2008–09 Philadelphia Flyers season

The 2008–09 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Flyers' 42nd season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Flyers lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games.

2008–09 Philadelphia Flyers
Division	3rd Atlantic
Conference	5th Eastern
2008–09 record	44–27–11
Home record	24–13–4
Road record	20–14–7
Goals for	264
Goals against	238
Team information
President	Peter Luukko
General Manager	Paul Holmgren
Coach	John Stevens
Captain	Mike Richards
Alternate captains	Simon Gagne Kimmo Timonen
Arena	Wachovia Center
Average attendance	19,545[1]
Minor league affiliate(s)	Philadelphia Phantoms Mississippi Sea Wolves
Team leaders
Goals	Jeff Carter (46)
Assists	Mike Richards (50)
Points	Jeff Carter (84)
Penalty minutes	Riley Cote (174)
Plus/minus	Jeff Carter (+23)
Wins	Martin Biron (29)
Goals against average	Martin Biron (2.76) Antero Niittymaki (2.76)

Regular season

The Flyers began the 2008–09 season by naming Mike Richards the 17th captain in Flyers history on September 17,[2] with Jason Smith headed to the Ottawa Senators 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 four points more than the year before, for the most part the 2008–09 Flyers were an inconsistent unit, playing at the top of their ability one night while subpar the next. Defenseman Derian Hatcher missed the entire regular season and playoffs with a knee injury, and Steve Downie was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning 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 the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for R. J. Umberger, the victim of a salary cap crunch. Scottie Upshall also found himself the victim of such a crunch, traded to the Phoenix Coyotes for Daniel Carcillo at the trade deadline.

Despite holding on to the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference for much of the season, due to a 4–5–1 finish to the season, highlighted by a home loss to the New York Rangers on the last day of the regular season, the Flyers slipped to the fifth seed and lost home-ice advantage in their first round series with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Flyers finished the regular season having scored the most shorthanded goals in the NHL, with 16, and having allowed the fewest shorthanded goals, with just one.[3]

Divisional standings

Atlantic Division

		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	y – New Jersey Devils	82	51	27	4	244	209	106
2	Pittsburgh Penguins	82	45	28	9	264	239	99
3	Philadelphia Flyers	82	44	27	11	264	238	99
4	New York Rangers	82	43	30	9	210	218	95
5	New York Islanders	82	26	47	9	201	279	61

Conference standings

Eastern Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	z – Boston Bruins	NE	82	53	19	10	274	196	116
2	y – Washington Capitals	SE	82	50	24	8	272	245	108
3	y – New Jersey Devils	AT	82	51	27	4	244	209	106
4	Pittsburgh Penguins	AT	82	45	28	9	264	239	99
5	Philadelphia Flyers	AT	82	44	27	11	264	238	99
6	Carolina Hurricanes	SE	82	45	30	7	239	226	97
7	New York Rangers	AT	82	43	30	9	210	218	95
8	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	41	30	11	249	247	93
8.5
9	Florida Panthers	SE	82	41	30	11	234	231	93
10	Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	41	32	9	250	234	91
11	Ottawa Senators	NE	82	36	35	11	217	237	83
12	Toronto Maple Leafs	NE	82	34	35	13	250	293	81
13	Atlanta Thrashers	SE	82	35	41	6	257	280	76
14	Tampa Bay Lightning	SE	82	24	40	18	210	279	66
15	New York Islanders	AT	82	26	47	9	201	279	61

bold – qualified for playoffs, y – division winner, z – placed first in conference (and division)

AT – Atlantic Division, NE – Northeast Division, SE – Southeast Division

Playoffs

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 five unanswered goals in a season-ending 5–3 loss.

