from Jay Greenberg of PhiladelphiaFlyers.com,

... the Flyers have to make up the 14 points by which they missed the playoffs a year ago. Improvement is going to have to come from within, and here are the means by which it has to happen:

Heed The New Sheriff:

There would not have been a coaching change if Hextall had not felt a lot of young Flyers underachieved a year ago. These were mostly the same players who gave them seven 20-goal scorers in 2012-13, so talent unrealized in 2014-15 has to be realized again to 2015-16.

Dave Hakstol will get more out of some players than Craig Berube did. That’s inevitable in almost any coaching change and hopefully this one specifically raises the production of Brayden Schenn and Sean Couturier, players that the organization remains committed to building around. But their usage has to change in some way to unlock more. That could mean linemates, roles, or ice time.

Prioritize Find A Center For:

Wayne Simmonds - Only 14 of his 28 goals a year ago were scored at even-strength, a waste of a big body with a finishing touch. There is ample evidence that Sam Gagner, who was the sixth player taken in a draft on his playmaking ability, has been much more comfortable at center than on the wing,

Could he be this year’s Michael Del Zotto, a lost soul reclaimed with a regular role and a fresh start? Perhaps, but Gagner can’t be a round peg in a square hole, which too often has been the case with Vinny Lecavalier during his two seasons in Philadelphia. The reality is that more of the organization’s future is invested in getting Schenn’s career on the upswing again, which is apparently why Hextall says the Flyers will go to camp thinking Gagner as a winger. But everything is subject to change.

read on