The Flyers have not had a great road trip so far, but last night they were able to get a fast start and knock off the Penguins for the first time the 2005-6 season.  Pittsburgh blanked them last year, winning all 8 games. 

“There’s a lot of guys who weren’t here last year, so we wanted to kind of leave that in the past,” Philadelphia captain Jason Smith said. “It’s a fresh season, a fresh start.”

“We have them seven more times,” Lupul said. “All it is, really, is we got the first one.”

The win put the Flyers at 9-5 and in first place in the Atlantic.

“They have three solid lines, their defensemen are pretty good and they have a quality goalie,” Penguins coach Michel Therrien said. “It’s not the same team.”

“You have to give the Flyers a lot of credit,” Therrien said. “But I don’t think we executed well.”

“It felt like we were playing the old Devils,” Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik said. “That third period, they did a great job of trapping.”

The Flyers have had a tough time getting started recently but not in this one.  They scored early, with Joffrey Lupul and Jeff Carter scoring on two of Philadelphia’s first three shots.  Martin Biron was stout and did not let in any power play goals.  The Pens had scored on the power play in 14 straight games.

Easy wins will not be arriving at the Wachovia Center very often this season.  That is just how it is with this Sixers team. Last night, the Sixers got a chance to savor a big lead and rolled to an easy win over the Charlotte Bobcats, 94-63.  The Bobcats had won their first 2 this season, but have now been thumped in their last 2. The Suns beat them 115-83 the night before.

The Sixers have been playing well in the season’s early weeks.  Against the Bobcats, things were going so well that Thaddeus Young, the youthful 1st round lottery draft pick form Georgia Tech made his season debut in the 2nd quarter. He ended up playing 11 minutes and scoring 6 points, grabbing 3 boards and making 3 Turnovers.  The Sixers again had too many turnovers, although it did not cost them in this one.

“Going into the second half, Coach gave us a big speech about how we have to finish the game off,” Carney said. “We can’t let them come back because they’re capable of doing that. I’d say around the fourth quarter, 2 minutes to go, we knew it was done.”

Carney scored 11 and had 4 rebounds.  Andre Iguodala scored 19 but had 5 turnovers and just 4 assists.  Iguodala is averaging 5.5 turnovers and just 3.25 assists per game so far this year.  That is an ugly ratio.  Dalembert had 9 points and13 rebounds but also had 6 TOs.  The team has to reduce the number of giveaways.  That is one aspect of the game where they can make improvements.  I like the attitude and effort.  If they can maintain those elements,  and not make the turnovers, they can stay in games with tougher teams.  They get a shot on Friday to make that happen and get revenge on a very good Toronto squad for their game 1 defeat of the Sixers.

The Phils made a trade with Ed Wade in his new role as GM of the Astros,  obtaining closer Brad Lidge and infielder Eric Bruntlett for Geoff Geary, Michael Bourne and minor league 3rd baseman Mike Costanzo .

The move puts Lidge in the back of the bullpen and Brett Myers back in the rotation.

 Myers liked his spot in the pen.

“Pat asked me how I felt about it, and I said I’d do whatever was best for the team,” Myers told the Inquirer. “It’s a little disappointing because I felt closing was good for me. But the team has other needs, and I can do both. I’m not surprised. You could read between the lines.”

Lets hope that we get a Brad Lidge pitching like he did in 2004 and 2005 and not the more recent version. He had 19 saves last season and 8 blown save opportunities.  He is a guy with undeniable stuff, but very mixed results this past year. He was removed from his closing role for a portion of the season.  I hope he rebounds and performs well, but in true Phillies fashion, we have acquired someone with a lot of questions.  He even had a surgery on his knee after the season.

I will not miss Geary and Bourne is OK but is not a starter.  I think Wade really wanted Costanzo.  He is a guy with a lot of potential but also many weaknesses in his game too.  Wade’s team drafted him for the Phillies.  He is below average defensively. He has power and hits for average, but has a tough time with lefties and has holes in his swing.  One piece I read compared him to current Phillie Russell Branyon.  I wonder how long Wade lasts in Houston.

Lidge said this about the trade:

“I guess it’ll be like when we were in the middle of the postseason, with all of the media and attention we get,” Lidge said. “That kind of adrenaline and excitement will hopefully be beneficial to me. When you have a lot of adrenaline in situations, it might push you and you’ll excel. I’m optimistic about it.”