Schedule and results

Pre-season

2008 pre-season[4]
Pre-season: 4–5–0 (Home: 4–0–0; Road: 0–5–0) Game Date Opponent Score Location/Attendance Record 1 September 22 New Jersey Devils 4 – 1 Wachovia Center (17,108) 1–0–0 2 September 24 @ Ottawa Senators 1 – 3 Scotiabank Place (17,038) 1–1–0 3 September 25 New York Islanders 4 – 5 John Labatt Centre (7,706) 2–1–0 4 September 27 Carolina Hurricanes 4 – 2 Wachovia Spectrum (17,700) 3–1–0 5 September 28 @ Carolina Hurricanes 0 – 1 RBC Center (11,265) 3–2–0 6 October 1 Washington Capitals 2 – 1 Wachovia Center (17,523) 4–2–0 7 October 3 @ Washington Capitals 1 – 5 Verizon Center (14,864) 4–3–0 8 October 4 @ New Jersey Devils 0 – 1 Prudential Center (9,558) 4–4–0 9 October 7 @ Philadelphia Phantoms 2 – 4 Wachovia Spectrum (17,077) 4–5–0
Legend:   Win   Loss   Overtime/shootout loss

Regular season

2008–09 regular season
October: 4–3–3, 11 points (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 2–1–2) Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Points 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
November: 7–4–2, 16 points (Home: 3–2–1; Road: 4–2–1) Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Points 11 November 2 Edmonton 5 – 4 Philadelphia Biron 19,437 4–4–3 11 12 November 6 Philadelphia 1 – 4 Ottawa Niittymaki 18,938 4–5–3 11 13 November 8 Tampa Bay 2 – 1 Philadelphia Biron 19,412 4–6–3 11 14 November 11 Philadelphia 3 – 1 NY Islanders Biron 13,447 5–6–3 13 15 November 13 Philadelphia 4 – 5 Pittsburgh SO Biron 17,132 5–6–4 14 16 November 15 Philadelphia 2 – 1 Montreal Biron 21,273 6–6–4 16 17 November 16 Atlanta 3 – 4 Philadelphia Niittymaki 19,437 7–6–4 18 18 November 21 Philadelphia 3 – 0 Buffalo Biron 18,256 8–6–4 20 19 November 22 Phoenix 3 – 4 Philadelphia OT Biron 19,520 9–6–4 22 20 November 24 Dallas 3 – 4 Philadelphia Biron 19,171 10–6–4 24 21 November 26 Philadelphia 3 – 1 Carolina Niittymaki 15,057 11–6–4 26 22 November 28 Carolina 2 – 3 Philadelphia OT Biron 19,587 11–6–5 27 23 November 29 Philadelphia 2 – 4 Toronto Biron 19,387 11–7–5 27
December: 9–3–2, 20 points (Home: 7–0–1; Road: 2–3–1) Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Points 24 December 2 Tampa Bay 3 – 4 Philadelphia OT Biron 19,227 12–7–5 29 25 December 4 New Jersey 3 – 2 Philadelphia OT Biron 19,577 12–7–6 30 26 December 6 Philadelphia 2 – 1 Carolina OT Niittymaki 14,061 13–7–6 32 27 December 9 NY Islanders 3 – 4 Philadelphia Biron 19,037 14–7–6 34 28 December 11 Carolina 5 – 6 Philadelphia SO Niittymaki 19,057 15–7–6 36 29 December 13 Pittsburgh 3 – 6 Philadelphia Biron 19,811 16–7–6 38 30 December 16 Colorado 2 – 5 Philadelphia Niittymaki 19,219 17–7–6 40 31 December 18 Philadelphia 2 – 5 Montreal Niittymaki 21,273 17–8–6 40 32 December 20 Washington 1 – 7 Philadelphia Niittymaki 19,897 18–8–6 42 33 December 21 Philadelphia 2 – 3 New Jersey SO Niittymaki 14,426 18–8–7 43 34 December 23 Ottawa 4 – 6 Philadelphia Nittymaki 19,578 19–8–7 45 35 December 26 Philadelphia 1 – 5 Chicago Biron 22,712 19–9–7 45 36 December 27 Philadelphia 0 – 3 Columbus Niittymaki 18,402 19–10–7 45 37 December 30 Philadelphia 3 – 2 Vancouver Biron 18,630 20–10–7 47
