The Flyers made an amazing run in last year’s playoffs. The team took the powerhouse Chicago Blackhawks to six games in the Stanley Cup Finals before running out of gas. The Blackhawks proved to be more skilled than Philadelphia. Their speed on both ends of the ice really gave the Flyers problems. Nonetheless, the Orange and Black gave their fans much hope for this season.

The team opens 2010-2011 on the road against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Oct. 7. The Flyers traded Simon Gagne to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the offseason. This move came as a bit of a surprise in that the team did not get much in return. The Flyers received defenseman Matt Walker and a fourth round pick in the 2011 draft for the talented winger. Hardly an even exchange. This was more of a salary cap move to give the team some flexibility. Gagne will be missed. Though, he has struggled with injuries throughout his career, when he is healthy, he is one of the league’s most dangerous offensive players.

Nikolai Zherdev was brought in to essentially take Gagne’s spot. Zherdev played in Moscow last year. The year before that he played with the New York Rangers. The 6-2, 205 lb forward has had some successful seasons in the NHL as a scorer. He scored 26 goals in his one year with the Rangers and scored 27 goals in 2005-2006 with the Columbus Blue Jackets. The same team that made him the 4th overall pick in the 2003 NHL draft. So, general manager Paul Holmgren replaces a goal scorer with another goal scorer. Defenseman Sean O’Donnell was signed as a free agent. O’Donnell will add experience to the blue line. He played with Chris Pronger in Anaheim when the Ducks won the Stanley Cup in the 2006-2007 season. O’Donnell has good size at 6-3, 235. It’s always good to add players who have won the ultimate game. Even though the Flyers got there last year, it’s a real positive to have as many guys as possible that know what it’s like to finish a Stanley Cup run successfully.

Andrej Meszaros was also acquired in a trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The price was a second round pick in the 2012 draft. Meszaros is a talented young defenseman. He made the NHL’s All-Rookie team in 2006. The Flyers should be better equipped to match up with a team like Chicago, which has a number of talented forwards. Philadelphia can now boast one of the deepest backlines in the league. Meszaros actually played for the Ottawa Senators against Anaheim in the 2007 Finals. So he is another guy with Stanley Cup experience. He finished with a plus/minus of 5 in the series. Meszaros stands at 6-2 and is 220 lb.

Pronger was everything he was advertised to be for Philadelphia. He solidified the defense. And is more than willing to take on the best forwards night after night. Pronger does a great job as a leader. He mans a powerful shot from the point on power plays. And he is extremely accurate with his shot. He gives the forwards a solid chance to clean up any rebounds. Though Mike Richards is the team’s captain, many look to Pronger for answers as to what is going right or wrong with the team, depending on the situation. Michael Leighton will be the number one goal tender. He was terrific at times last season and not so great at other times. Leighton was pretty solid leading up to the finals. But he gave up too many goals that should have been stops against Chicago. I am not sure if it was the pressure due to the magnitude of the series. Or if he was simply overmatched. He let in some goals on shots that he stopped against Boston and Montreal in the previous rounds. Whatever the cause, Leighton will need to make the routine saves consistently for the team to achieve their ultimate goal.

Peter Laviolette replaced John Stevens as head coach during the season last year. I was not sure it was a smart move. But it certainly proved to be. Laviolette really seems to have a solid grasp of the team. He is awfully effective with his mixing and matching of players. Laviolette reminds me a bit of Phillies manager Charlie Manuel in that regard.

Getting back to the Stanley Cup Finals, this season is hardly a lock for the Flyers. But there is definitely enough talent on the squad to do so. Philadelphia cannot afford too many key injuries. And Leighton must take the next step as a goalie.