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2008–09 Philadelphia Flyers
Division 3rd Atlantic
Conference 5th Eastern
2008–09 record 44–27–11
Home record 24–13–4
Road record 20–14–7
Goals for 264
Goals against 238
Team information
General manager Paul Holmgren
Coach John Stevens
Captain Mike Richards
Alternate captains Simon Gagne
Kimmo Timonen
Arena Wachovia Center
Average attendance 19,545 [1]
Team leaders
Goals Jeff Carter (46)
Assists Mike Richards (50)
Points Jeff Carter (84)
Penalty minutes Riley Cote (174)
Plus/minus Jeff Carter (+23)
Wins Martin Biron (29)
Goals against average Martin Biron (2.76)
Antero Niittymaki (2.76)

The 2008–09 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Flyers' 42nd season in the National Hockey League (NHL).

The Flyers began the 2008–09 season by naming Mike Richards the 17th captain in Flyers history on September 17, with Jason Smith headed to Ottawa as a free agent. The Flyers were looking to build on the success of the previous season but instead got off to an 0-3-3 start which became indicative of the season ahead. Despite a solid December and January and finishing with 4 points more than the year before, for the most part the 2008-09 Flyers played inconsistent and looked like different teams, playing at the top of their ability one night and a subpar performance the next. Derian Hatcher missed the entire regular season and playoffs with a knee injury, and Steve Downie was traded to Tampa Bay for defenseman Matt Carle. Two pleasant surprises were the emergence of rookie center Claude Giroux and defenseman Luca Sbisa who was drafted by the Flyers in June with the 19th overall pick acquired from Columbus in exchange for R.J. Umberger, who became a victim of a salary cap crunch. Scottie Upshall also found himself the victim of such a crunch, traded to Phoenix for Daniel Carcillo at the trade deadline.

Despite holding on to the 4th seed in the East for much of the season, thanks to a 4-5-1 finish to the season, highlighted by a home loss to the Rangers on the last day of the regular season, the Flyers slipped to the 5th seed and lost home-ice advantage in their first round series with Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh dominated the Flyers in Game 1, and despite a better effort by the Flyers in Game 2 Pittsburgh came to Philadelphia with a 2-0 series lead. The Flyers were the better team in Games 3 and 4, but Pittsburgh gained a split in Philadelphia and took a 3-1 series lead. After a decisive 3-0 win in Game 5, the Flyers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in Game 6, but promptly fell victim to the inconsistencies that plagued the team all season and gave up 5 unanswered goals in a season-ending 5-3 loss.

Regular season[]

Divisional standings[]

Atlantic Division GP W L OTL GF GA Pts
y-New Jersey Devils 82 51 27 4 244 209 106
x-Pittsburgh Penguins 82 45 28 9 264 239 99
x-Philadelphia Flyers 82 44 27 11 264 238 99
x-New York Rangers 82 43 30 9 210 218 95
e-New York Islanders 82 26 47 9 201 279 61

Conference standings[]

Eastern Conference GP W L OTL GF GA Pts
z-Boston Bruins * 82 53 19 10 274 196 116
y-Washington Capitals * 82 50 24 8 272 245 108
y-New Jersey Devils * 82 51 27 4 244 209 106
x-Pittsburgh Penguins 82 45 28 9 264 239 99
x-Philadelphia Flyers 82 44 27 11 264 238 99
x-Carolina Hurricanes 82 45 30 7 239 226 97
x-New York Rangers 82 43 30 9 210 218 95
x-Montreal Canadiens 82 41 30 11 249 247 93
e-Florida Panthers 82 41 30 11 234 231 93
e-Buffalo Sabres 82 41 32 9 250 234 91
e-Ottawa Senators 82 36 35 11 217 237 83
e-Toronto Maple Leafs 82 34 35 13 250 293 81
e-Atlanta Thrashers 82 35 41 6 257 280 76
e-Tampa Bay Lightning 82 24 40 18 210 279 66
e-New York Islanders 82 26 47 9 201 279 61

x - clinched playoff spot, y - clinched division title, z - clinched best conference record, e - eliminated from playoff contention

* – division leader

Game log[]

2008–09 Game Log

Legend:       Win (2 points)       Loss (0 points)       Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

Playoffs[]

Game log[]

2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs

Legend:       Win       Loss

Player stats[]

Skaters[]

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/− = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes

