2008–09 Philadelphia Flyers season

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===
===Conference standings===
 
===Game log===
2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log
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October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2)
# 	Date 	Visitor 	Score 	Home 	OT 	Decision 	Attendance 	Record 	Pts
1 	October 11 	NY Rangers 	4 – 3 	Philadelphia 	 	Biron 	19,623 	0–1–0 	0
2 	October 13 	Montreal 	5 – 3 	Philadelphia 	 	Biron 	19,323 	0–2–0 	0
3 	October 14 	Philadelphia 	2 – 3 	Pittsburgh 	OT 	Niittymaki 	16,965 	0–2–1 	1
4 	October 16 	Philadelphia 	2 – 5 	Colorado 	 	Biron 	18,007 	0–3–1 	1
5 	October 18 	Philadelphia 	4 – 5 	San Jose 	OT 	Niittymaki 	17,496 	0–3–2 	2
6 	October 22 	San Jose 	7 – 6 	Philadelphia 	SO 	Biron 	19,072 	0–3–3 	3
7 	October 24 	Philadelphia 	6 – 3 	New Jersey 	 	Biron 	15,529 	1–3–3 	5
8 	October 25 	New Jersey 	2 – 3 	Philadelphia 	OT 	Biron 	19,611 	2–3–3 	7
9 	October 28 	Philadelphia 	7 – 0 	Atlanta 	 	Niittymaki 	13,207 	3–3–3 	9
10 	October 30 	NY Islanders 	2 – 3 	Philadelphia 	OT 	Biron 	18,227 	4–3–3 	11
==Playoffs==
===Game log===
2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs
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Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2	Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh - Penguins win 4–2
# 	Date 	Visitor 	Score 	Home 	OT 	Decision 	Attendance 	Series 	
1 	April 15 	Philadelphia 	1 – 4 	Pittsburgh 	 	Biron 	17,132 	Penguins lead 1–0 	
2 	April 17 	Philadelphia 	2 – 3 	Pittsburgh 	OT 	Biron 	17,132 	Penguins lead 2–0 	
3 	April 19 	Pittsburgh 	3 – 6 	Philadelphia 	 	Biron 	19,745 	Penguins lead 2–1 	
4 	April 21 	Pittsburgh 	3 – 1 	Philadelphia 	 	Biron 	19,883 	Penguins lead 3–1 	
5 	April 23 	Philadelphia 	3 – 0 	Pittsburgh 	 	Biron 	17,132 	Penguins lead 3–2 	
6 	April 25 	Pittsburgh 	5 – 3 	Philadelphia 	 	Biron 	20,072 	Penguins win 4–2 	
==Player stats==
===Skaters===
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/− = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes
Regular season	 	 	 	 	 	 	
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"	 	 	 	 	 	 	
# 	Player	GP	G 	A 	Pts	+/−	PIM
17 	 	82	46	38	84 	+23	68
18 	 	79	30	50	80 	+22	63
12 	 	79	34	40	74 	+21	42
19 	 	82	30	30	60 	+14	143
15 	 	79	25	25	50 	+1 	58
22 	 	82	27	20	47 	+5 	62
44 	 	77	3 	40	43 	+19	54
5 	 	80	7 	21	28 	+7 	97
28 	 	42	9 	18	27 	+10	14
48 	 	29	11	14	25 	-1 	26
25 	 	64	4 	20	24 	+2 	16
9 	 	55	7 	14	21 	+5 	63
45 	 	78	8 	12	20 	0 	155
13 	 	55	4 	10	14 	-1 	15
41 	 	79	1 	12	13 	+6 	61
36 	 	60	6 	5 	11 	-8 	35
23 	 	46	1 	9 	10 	+7 	22
6 	 	47	4 	4 	8 	+8 	22
47 	 	39	0 	7 	7 	-6 	36
13 	 	20	0 	4 	4 	-2 	80
77 	 	31	0 	4 	4 	+3 	10
14 	 	38	1 	3 	4 	-15	2
32 	 	63	0 	3 	3 	-7 	174
43 	 	55	0 	4 	4 	n/a	0
24 	 	19	1 	2 	3 	-2 	57
46 	 	12	1 	2 	3 	-2 	0
26 	 	12	0 	2 	2 	0 	8
3 	 	22	0 	2 	2 	-2 	10
30 	 	32	0 	1 	1 	n/a	2
11 	 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0
26 	 	2 	0 	0 	0 	-1 	0
27 	 	6 	0 	0 	0 	-4 	11
29 	 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0
60 	 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0
42 	 	10	0 	0 	0 	-4 	2
40 	 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0
51 	 	1 	0 	0 	0 	+1 	0
Playoffs	 	 	 	 	 	 	
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# 	Player	GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM
18 	 	6 	1	4	5 	-4 	6
28 	 	6 	2	3	5 	+2 	6
48 	 	6 	1	3	4 	-1 	8
12 	 	6 	3	1	4 	-4 	2
22 	 	6 	2	1	3 	-2 	2
5 	 	6 	0	3	3 	+2 	7
25 	 	6 	0	3	3 	0 	4
36 	 	6 	1	2	3 	0 	7
45 	 	6 	1	1	2 	-1 	6
19 	 	6 	1	1	2 	-2 	23
15 	 	6 	1	1	2 	+1 	2
13 	 	5 	1	1	2 	+3 	5
44 	 	6 	0	1	1 	-3 	12
6 	 	6 	0	1	1 	+1 	0
17 	 	6 	1	0	1 	-2 	8
41 	 	6 	0	1	1 	+1 	10
42 	 	6 	1	0	1 	0 	0
43 	 	6 	0	0	0 	n/a	0
77 	 	6 	0	0	0 	-3 	6
