SLAM! Sports
SLAM! Hockey
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
COLUMNS
NHL
The Teams
Full Schedule
Monthly Schedule
Standings
Statistics
Rosters
Injury list
Movement
Trades
Hits Gallery
INTERACTIVE
JUNIOR
MORE HOCKEY
ALSO ON SLAM!
Saturday, October 2, 1999
Flyers feeling the pressure
After two straight years of being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, the Philadelphia Flyers have that feeling that it's now or never.
"We all feel this is our year," said Flyers coach Roger Nielson. "Things are pretty well in place and we feel this is the year to do it."
It might not be a coincidence that 10 players on this year's roster are on one-year deals, or in the final year of their contracts.
The Flyers will begin their quest tonight when they open the season against the Senators.
The Flyers will be forced to start the season pounded by injuries.
Rod Brind'Amour, whose 484 consecutive-games streak is the longest in the NHL, could miss as many as four weeks with a fractured left foot. Brind'Amour hasn't missed a regular-season game since Feb. 22, 1993, but Nielson says it isn't outside the realm of possibility for the winger to be in tonight's lineup.
Feisty Keith Jones is gone six-eight weeks following surgery to remove scar tissue in his left knee.
DESJARDINS OUT
The Flyers will also find themselves without Eric Desjardins. The defenceman took a puck in the mouth in a pre-season game against Detroit earlier this week and lost nine teeth.
Eric Lindros and John LeClair are coming off partial training camps due to aching backs. The two only played in three of the team's eight pre-season games. LeClair collected two goals and two assists, while Lindros had three points, but just one goal.
"They both seem to be back at full speed," Nielson said.
"Let's just say it was a real mixed-up training camp."
Injuries aside, the Flyers will ice pretty much the same lineup from last spring. The key exception is having a healthy Mark Recchi in the lineup. Recchi, a two-time 40-goal scorer, will be expected to take some pressure off the first line.
Due to the injuries, Nielson will have rookie Mark Greig, 29, playing on the first line tonight with Lindros and LeClair.
He is one of the few changes the team has made, but the newcomers could prove to be significant.
Three other rookies, goalie Brian Boucher, 22, centre Simon Gagne, 19, and defenceman Marc Eaton, 22, will see considerable playing time.
Of the three, Eaton might feel the most pressure, being the first Philadelphia-area player to make the Flyers' roster.
"There will be a certain amount of pressure on all of them," Nielson said. "We'll just have to wait and see how they adapt."
Factors that could be key to the Flyers success will be their ability to play consistently through the second half of the season and whether or not Lindros can remain healthy for an entire season.
 Bert's back on blades Blue Jays boot game Bombers drop Peterson Felicien rebuilds race | Visit our Polls Archive |