Regular season
# Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM
17 Carter, JeffJeff Carter 82 46 38 84 +23 68
18 Richards, MikeMike Richards 79 30 50 80 +22 63
12 Gagne, SimonSimon Gagne 79 34 40 74 +21 42
19 Hartnell, ScottScott Hartnell 82 30 30 60 +14 143
15 Lupul, JoffreyJoffrey Lupul 79 25 25 50 +1 58
22 Knuble, MikeMike Knuble 82 27 20 47 +5 62
44 Timonen, KimmoKimmo Timonen 77 3 40 43 +19 54
5 Coburn, BraydonBraydon Coburn 80 7 21 28 +7 97
28 Giroux, ClaudeClaude Giroux 42 9 18 27 +10 14
48 Briere, DanielDaniel Briere 29 11 14 25 -1 26
25 Carle, MattMatt Carle 64 4 20 24 +2 16
9 Upshall, ScottieScottie Upshall 55 7 14 21 +5 63
45 Asham, ArronArron Asham 78 8 12 20 0 155
13 Metropolit, GlenGlen Metropolit 55 4 10 14 -1 15
41 Alberts, AndrewAndrew Alberts 79 1 12 13 +6 61
36 Powe, DarrollDarroll Powe 60 6 5 11 -8 35
23 Vaananen, OssiOssi Vaananen 46 1 9 10 +7 22
6 Jones, RandyRandy Jones 47 4 4 8 +8 22
47 Sbisa, LucaLuca Sbisa 39 0 7 7 -6 36
13 Carcillo, DanielDaniel Carcillo 20 0 4 4 -2 80
77 Parent, RyanRyan Parent 31 0 4 4 +3 10
14 Nodl, AndreasAndreas Nodl 38 1 3 4 -15 2
32 Cote, RileyRiley Cote 63 0 3 3 -7 174
43 Biron, MartinMartin Biron 55 0 4 4 n/a 0
24 Gratton, JoshJosh Gratton 19 1 2 3 -2 57
46 Kalinski, JonathonJonathon Kalinski 12 1 2 3 -2 0
26 Eminger, SteveSteve Eminger 12 0 2 2 0 8
3 Kukkonen, LasseLasse Kukkonen 22 0 2 2 -2 10
30 Niittymaki, AnteroAntero Niittymaki 32 0 1 1 n/a 2
11 Kane, BoydBoyd Kane 1 0 0 0 0 0
26 Syvret, DannyDanny Syvret 2 0 0 0 -1 0
27 Downie, SteveSteve Downie 6 0 0 0 -4 11
29 Guenin, NateNate Guenin 1 0 0 0 0 0
60 Raduns, NateNate Raduns 1 0 0 0 0 0
42 Ross, JaredJared Ross 10 0 0 0 -4 2
40 Sloane, DavidDavid Sloane 1 0 0 0 0 0
51 Fritsch, JamieJamie Fritsch 1 0 0 0 +1 0

Playoffs
# Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM
18 Richards, MikeMike Richards 6 1 4 5 -4 6
28 Giroux, ClaudeClaude Giroux 6 2 3 5 +2 6
48 Briere, DanielDaniel Briere 6 1 3 4 -1 8
12 Gagne, SimonSimon Gagne 6 3 1 4 -4 2
22 Knuble, MikeMike Knuble 6 2 1 3 -2 2
5 Coburn, BraydonBraydon Coburn 6 0 3 3 +2 7
25 Carle, MattMatt Carle 6 0 3 3 0 4
36 Powe, DarrollDarroll Powe 6 1 2 3 0 7
45 Asham, ArronArron Asham 6 1 1 2 -1 6
19 Hartnell, ScottScott Hartnell 6 1 1 2 -2 23
15 Lupul, JoffreyJoffrey Lupul 6 1 1 2 +1 2
13 Carcillo, DanielDaniel Carcillo 5 1 1 2 +3 5
44 Timonen, KimmoKimmo Timonen 6 0 1 1 -3 12
6 Jones, RandyRandy Jones 6 0 1 1 +1 0
17 Carter, JeffJeff Carter 6 1 0 1 -2 8
41 Alberts, AndrewAndrew Alberts 6 0 1 1 +1 10
42 Ross, JaredJared Ross 6 1 0 1 0 0
43 Biron, MartinMartin Biron 6 0 0 0 n/a 0
77 Parent, RyanRyan Parent 6 0 0 0 -3 6
47 Sbisa, LucaLuca Sbisa 1 0 0 0 0 2

Goaltenders[]

Note: GP = Games Played; TOI = Time On Ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime Losses; GA = Goals Against; GAA= Goals Against Average; SA= Shots Against; SV= Saves; Sv% = Save Percentage; SO= Shutouts