January: 6–4–2, 14 points (Home: 3–1–0; Road: 3–3–2) Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Points 38 January 2 Philadelphia 5 – 4 Anaheim SO Biron 17,597 21–10–7 49 39 January 3 Philadelphia 1 – 2 Los Angeles SO Niittymaki 18,118 21–10–8 50 40 January 6 Philadelphia 1 – 2 Washington SO Biron 18,277 21–10–9 51 41 January 8 Minnesota 1 – 3 Philadelphia Biron 19,596 22–10–9 53 42 January 10 Toronto 1 – 4 Philadelphia Biron 19,787 23–10–9 55 43 January 13 Pittsburgh 4 – 2 Philadelphia Biron 19,872 23–11–9 55 44 January 15 Philadelphia 1 – 4 Tampa Bay Biron 15,604 23–12–9 55 45 January 16 Philadelphia 3 – 2 Florida SO Niittymaki 17,827 24–12–9 57 46 January 21 Atlanta 3 – 5 Philadelphia Niittymaki 19,766 25–12–9 59 47 January 27 Philadelphia 2 – 3 Florida Biron 13,904 25–13–9 59 48 January 30 Philadelphia 6 – 1 Tampa Bay Niittymaki 18,120 26–13–9 61 49 January 31 Philadelphia 0 – 4 St. Louis Niittymaki 19,150 26–14–9 61
February: 7–3–1, 15 points (Home: 3–3–1; Road: 4–0–0) Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Points 50 February 4 Boston 3 – 1 Philadelphia Biron 19,748 26–15–9 61 51 February 7 Philadelphia 4 – 3 Boston OT Niittymaki 17,565 27–15–9 63 52 February 8 Philadelphia 3 – 2 Atlanta Niittymaki 14,175 28–15–9 65 53 February 12 Ottawa 5 – 2 Philadelphia Niittymaki 19,679 28–16–9 65 54 February 14 NY Islanders 1 – 5 Philadelphia Biron 19,789 29–16–9 67 55 February 15 Philadelphia 5 – 2 NY Rangers Biron 18,200 30–16–9 69 56 February 19 Buffalo 3 – 6 Philadelphia Biron 19,642 31–16–9 71 57 February 21 Pittsburgh 5 – 4 Philadelphia Biron 19,992 31–17–9 71 58 February 24 Philadelphia 4 – 2 Washington Biron 18,277 32–17–9 73 59 February 25 Los Angeles 0 – 2 Philadelphia Biron 19,568 33–17–9 75 60 February 27 Montreal 4 – 3 Philadelphia OT Niittymaki 19,881 33–17–10 76
March: 8–7–0, 16 points (Home: 4–4–0; Road: 4–3–0) Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Points 61 March 1 Philadelphia 0 – 3 New Jersey Biron 17,625 33–18–10 76 62 March 3 Philadelphia 4 – 2 Boston Niittymaki 17,020 34–18–10 78 63 March 5 Calgary 5 – 1 Philadelphia Niittymaki 19,513 34–19–10 78 64 March 7 Nashville 1 – 4 Philadelphia Biron 19,611 35–19–10 80 65 March 10 Buffalo 2 – 5 Philadelphia Biron 19,421 36–19–10 82 66 March 12 Washington 2 – 1 Philadelphia Biron 19,728 36–20–10 82 67 March 14 NY Rangers 2 – 4 Philadelphia Biron 19,836 37–20–10 84 68 March 15 Philadelphia 1 – 4 NY Rangers Niittymaki 18,200 37–21–10 84 69 March 17 Philadelphia 2 – 3 Detroit Biron 20,066 37–22–10 84 70 March 20 Philadelphia 6 – 4 Buffalo Biron 18,690 38–22–10 86 71 March 22 Philadelphia 3 – 1 Pittsburgh Biron 17,132 39–22–10 88 72 March 23 New Jersey 2 – 4 Philadelphia Biron 19,762 40–22–10 90 73 March 26 Florida 4 – 2 Philadelphia Biron 19,631 40–23–10 90 74 March 28 Philadelphia 4 – 3 NY Islanders SO Biron 16,234 41–23–10 92 75 March 29 Boston 4 – 3 Philadelphia Niittymaki 19,715 41–24–10 92
April: 3–3–1, 7 points (Home: 2–1–0; Road: 1–2–1) Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Points 76 April 1 Philadelphia 2 – 3 Toronto Biron 19,340 41–25–10 92 77 April 3 Toronto 5 – 8 Philadelphia Biron 19,727 42–25–10 94 78 April 4 Philadelphia 3 – 4 Ottawa SO Niittymaki 19,557 42–25–11 95 79 April 7 Florida 1 – 2 Philadelphia Biron 19,637 43–25–11 97 80 April 9 Philadelphia 1 – 2 NY Rangers Biron 18,200 43–26–11 97 81 April 11 Philadelphia 3 – 2 NY Islanders Biron 16,234 44–26–11 99 82 April 12 NY Rangers 4 – 3 Philadelphia Biron 19,648 44–27–11 99
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

