Flyers Hazardous For Other Coaches

Attention coaches: Skip the Flyers.

Seeing what happened to Paul Holmgren and Rick Bowness recently, you might want to call in sick on the night that your team is scheduled to play the Flyers.

Holmgren led his Hartford Whalers into the Spectrum to meet the Orange Crushers on Nov. 5. His club lost the game, 6-1, and Holmgren was fired one day later.

On Nov. 16, Bowness accompanied his Ottawa Senators into the House that Clarke Built. They lost to the Flyers, 5-3, and four days later - you guessed it - Bowness was axed.

The Flyers have the ability this season to not only beat teams but embarrass them.

The Flyers, after five seasons of not being able to find the net, finally know how to go for the jugular. They score more goals than the other team, then beat up the other guys and rub it in their face.

They’re good, and they’re mean.

And nothing makes a coach look worse than having his team out-meaned.

Keep it simple

Because the NHL is clamping down on the rules this season, maybe it should simplify the rule that governs displacing of the net as a goal is being scored.

Rule 50-C says that referees, at their discretion, “may assess a minor penalty, a penalty shot or award a goal” if a player deliberately moves the goal frame prior to the puck crossing the goal line between the normal position of the goal posts.

Too many options there, according to Gary Miles of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Miles wants to make it easier on the officials and more costly to the offending players.

Wipe out the minor penalty and penalty shot elements of the rule and award the goal, he says.

Doing that will force players to quit delaying the game by pushing the nets all over the place, and end the practice of taking away goals that should have counted.

Power play blues

Speaking of penalties, Pittsburgh coach Ed Johnston claims that some referees are slow to call penalties against the Penguins’ opponents because Pittsburgh has such a good power play.

Through Friday, the Pens were an incredible 34 for 96 on the power play for an NHL-best 35.4 scoring percentage. Johnston even wants Penguins general manager Craig Patrick to complain formally to the league.

From Russia with class

Russian to conclusions: Perhaps it’s because they come from a country that is often at odds politically with much of North America.

Perhaps it’s because they speak a different language.

Maybe it’s because they’re still considered “soft” players by some hard-nosed North Americans.

Whatever the reason, Russian players often get a bad rap in the NHL. That’s why it’s refreshing to run into players such as the Red Wings’ Igor Larionov and the Flyers’ Anatoli Semenov. They may not always play great, but they sure seem to conduct themselves in superstar fashion.

After scoring on a penalty shot against his old team, the San Jose Sharks, on Wednesday, Larionov refused to gloat.

“It’s not in my character to enjoy beating a team when it’s down,” he said.

Likewise, Semenov is the consummate gentleman. When asked why he treats fans as well as he treats his teammates and close friends, Semenov said, “Why shouldn’t I? We are all the same. No one is better inside than anyone else.”

Pucks to ponder

Doesn’t anyone care about the Oilers leaving Edmonton? Only 9,052 fans, the smallest crowd in franchise history, watched the Oilers shut out Anaheim on Wednesday… . Obviously out to prove that he is not a 10-game wonder, Montreal’s Brian Savage scored his 17th goal Wednesday night to tie Jaromir Jagr for second in the NHL.