John Stevens, flyers.nhl.com
After the Flyers first round exit in this year’s playoffs, someone should blamed. Right?
Should Paul Holmgren be blamed for having to make roster decisions based on salary cap dollars? Yes, but that’s not why the Flyers lost. Holmgren still assembled a strong enough team to make some noise in the playoffs.
How about we blame the players for not playing to their potential? Yes and no. Some of the players outplayed expectations – Claude Giroux, while others were battling injuries – Simon Gagne, Jeff Carter, Mike Richards and Randy Jones. Players like Joffrey Lupul, Scott Hartnell and Danny Briere didn’t step up as much as they should have.
Could Marty Biron be responsible? Nope, he played well enough for them to win. He didn’t play well enough to win it for the team, but he gave the Flyers a shot at winning.
Should John Stevens be at fault for the performance of the Flyers in the playoffs? Absolutely. How does a coach allow his team to squander a three goal lead in a do-or-die playoff situation? How does a coach not have his team playing top level hockey heading into the playoffs? How does a coach not expect his players to play to their potential? How does a coach allow his team to be undisciplined? How does a coach allow his team to “take periods off” or “go through the motions” of many regular season games? I can’t answer these questions. I hope the Flyers organization answers these questions. It makes no sense to me why John Stevens gets the free pass.
My guess is that he will be back. I’m not happy.
PhilaTude 