Playoffs

2009 Stanley Cup playoffs
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins – Penguins win 4–2 Game 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
Legend:   Win   Loss

Player statistics

Scoring

• Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
• = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
• = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.

				Regular season						Playoffs
No.	Player	Age	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
17	Jeff Carter	24	C	82	46	38	84	23	68	6	1	0	1	−2	8
18	Mike Richards	23	C	79	30	50	80	22	63	6	1	4	5	−4	6
12	Simon Gagne	28	LW	79	34	40	74	21	42	6	3	1	4	−4	2
19	Scott Hartnell	26	LW	82	30	30	60	14	143	6	1	1	2	−2	23
15	Joffrey Lupul	25	RW	79	25	25	50	1	58	6	1	1	2	1	2
22	Mike Knuble	36	RW	82	27	20	47	5	62	6	2	1	3	−2	2
44	Kimmo Timonen	33	D	77	3	40	43	19	54	6	0	1	1	−3	12
5	Braydon Coburn	23	D	80	7	21	28	7	97	6	0	3	3	2	7
28	Claude Giroux	21	RW	42	9	18	27	10	14	6	2	3	5	2	6
48	Danny Briere	31	C	29	11	14	25	−1	26	6	1	3	4	−1	8
25	Matt Carle	24	D	64	4	20	24	2	16	6	0	3	3	0	4
9	Scottie Upshall	25	RW	55	7	14	21	5	63	—	—	—	—	—	—
45	Arron Asham	30	RW	78	8	12	20	0	155	6	1	1	2	−1	6
13	Glen Metropolit	34	C	55	4	10	14	−1	15	—	—	—	—	—	—
41	Andrew Alberts	27	D	79	1	12	13	6	61	6	0	1	1	1	10
36	Darroll Powe	23	C	60	6	5	11	−8	35	6	1	2	3	0	7
23	Ossi Vaananen	28	D	46	1	9	10	7	22	—	—	—	—	—	—
6	Randy Jones	27	D	47	4	4	8	8	22	6	0	1	1	1	0
47	Luca Sbisa	19	D	39	0	7	7	−6	36	1	0	0	0	0	2
13	Daniel Carcillo	24	LW	20	0	4	4	−2	80	5	1	1	2	3	5
77	Ryan Parent	21	D	31	0	4	4	3	10	6	0	0	0	−3	6
14	Andreas Nodl	21	RW	38	1	3	4	−15	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
32	Riley Cote	26	LW	63	0	3	3	−7	174	—	—	—	—	—	—
43	Martin Biron	31	G	55	0	4	4	N/A	0	6	0	0	0	N/A	0
24	Josh Gratton	26	LW	19	1	2	3	−2	57	—	—	—	—	—	—
46	Jon Kalinski	21	C	12	1	2	3	−2	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
26	Steve Eminger	25	D	12	0	2	2	0	8	—	—	—	—	—	—
3	Lasse Kukkonen	27	D	22	0	2	2	−2	10	—	—	—	—	—	—
30	Antero Niittymaki	28	G	32	0	1	1	N/A	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
11	Boyd Kane	30	LW	1	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
26	Danny Syvret	23	D	2	0	0	0	−1	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
27	Steve Downie	21	RW	6	0	0	0	−4	11	—	—	—	—	—	—
29	Nate Guenin	26	D	1	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
60	Nate Raduns	24	C	1	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
42	Jared Ross	26	C	10	0	0	0	−4	2	6	1	0	1	0	0
40	David Sloane	23	D	1	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
51	Jamie Fritsch	23	D	1	0	0	0	1	0	—	—	—	—	—	—