I always wonder about a guy whose includes in his opening comments stuff about the media attention in Philadelphia.

I had been anticipating this game for weeks. I saw Donovan McNabb makes small but certain steps toward his old self.  The defense had been stout in nearly all of the games.  Surely, with the season’s hopes riding on a good performance, this Birds team would rise up and make a statement about themselves, their season and their coach. They made a statement all right.  We give.

I was unable to see the game live last night, and I am thankful for it at this point. What a depressing performance. I still do not think that the Cowboys are that good.  I just think the Eagles are that bad.  The head coach of our team has been struggling all season, and in the past week, this most important football week, his personal issues arose again, and pulled him away from the team again.  This time he missed a practice for the first time in his tenure.  I have avoided comment on his off field circumstances except as it relates to the team.  There can be no denying the continuing impact it is having. 

The Daily News back page headline this morning had the best encapsulation of what lies before us now:

The 76ers won their first game of the season in Chicago, 98-85.  They did it with gritty defense and hustle.  Andre Miller looked determined to get his game going from the start. He had 12 in the first quarter and 25 for the game.  He was aggressive in looking for his shot.  Miller has averaged around 14 point per game for his career.  The Sixers will benefit if Miller scores above his averages this season.  I would like to see him be as aggressive every night as he was last night. Andre Iguodala’s line was 22 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists.   Continue reading this post…

Andre Iguodala is not the only very good young NBA player not to get a new contract extension.  The Bulls’ Luol Deng and Ben Gordon and the Hawks Josh Childress and Josh Smith did not get extended either.  Gordon said of the the talks with the Bulls:

”It was never really a negotiation,” Gordon said. ”It was kind of like, take it or leave it. I didn’t sign it, so I guess it’s safe to say I never considered taking it.

The Sixers are reported to have offered $57 million and Iguodala was looking for little more than that.  The Sixers drew a line and would not move higher.  The Sixers are thought to have based his offer on the deal given guard Kevin Martin in Sacramento - $55 million for 5 years.  The Bulls were offering a 5 year/$50 million dollar deal to both Deng and Gordon.  Gordon, Deng and the Josh’s will join Iguodala as restricted free agents on July 1.

From ESPN.com 

IRVING, Texas — Over the next three Sundays, the Dallas Cowboys can go a long way toward reclaiming supremacy in the NFC East.

So it’s only fitting their path begins in Philadelphia, home to the division champion five of the past six seasons.

Dallas goes in 6-1 and leading the division. The Eagles are 3-4 and in last place, but quarterback Donovan McNabb still believes Philadelphia is the team to beat.

“In order for you to be a champion, you have to beat the champion,” he said. “In the division, if you’re the defending champion and have been for a numerous amount of years specifically, in order for you to become the champion of that division, you have to beat the champion.”

Cowboys safety Roy Williams took exception to McNabb’s point of view.

“Right now, they are in no position to talk about ‘Everything goes through Philly.’ Some teams went to Philly and they beat them,” Williams said. “No one is worried about, ‘You have to go through Philly.’ You have to go through Dallas, you have to go through Washington and you have to go through New York, too. Everybody feels they are the best. Right now, it’s just about how you play on the field that proves you are the best.”

Reminded about the Eagles’ recent dominance over Dallas — two straight wins, five of seven and 11 of 14 — Williams dismissed that, too.

“They are another team that’s in our way of reaching our goals,” he said.

Read the entire article - Roy Williams knocks McNabb’s Claim of Philly’s Crown

I listened for about 5 minutes to the rekindled debate about Andy Reid and his kids this week.  I have turned the channel when it has been the topic of conversation on 610 WIP, PTI or any other outlet.  Only one aspect of the situation is relevant to me.  Are the Eagles playing well? All of the other aspects of this sad situation belong to the Reid family, not to the audience at large, despite all of the media coverage.  I had been very optimistic about the Cowboys game Sunday night.  The events of this week have tempered that enthusiasm.  I do feel that Reid’s ongoing family drama has been affecting his ability to lead the team to a certain degree, but I am no where near the camp calling for his job.  I am more nervous about Sunday’s outcome than I was before the latest flare-up.

I have felt for several weeks that Donovan McNabb has been playing himself back to form, week by week.  He is moving much better, and his performances are improving as his knee strengthens.  He will have to be able to move against the Cowboys.  Continue reading this post…