Flyers Walk Defensive Tightrope as Holmgren Seeks Deal

Philadelphia Flyers GM Paul Holmgren is looking to make a deal for a solid NHL-quality defenseman. 

And it’s no wonder.  With Ryan Parent undergoing successful back surgery yesterday and out another 6 weeks and Danny Syvret expected out another couple of weeks with a seperated shoulder, Philadelphia’s core of defenseman is seriously depleted.

That leaves Chris Pronger, Kimmo Timonen, Matt Carle, Braydon Coburn, Oskars Bartulis and Ole-Kristian Tollefsen as their only healthy defenseman.  Granted, Pronger and Timonen eat up a ton of ice time for the team, but playing each game with just six defenseman could lead to burnout.  It may be a very a good thing that the Olympic break is coming up in less than three weeks.

The Flyers can ill-afford any more injuries on the blueline.  Besides the catastrophic nature to the team of injuries to either Pronger or Timonen, any D-man not able to go for any reason could be disasterous to the team.  Tollefsen, injury-prone throughout his career but signed as a free agent by Holmgren this past offseason, has been limited to just 16 games due to a variety of injury woes.  He is tough, but usually has himself in bad positions and ends up taking more than he dishes out.  With every hit he takes, the Philly front office has to be holding their breath.

So Holmgren mans the phones in search of an able-bodied NHL ready defenseman.  But he is having great difficulty…and here’s why:

1)  The salary cap – With each team that Holmgren talks to regarding a deal, he is in dire need of offsetting any contract that comes to the Flyers.  Homer would need to send salary back to the other team, and most of the teams that are looking to trade right now are also looking to dump salary because they are also up against the cap limits. 

2)  NHL Defenseman at a premium –  If you look up and down most NHL team’s rosters, you will notice that there is a lack of depth for NHL-proven, NHL-quality defensemen.  A lot of teams have 3-6 really good D-men, then fill in the rest with journeymen.  The general lack of numbers is one reason, but it also comes back to the salary cap for most teams as to how much they can afford to spend on their 7th and 8th rearguards.

3)  The lack of 1st Round Picks – It’s almost ironic that one of the reasons Holmgren is finding it difficult to make a deal is because of a deal he already completed.  Most teams who are looking to dump a defenseman and his salary are usually looking to add high-end draft picks to their stable in an attempt to rebuild through the NHL Entry Draft.  The Flyers lack a 1st rounder next year from the deal they made over the summer with the Anaheim Ducks to acquire Pronger.  Along with Joffrey Lupul and Luca Sbisa (a defenseman and 1st round pick in 2008), the 2009 and 2010 1st round picks (and a conditional 3rd in 2010 or 2011 if Flyers win the Cup this season) are Anaheim’s property. 

It seems the Calgary Flames would be a good trading partner for Holmgren to conduct talks.  They are the team with the best stable of NHL rearguards and have a desperate need themselves.  They need offense, pure and simple.  Shutout again at home last night by the St. Louis Blues, Calgary has managed only 15 goals in their last 11 home games.  Captain and perennial Flames leading scorer Jarome Iginla has gone through a horrendous cold streak, going goalless and only registering two assists in the last 11 Calgary games.  It’s no coincidence that the Flames have lost 6 games in a row.

They boast Dion Phaneuf, whose name has been in the rumor mill for some time now, Jay Bouwmeester, Robyn Regehr, Mark Giordano, Cory Sarich, Adam Pardy, Aaron Johnson, and Staffan Kronwall. 

About a month ago when the Jeff Carter trade rumors were running rampant, there may have been something in the works for Phaneuf.  But Holmgren has made it clear that Carter is not on the market.  And it’s a good thing, as Carter has been red hot, with 6 goals in the previous 5 Flyer games.  But with a decent stable of proven scoring forwards in Philadelphia, something may be worked out between these two teams.

Another good candidate for Philadelphia would be Carolina Hurricane Aaron Ward.  He is a proven winner and at age 37, probably wouldn’t cost Homer as much as some of the other defensemen whose names are making the rounds on the trade rumor circuit.  With Carolina dead last in the Eastern Conference and almost no hope of making the playoffs, Ward will almost certainly be moved before the deadline.

Another option for Holmgren if he cannot get a deal done for an NHL defenseman is to bring someone up from the club’s AHL affiliate, the Adirondack Phantoms.  Already recalling Flyer regulars Bartulis and the injured Syvret from the Phantoms, the most likely candidates to also be brought up are Kevin Marshall and Marc-Andre Bourdon. 

Also in the mix is Denis Bodrov, recently signed by the Flyers to an AHL contract with the Phantoms.  Philadelphia’s 2nd round pick in 2006 and 55th overall, the 23-year-old Bodrov has gone from the top Philly blueline prospect to somewhat of a wild card.  He had problems with his KHL team in Russia and has not played in a month.

There is less than three weeks until the NHL Olympic break and less than two months until the NHL trade deadline.  So to ensure that the Flyers are not caught in a bad spot, Holmgren certainly has his work cut out for him.

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