Goaltending

			Regular season											Playoffs
No.	Player	Age	GP	GS	W	L	OT	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI	GP	GS	W	L	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
43	Martin Biron	31	55	53	29	19	5	1718	146	2.76	.915	2	3,176:31	6	6	2	4	198	16	2.56	.919	1	374:44
30	Antero Niittymaki	28	32	29	15	8	6	947	83	2.76	.912	1	1,804:52	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (in-season)	NHL 2nd Star of the Month	Jeff Carter (December)	[5]
	NHL 1st Star of the Week	Mike Richards (February 23)	[6]
	NHL 2nd Star of the Week	Jeff Carter (December 22)	[7]
	NHL 3rd Star of the Week	Simon Gagne (November 3)	[8]
	NHL All-Star Game selection	Jeff Carter	[9]
Team	Barry Ashbee Trophy	Kimmo Timonen	[10]
	Bobby Clarke Trophy	Mike Richards	[10]
	Gene Hart Memorial Award	Scott Hartnell	[10]
	Pelle Lindbergh Memorial Trophy	Darroll Powe	[10]
	Toyota Cup	Jeff Carter	[10]
	Yanick Dupre Memorial Class Guy Award	Danny Briere	[10]

Records

Individual

Franchise player records set during the 2008–09 season

Record	Type	Total	Player	Ref
Shorthanded goals scored	Season	7[lower-alpha 1]	Mike Richards	[11]
Game-winning goals scored	Season	12[lower-alpha 2]	Jeff Carter	[11]

Team

Franchise team records set during the 2008–09 season

Record	Type	Total	Refs
Fewest shorthanded goals allowed	Season	1

Milestones

Individual career milestones

Milestone	Player	Details	Date	Ref
25th shutout	Martin Biron	Stopped all 34 shots against the Los Angeles Kings	February 25, 2009	[12]

Transactions

The Flyers were involved in the following transactions from June 5, 2008, the day after the deciding game of the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 12, 2009, the day of the deciding game of the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals.[13]

Trades

Date	Details		Ref
June 6, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Danny Syvret	To Edmonton Oilers Ryan Potulny	[14]
June 18, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers 7th-round pick (196th overall) in 2008 Conditional 4th-round pick in 2009[lower-alpha 3]	To Tampa Bay Lightning Vaclav Prospal[lower-alpha 4]	[16]
June 20, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers 1st-round pick (19th overall) in 2008 3rd-round pick (67th overall) in 2008	To Columbus Blue Jackets R. J. Umberger[lower-alpha 5] 4th-round pick (118th overall) in 2008	[17]
June 20, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Steve Eminger 3rd-round pick (84th overall) in 2008	To Washington Capitals 1st-round pick (27th overall) in 2008	[18]
June 21, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers 7th-round pick in 2009	To Anaheim Ducks 7th-round pick (208th overall) in 2008	[19]
June 24, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Janne Niskala	To Nashville Predators Triston Grant 7th-round pick in 2009	[20]
June 30, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Tim Ramholt	To Calgary Flames Kyle Greentree	[21]
June 30, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers 6th-round pick in 2009	To Tampa Bay Lightning Janne Niskala	[22]
July 1, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Patrik Hersley Ned Lukacevic	To Los Angeles Kings Denis Gauthier 2nd-round pick in 2010	[23]
October 13, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Andrew Alberts	To Boston Bruins Ned Lukacevic Conditional 3rd- or 4th-round pick in 2009[lower-alpha 6]	[25]
October 30, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Josh Gratton	To Nashville Predators Tim Ramholt	[26]
November 7, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Matt Carle 3rd-round pick in 2009	To Tampa Bay Lightning Steve Downie Steve Eminger 4th-round pick in 2009	[27]
March 4, 2009	To Philadelphia Flyers Daniel Carcillo	To Phoenix Coyotes Scottie Upshall 2nd-round pick in 2011	[28]
March 4, 2009[lower-alpha 7]	To Philadelphia Flyers Kyle McLaren	To San Jose Sharks 6th-round pick in 2009	[28]