47 	 	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	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
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# 	Player	GP	TOI 	W 	L 	OT	GA 	GAA 	SA 	SV 	Sv% 	SO
43 	 	55	3176	29	19	5 	146	2.76	1718	1572	.915	2
30 	 	32	1804	15	8 	6 	83 	2.76	947 	864 	.912	1
Playoffs	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
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# 	Player	GP	TOI	W	L	GA	GAA 	SA 	SV 	Sv% 	SO
43 	 	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 	NHL 	NHL 	NHL 	NHL 	NHL 	NHL 	NHL 	NHL 	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 	Team 	Team	Team	Team	Team	Team	Team	Team	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 20084th round pick in 2009	To Tampa Bay Lightning Vaclav Prospal
June 20, 2008 	To Philadelphia Flyers 1st round pick in 20083rd round pick in 2008	To Columbus Blue Jackets R.J. Umberger4th round pick in 2008
June 20, 2008 	To Philadelphia Flyers Steve Eminger3rd 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 Grant7th 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 HersleyNed Lukacevic 	To Los Angeles Kings Denis Gauthier2nd round pick in 2010
October 13, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Andrew Alberts 	To Boston Bruins Ned Lukacevicconditional 4th round pick in 2009Becomes a 3rd round pick if Alberts re-signs with Philadelphia after season
October 30, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Josh Gratton 	To Nashville Predators Tim Ramholt
November 7, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Matt CarleSan Jose's 3rd round pick in 2009 	To Tampa Bay Lightning Steve DownieSteve EmingerTampa Bay's 4th round pick in 2009
March 4, 2009 	To Philadelphia Flyers Daniel Carcillo 	To Phoenix Coyotes Scottie Upshall2nd round pick in 2011
===Other transactions===
Date 	Player 	Team (League) 	Notes
Signed via free agency 	Signed via free agency 	Signed via free agency 	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 	Lost via free agency 	Lost via free agency 	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 	Retirement 	Retirement 	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 	Lost on waivers 	Lost on waivers 	Lost on waivers
February 27, 2009 	Glen Metropolit 	Montreal (NHL) 	
February 27, 2009 	Ossi Vaananen 	Vancouver (NHL) 	
Re-signed 	Re-signed 	Re-signed 	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	Signed to Entry Level contracts	Signed to Entry Level contracts	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.hockeydb.com, 2008 NHL Entry Draft
Rnd	# 	Player 	Position 	Nationality	Drafted from
1 	19 	Luca Sbisa 	Defenseman	 	Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
3 	67 	Marc-Andre Bourdon	Defenseman	 	Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (QMJHL)
3 	84 	Jacob DeSerres 	Goaltender	 	Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)
6 	178	Zac Rinaldo 	Center 	 	Mississauga St. Michael's Majors (OHL)
7 	196	Joacim Eriksson 	Goaltender	 	Brynas (Elitserien)
==Farm teams==
;American Hockey League - Philadelphia PhantomsFlyersHistory.net, AHL Season Overview: 2008–09 (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.Hockey owner hopes for success: Officials and Brooks Group work on lease for upcoming season Glens Falls PostStar April 10, 2009 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,2009 Calder Cup Playoffs - East Division Semi-finals Preview PhantomsHockey.com April 15, 2009 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 WolvesFlyersHistory.net, Non-AHL Affiliates (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==
*2008–09 NHL season
==References==
*General: 2008–09 Flyers season on FlyersHistory.net
*Regular season game log: Philadelphia Flyers regular season game log on FlyersHistory.net
*Playoffs game log: Philadelphia Flyers playoffs game log on FlyersHistory.net
2008–09
Category:2008 in hockey
Category:2009 in hockey