Tuesday News

First things first, last night's game between the Eagles and Cowboys was one of the best I've seen in a while between the two. Yeah, we came up on the wrong end of a 41-37 final, but I can't complain too much. We went 12 rounds with the best team in football on their field and nearly walked out with a W. Couple bonehead plays (DeSean Jackson) and bonehead playcalling (a lateral? Seriously? What is this, backyard football??), but otherwise a good showing for Week 2. Now, on to serious business...

The Flyers will be going into next week's training camp down a goalie as Antero Nittymaki will be out 4-6 weeks after undergoing hip surgery. According to Paul Holmgren on the Flyers website, Nitty got some fluid drained (eww) from his left hip and needs some time to recover. Bill Meltzer from HockeyBuzz reported that the Flyers will invite former prospect Maxime Ouellet to camp for a tryout. Ouellet was with the team a few years ago but was traded to the Capitals for...Adam Oates. Yup, 'cause THAT trade worked out for us. He'll most likely be used as a replacement #2 behind Marty Biron until Nitty gets back to 100%, though I don't see him making the team.

I finally picked up my copy of the 2008-09 yearbook from The Hockey News and I have to say, I think they nailed it on the Flyers' outlook this year. THN has us as the 4th team in the East behind Montreal, Pittsburgh, and Washington, giving us a first-round playoff matchup with the Ottawa Senators. Not too sure about Ottawa finishing 5th, but who knows with that team? Holmgren has a great quote in the preview, saying that the Flyers "really didn't do anything" last season, even though they went to the conference final, and was way too inconsistent, which has been the problem for this franchise for years. Heck, that's been the problem for just about every Philly team since I've been alive. Now that Simon Gagne's back, the first unit with Danny Briere and possibly Claude Giroux has got to be more consistent with scoring. Of course, the Flyers are bringing back seven 20-goal scorers from last year, but adding Gagne will only help.

Now that Jason Smith is off playing with the aforementioned Senators, the Flyers will enter camp without a named captain. And it looks like it doesn't bother them one bit. Ed Moran of the Philadelphia Daily News reported today that the team will take its time in choosing a new captain and may not make a decision until the season starts. Kimmo Timonen, Mike Richards, and Gagne were mentioned as possible candidates. I would be happy with any of them, but I think that Richards earned the spot last season after the way he stepped up after Gagne went out, especially in the playoffs. Timonen was the captain in Nashville, but I think this is Richards's team.

Big shoutout to the NHL Network for airing the Traverse City Rookie Tournament and giving me hockey to watch that doesn't involve the 1992 Chicago Blackhawks. Nothing against the Hawks, mind you, it's just that I need a new fix. Also, the September 27th exhibition game at the Spectrum will also be televised, so all of us who weren't able to get tickets will at least be able to watch it. And speaking of TV, Comcast announced that all games will be broadcast in super-duper HD. This includes all Flyers, Sixers, and Phillies games. Wonder why they didn't do that before? Oh well.