Regular season
# Player GP TOI W L OT GA GAA SA SV Sv% SO
43 Biron, MartinMartin Biron 55 3176 29 19 5 146 2.76 1718 1572 .915 2
30 Niittymaki, AnteroAntero Niittymaki 32 1804 15 8 6 83 2.76 947 864 .912 1
Playoffs
# Player GP TOI W L GA GAA SA SV Sv% SO
43 Biron, MartinMartin Biron 6 374 2 4 16 2.56 198 182 .919 1

Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Flyers. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
Traded mid-season

Awards and records[]

Awards[]

NHL
Award Recipient
All-Star Game representative Jeff Carter
NHL 2nd Star of the Month Jeff Carter (December)
NHL 1st Star of the Week Mike Richards (February 23)
NHL 2nd Star of the Week Jeff Carter (December 22)
NHL 3rd Star of the Week Simon Gagne (November 3)
Team
Award Recipient
Barry Ashbee Trophy Kimmo Timonen
Bobby Clarke Trophy Mike Richards
Gene Hart Memorial Award Scott Hartnell
Pelle Lindbergh Memorial Darroll Powe
Toyota Cup Jeff Carter
Yanick Dupre Memorial Danny Briere

Records[]

Milestones[]

Player Milestone Reached
Martin Biron 25th shutout February 25, 2009

Transactions[]

The Flyers have been involved in the following transactions before and during the 2008–09 season.

Trades[]

June 6, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
Danny Syvret
To Edmonton Oilers
Ryan Potulny
June 18, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
7th round pick in 2008
4th round pick in 2009
To Tampa Bay Lightning
Vaclav Prospal
June 20, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
1st round pick in 2008
3rd round pick in 2008
To Columbus Blue Jackets
R.J. Umberger
4th round pick in 2008
June 20, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
Steve Eminger
3rd round pick in 2008
To Washington Capitals
1st round pick in 2008
June 21, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
7th round pick in 2009
To Anaheim Ducks
7th round pick in 2008
June 24, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
Janne Niskala
To Nashville Predators
Triston Grant
7th round pick in 2009
June 30, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
Tim Ramholt
To Calgary Flames
Kyle Greentree
June 30, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
6th round pick in 2009
To Tampa Bay Lightning
Janne Niskala
July 1, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
Patrik Hersley
Ned Lukacevic
To Los Angeles Kings
Denis Gauthier
2nd round pick in 2010
October 13, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
Andrew Alberts
To Boston Bruins
Ned Lukacevic
conditional 4th round pick in 2009[1]
October 30, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
Josh Gratton
To Nashville Predators
Tim Ramholt
November 7, 2008
To Philadelphia Flyers
Matt Carle
San Jose's 3rd round pick in 2009
To Tampa Bay Lightning
Steve Downie
Steve Eminger
Tampa Bay's 4th round pick in 2009
March 4, 2009
To Philadelphia Flyers
Daniel Carcillo
To Phoenix Coyotes
Scottie Upshall
2nd round pick in 2011

Other transactions[]

Date Player Team (League) Notes
Signed via free agency
July 1, 2008 Sean Curry Providence (AHL) 2 years
July 1, 2008 Glen Metropolit Boston (NHL) 2 years
July 1, 2008 Nate Raduns Worcester (AHL) 1 year
July 1, 2008 Ossi Vaananen Djurgardens IF (Elitserien) 1 year
July 7, 2008 Arron Asham New Jersey (NHL) 2 years
September 18, 2008 Jean-Sebastien Aubin Anaheim (NHL) 1 year
March 26, 2009 Johan Backlund Timrå IK (Elitserien) 1 year, beginning 2009–10
Lost via free agency
May 15, 2008 Lars Jonsson Brynas IF (Elitserien)
May 29, 2008 Denis Tolpeko Dynamo Moscow (KHL) Flyers retain NHL rights
July 3, 2008 Rory Fitzpatrick Florida (NHL)
July 3, 2008 Stefan Ruzicka Spartak Moscow (KHL) Flyers retain NHL rights
July 8, 2008 Jason Smith Ottawa (NHL)
July 14, 2008 Patrick Thoresen HC Lugano (NLA) Flyers retain NHL rights
July 25, 2008 Martin Grenier Chelyabinsk (KHL)
July 31, 2008 Jaroslav Modry HC Liberec (CZE)
August 21, 2008 Rejean Beauchemin Idaho (ECHL)
August 28, 2008 Darren Reid Hershey (AHL)
October 7, 2008 Jesse Boulerice Lake Erie (AHL)
October 22, 2008 Martin Houle Las Vegas (ECHL)
November 17, 2008 Frederik Cabana released from contract
Retirement
June 1, 2008 Sami Kapanen KalPa (SM-liiga) Retired from NHL
April 7, 2009 Jim Dowd Not re-signed following 2007–08 season
Lost on waivers
February 27, 2009 Glen Metropolit Montreal (NHL)
February 27, 2009 Ossi Vaananen Vancouver (NHL)
Re-signed
June 26, 2008 Jeff Carter 3 years, $15 million
June 29, 2008 Steve Eminger 1 year, $1.2 million
July 2, 2008 Riley Cote 3 years, $1.65 million
July 2, 2008 Randy Jones 2 years, $5.5 million
July 2, 2008 Danny Syvret
July 15, 2008 Nate Guenin
July 21, 2008 Joffrey Lupul 4 year extension
Signed to Entry Level contracts
July 22, 2008 Kevin Marshall Lewiston (QMJHL) Drafted 41st overall, 2007
August 7, 2008 Chris Zarb Ferris State (CCHA) Drafted 144th overall, 2004
October 1, 2008 Luca Sbisa Lethbridge (WHL) Drafted 19th overall, 2008
April 1, 2009 James van Riemsdyk New Hampshire (HE) Drafted 2nd overall, 2007

