Hello again, Flyers fans! It's time for another edition of Between the Pipes. Let's jump right into it.
Danny Briere announces his retirement from the National Hockey League [flyers.nhl.com] [Frank Klose – Flyerdelphia]
Hopkins Take: After a successful 17-year NHL career in which he played just short of 1,000 games, Danny Briere announced his retirement via the Flyers website. Of Briere's 696 points, 283 of them came during his six-year run in Philadelphia in which the fan-favorite became a legend for his clutch play in the playoffs. He recorded 116 points in 124 postseason games, most of which as a Flyer. Briere was just a genuinely good guy whose play on the ice mixed with his classy demeanor off of it made it impossible not to like. Hopefully Briere returns to the Flyers organization in some capacity as most local alumni tend to do. As we wish Danny well in his future endeavors, let's take a moment to look back at some of his finest moments as a Flyer.
Flyers earning high praise for their prospects [Jeff Neiburg – Daily News]
Hopkins Take: Corey Pronman of ESPN released his annual rankings in which each team is evaluated based on the prospects in their system. With GM Ron Hextall's vision of building a perennial winner with a young core and properly developed prospects, it's no surprise that his hard work is beginning to pay off in terms of national recognition. At this time last year, the Flyers were ranked 25th overall based on the strength of their system. This year, they made the jump all the way up to 10th. Pronman acknowledged that drafting elite-level defensemen such as Ivan Provorov and Travis Sanheim have significantly improved the Flyers depth at a position that has quite frankly been the club's Achilles heel. Mix in above-average forward and goaltending prospects and the Flyers are beginning to lay the foundation for a winning club poised to play meaningful games each spring/summer.
Dave Hakstol conducts training session for the Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation [Sarah Fergus – flyers.nhl.com]
Hopkins Take: The Flyers are an organization that care deeply about creating a culture that gives back to the community. One of Ed Snider's greatest accomplishments was the creating of the Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation. Recently, first-year coach Dave Hakstol conducted some on-ice and classroom training with a group in Kensington, Pa. As a successful college hockey coach, Hakstol understands the importance of teaching kids the finer lessons in life. He also embraces the opportunity to step out into the community and continue to advance the team's initiative of positively influencing today's youth through the sport of hockey. Since his hiring this offseason, Hakstol has made a favorable impression on his players, the fans and now the next wave of hockey hopefuls in the area. With Hakstol winning off the ice, the Flyers faithful hope that it will translate to winning on the ice as well.
Zach Hopkins is a contributing writer for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @healedbyhockey.