Signings

Free agency

The following players were signed by the Flyers via free agency. Two-way contracts are marked with an asterisk (*).

Date	Player	Previous team (league)	Term	Ref
July 1, 2008	Sean Curry	Providence Bruins (AHL)	2-year*	[30]
July 1, 2008	Glen Metropolit	Boston Bruins	2-year	[30]
July 1, 2008	Nate Raduns	Worcester Sharks (AHL)	1-year*	[30]
July 1, 2008	Ossi Vaananen	Djurgardens IF (Elitserien)	1-year	[30]
July 7, 2008	Arron Asham	New Jersey Devils	2-year	[31]
September 18, 2008	Jean-Sebastien Aubin	Anaheim Ducks	1-year*	[32]
March 26, 2009	Johan Backlund	Timra IK (Elitserien)	1-year*[lower-alpha 8]	[33]
June 10, 2009	Ray Emery	Atlant Moscow Oblast (KHL)	1-year	[34]

Internal

The following players were either re-signed by the Flyers or, in the case of the team's selections in the NHL Entry Draft, signed to entry level contracts. Two-way contracts are marked with an asterisk (*).

Date	Player	Term	Ref
June 26, 2008	Jeff Carter	3-year	[35]
June 29, 2008	Steve Eminger	1-year	[36]
July 2, 2008	Riley Cote	3-year	[37]
July 2, 2008	Randy Jones	2-year	[37]
July 2, 2008	Danny Syvret	1-year*
July 15, 2008	Nate Guenin	1-year*
July 21, 2008	Joffrey Lupul	4-year extension	[38]
July 22, 2008	Kevin Marshall (ELC)	3-year*	[39]
August 7, 2008	Chris Zarb (ELC)	*
October 1, 2008	Luca Sbisa (ELC)	3-year*	[40]
April 1, 2009	James van Riemsdyk (ELC)	3-year*	[41]

Waivers

The Flyers were involved in the following waivers transactions.

Date	Player	Team	Ref
February 27, 2009	Glen Metropolit	to Montreal Canadiens	[42]
February 27, 2009	Ossi Vaananen	to Vancouver Canucks	[43]

Departures

The following players left the team via free agency, release, or retirement. Players who were under contract and left the team during the season are marked with an asterisk (*).

Date	Player	New team (league)	Via	Ref
July 3, 2008	Rory Fitzpatrick	Florida Panthers	Free agency	[44]
July 3, 2008	Stefan Ruzicka	Spartak Moscow (KHL)	Free agency[lower-alpha 9]	[45]
July 8, 2008	Jason Smith	Ottawa Senators	Free agency	[46]
July 14, 2008	Patrick Thoresen	HC Lugano (NLA)	Free agency[lower-alpha 10]	[47]
July 25, 2008	Martin Grenier	Traktor Chelyabinsk (KHL)	Free agency	[48]
July 31, 2008	Jaroslav Modry	HC Liberec (Czech Extraliga)	Free agency	[49]
August 21, 2008	Rejean Beauchemin	Idaho Steelheads (ECHL)	Free agency	[50]
August 28, 2008	Darren Reid	Hershey Bears (AHL)	Free agency	[51]
October 22, 2008	Martin Houle	Las Vegas Wranglers (ECHL)	Free agency	[52]
November 8, 2008	Jesse Boulerice	Colorado Avalanche	Free agency	[53]
November 17, 2008	Frederik Cabana*	—	Release	[54]
April 7, 2009	Jim Dowd	—	Retirement	[55]