Draft picks[]

Philadelphia's picks at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft in Ottawa, Ontario.[2]

Rnd # Player Position Nationality Drafted from
1 19 Luca Sbisa Defenseman Flag of Switzerland Switzerland Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
3 67 Marc-Andre Bourdon Defenseman Flag of Canada Canada Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (QMJHL)
3 84 Jacob DeSerres Goaltender Flag of Canada Canada Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)
6 178 Zac Rinaldo Center Flag of Canada Canada Mississauga St. Michael's Majors (OHL)
7 196 Joacim Eriksson Goaltender Flag of Sweden Sweden Brynas (Elitserien)

Farm teams[]

American Hockey League - Philadelphia Phantoms[3] (Standings)

The 2008–09 season will be the Phantoms' last playing in the Wachovia Spectrum and means they will move following the season. Comcast Spectacor sold the Phantoms to the Brooks Group of Pittsburgh on February 4, 2009, and the new ownership has expressed interest in eventually moving the Phantoms to Allentown provided that a multi-purpose arena can be constructed there. Until a permanent new home is found for the club it will have to operate starting in 2009–10 in a temporary location. The site being given the most serious consideration for that is Glen Falls, the former home of the AHL Adirondack Red Wings from 1979 to 1999.[4] Comcast Spectacor continues to operate the team through the conclusion of the 2008–09 AHL season and playoffs.

With Craig Berube returning to his role as an assistant coach with the Flyers, John Paddock was named head coach of the Phantoms. The Phantoms trailed the Binghamton Senators by as many as 12 points on March 14 for the final playoff spot in the East Division,[5] but came back to overtake Binghamton and clinch the final playoff spot in the final regular season game at the Spectrum. The Phantoms final season in Philadelphia came to an end after being swept from the first round of the playoffs by the Hershey Bears.

ECHL - Mississippi Sea Wolves[6] (Standings)

Mississippi missed the ECHL playoffs and announced they would suspend operations for the 2009–10 season. If the Flyers align with a new ECHL club for 2009–10, it will be their fourth ECHL affiliate in four seasons.

See also[]

References[]

  1. Becomes a 3rd round pick if Alberts re-signs with Philadelphia after season
  2. hockeydb.com, 2008 NHL Entry Draft
  3. FlyersHistory.net, AHL Season Overview: 2008–09
  4. Hockey owner hopes for success: Officials and Brooks Group work on lease for upcoming season Glens Falls PostStar April 10, 2009
  5. 2009 Calder Cup Playoffs - East Division Semi-finals Preview PhantomsHockey.com April 15, 2009
  6. FlyersHistory.net, Non-AHL Affiliates
Philadelphia Flyers
Team HistoryPlayersAward WinnersRecordsSeasonsDraft PicksThe SpectrumWachovia Center
Head Coaches Allen • Stasiuk • Shero • McCammon • Quinn • McCammon • Keenan • Holmgren • Dineen • Simpson • Murray • Cashman • Neilson • Ramsay • Barber • Hitchcock • Stevens • Laviolette • Berube • Hakstol • Vigneault
Division titles 1967-68, 1973-74, 1974-75, 1975-76, 1976-77, 1979-80, 1982-83, 1984-85, 1985-86, 1986-87, 1994-95, 1995-96, 1999-2000, 2001-02, 2003-04
Conference Championships 1974-75, 1975-76, 1976-77, 1979-80, 1984-85, 1986-87, 1996-97
Stanley Cups 1973-74, 1974-75
Affiliates Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AHL), Reading Royals (ECHL)
This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at 2008–09 Philadelphia Flyers season. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Ice Hockey Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License 3.0 (Unported) (CC-BY-SA).


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