6-7-1 baby. We’re almost mediocre!  Personally I think we’re playing B+ hockey, it’s just that the goals aren’t happening. What else is new, I’ve been watching this team for 20 years and it’s always the same story.  The Flyers have to work twice as hard as other teams in the league just to get two points.  We’re one of those landmark teams in sports, a kind of team that the opposition measures itself by. No one takes a night off against the Flyers, and that’s fine, it’s what keeps the Flyers in contention year in and year out. But it’s like damn, when’s it our turn to catch a break?  You’d figure having one of the top 5 players in the league would make some of these games swing our way, but Giroux isn’t playing up to expectations so far, and our season is looking pretty shot out already.

So what’s going on with Giroux? In the first 14 games of last season, we saw Giroux burst onto the scene and marveled at his scoring proclivity and the level of competition he played with each and every shift. He managed  9 Goals, 10 Assists for 19 Points with a +4 rating in the first 14, leading the team to a respectable  8-4-2. He finished with 90+ points and was a monster in the playoffs. This year, is a different story. He has only managed 3 Goals and 5 Assists for 8 Points with a -4 rating in the first 14, and the team in struggling to maintain its identity and consistency with a stinky 6-7-1 record.  He’s too talented to not turn this around, but right now we gotta start asking, what’s wrong? Time for a quiz.

Pop quiz: What’s wrong with Giroux?

A) No Jagr
B) No Hartnell
C.) Wrists
D) He cut off his flow
E) Doing too much
F) You’re a gimp
G) Not doing enough, pop up.
H) Germany
I) NHL13 cover
J) The C

I’m leaning toward G) Not doing enough, pop up.  I just don’t see that intensity he had last year.  Maybe he’s conserving his energy for a late season push, or maybe he’s trying too hard to get everyone else involved, but whatever it is, he’s just not being aggressive enough. We need him to be a superstar for this team to do anything. I don’t think we have a legitimate 20 goal scorer on this team, so he’s basically the entire offense.  So pop up, man. A nice 4 game win streak will fix everything.  I want 10 points in the next 4 games Claude!

LET’S GO FLYERS!