holmgren wasn’t the GM for all of these transactions (save the second term for Boucher), but he was surely giving input.

It was his call on Sergi Bobrovsky, the team’s most recently anointed “goalie of the future” (aside from Steve Mason of course), who was essentially banished from the 2011 playoffs when, after saving 24 of 25 shots in his postseason debut in a 1-0 quarterfinal loss against Buffalo, he was pulled early in a game two win during a chaotic first period when trailing by a goal and never was given another start until game four of a sweep to Boston in the semis despite leading the team in games (54) and wins (28) as a starter as the Flyers finished second in the East. When traded to Columbus in June of 2012, Bobrovsky became the latest prodigy to be removed from the net not too far removed from being heralded with “savior” status.

Who could forget Roman Cechmanek or Antero Niittymaki?  The former, who was handed Boucher’s keys not long into the 2000-01 season, despite Boucher’s impressive run in the 1999-00 playoffs (lost to Devils in conference finals, 2.03 goals-against average), earned the second-best GAA in the league during each of his three seasons in Philly before being dealt to Los Angeles after the 2202-03 season. The Flyers won only one round in three postseason appearances during his tenure, but should he be remembered as a career choke or as someone who took a team without enough talent to win a cup as far as he could for three seasons? In the 01-02 first round he allowed just seven goals in four games during a 4-1 series loss in the quarters to Ottawa, a series that saw Philadelphia set a record for futility by scoring all of two goals in the five games (including two that went to overtime). Cechmanek’s 1-0 OT win in Game 1 was followed by three consecutive 3-0 shutout losses before he was benched in favor of Boucher for Game 5, a 2-1 OT loss. A year later, a 1.83 GAA in the regular season and 2.14 playoff GAA (13 games) served as his swan song when the Fly Guys were bounced by the Senators again, this time in the semis. His 02-03 GAA of 1.83 stands as a franchise record for a season with at least 58 games played (in 1973-74 Bernie Parent posted a 1.89 in 73 games). Cechmanek, gone after three seasons. Though, in fairness, he didn’t go on to win the Vezina Trophy like “Bob” and was out of the league after an unflattering 03-04 season in LA that saw him post his worst GAA in the NHL (2.51).

Still, it begs the question of what could have been had the Flyers given him more chances per his track record, even if the “soft goal” theory ever proves scientifically stout. The career of Niittymaki in Philly and in general was probably plagued more by injury than the Flyers reluctance to give him an honest shot at a long-time starting gig, but it’s worth acknowledging that the team’s best chance with him might have been in 03-04, when he went 3-0 replacing an injured Robert Esche and Jeff Hackett, but was sent to the minors in favor of Sean Burke, an 18-year vet at the time (and former Flyer) who had won more than 20 games in a single season just seven times prior to being acquired from Phoenix and who went just 6-5-2 the rest of the way before being replaced by Esche for a playoff run that didn’t end until the conference finals. Esche himself, who came to Philly in a trade involving Boucher, was an interesting case in that he was seemingly always being “challenged” by the organization for his right to remain in net after the Cechmanek trade, despite the run in 03-04, whether it be Burke or Niittymaki, or by Hackett, another established journeyman, before either of them. Yes, injuries impacted Esche too, but only to a point.

Prior to Bryz, Boucher had been brought back into the fold, to challenge fellow free agent Ray Emery after more than two seasons and nearly 60 wins from Martin Biron, who also led a run to the conference finals in 07-08, as well as Michael Leighton — who with Emery and Boucher took part in a true goalie carousel in 09-10 that saw all three start at least 25 games in the regular season before Boucher and Leighton were swapped often (in part due to a Boucher injury) through a rollercoaster postseason that didn’t end until a bizarre goal in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Should Philly fans be confident that the team will this time choose correctly among the options available to fill Bryz’ vacated spot? Once again, the organization’s hand is evaluating between current personnel in Mason, a former Rookie of the Year acquired by the Flyers in April from Columbus who went 4-2 this season while being linked again to another former player in Emery, a free agent with prior hip issues. Multiple reports have also linked the Fly Guys to free agents Evgeni Nabokov, Tim Thomas, Jose Theodore, and Dan Ellis as well as a possible trade partner with St. Louis for Jaroslav Halak.

Regardless of who is in net next season, the stigma of goaltenders past will persist until a cup is claimed. Is there a true culture problem preventing this reality? Maybe, in the opinion of Ritch Winter, the agent for Bryzgalov.

“It’s terrible in Philadelphia for a goaltender,” Winter said during a recent interview with USA Today. “The goalie coach (Jeff Reese) has no authority. The head coach (Peter Laviolette) doesn’t listen to him. It’s an issue and it’s made it a challenge. “And Sergei Bobrovsky, who struggled, leaves Philadelphia, goes to Columbus and wins the Vezina Trophy.”

Or is this just lip service of the bitter variety on his client’s way out?

Joe Darrah is co-editor of Philly Sports Jabronis.