Draft picks

See also: List of Philadelphia Flyers draft picks

Philadelphia's picks at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, which was held at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa, Ontario on June 20–21, 2008.[56] The Flyers traded their originally allotted second, third, fifth, and seventh-round picks in four separate trades.[57]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	Team (league)	Notes
1	19	Luca Sbisa	Defense	Switzerland	Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)	[lower-alpha 11]
3	67	Marc-Andre Bourdon	Defense	Canada	Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (QMJHL)	[lower-alpha 11]
3	84	Jacob DeSerres	Goaltender	Canada	Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)	[lower-alpha 12]
6	178	Zac Rinaldo	Center	Canada	Mississauga St. Michael's Majors (OHL)
7	196	Joacim Eriksson	Goaltender	Sweden	Brynas IF (Elitserien)	[lower-alpha 13]

Farm teams

American Hockey League – Philadelphia Phantoms[58][59] (Standings)

The 2008–09 season was 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.[60] 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,[61] 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 Wolves[62] (Standings)

Mississippi missed the ECHL playoffs and announced they would suspend operations for the 2009–10 season.

Notes

1. Tied mark set by Brian Propp during the 1984–85 season and Mark Howe during the 1985–86 season.
2. Tied mark set by Brian Propp during the 1982–83 season.
3. The Flyers would receive the fourth-round pick if the Lightning re-signed Prospal, which they did on June 30.[15]
4. Trade of negotiating rights to
5. Trade of negotiating rights to
6. The Bruins would have received a third-round pick instead of a fourth-round pick if Alberts re-signed with the Flyers after the 2008–09 season. The Flyers did not re-sign Alberts and the draft pick remained a fourth-rounder.[24]
7. The trade was nullified after McLaren failed his physical.[29]
8. Contract for the 2009–10 season.
9. The Flyers retained Ruzicka's NHL rights.
10. The Flyers retained Thoresen's NHL rights.
11. The Flyers traded R. J. Umberger and their fourth-round pick, 118th overall, to the Columbus Blue Jackets for the Colorado Avalanche's first-round pick, 19th overall, and the Blue Jackets' third-round pick, 67th overall, on June 20, 2008.[57]
12. The Flyers traded their first-round pick, 27th overall, to the Washington Capitals for Steve Eminger and the Capitals' third-round pick, 84th overall, on June 20, 2008.[57]
13. The Flyers traded Vaclav Prospal to the Tampa Bay Lightning for the Nashville Predators' seventh-round pick, 196th overall, and a conditional 2009 fourth-round pick (if Lightning re-sign Prospal) on June 18, 2008.[57]

References

General

• hockeyDB.com: Roster and player statistics · Results and Schedule
• hockey-reference.com: Roster and Statistics · Schedule and Results
• Flyers History: Season Overview · Game Scores & Results · Playoff Results

Specific

1. "All Time Team Attendance". P. Anson. Flyers History. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
2. "Richards Named Flyers Captain". Philadelphia Flyers. September 17, 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2014.
3. https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2009.html
4. "2008-2009 Preseason Schedule/Results - Philadelphia Flyers - Schedule". Philadelphia Flyers.
5. Kurz, Kevin (January 2, 2009). "Carter and Giroux Earn Monthly Honors". Philadelphia Flyers. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
6. Carchidi, Sam (February 24, 2009). "Richards earns his first star from the NHL". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
7. "Eriksson takes top NHL weekly honor". UPI. December 22, 2008. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
8. Carchidi, Sam (November 4, 2008). "Shanahan has talks with Flyers". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
9. "2009 NHL All-Star Game Rosters". NHL.com. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
10. "Flyers History – Team Awards". P.Anson. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
11. "NHL.com - Stats". National Hockey League. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
12. "Flyers' Martin Biron records his 25th career NHL shutout". National Hockey League. February 25, 2009. Retrieved August 15, 2015.
13. "Hockey Transactions Search Results". Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved April 7, 2014.
14. "Flyers Acquire Syvret From Edmonton". Philadelphia Flyers. June 6, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
15. "Lightning Sign Vaclav Prospal to Multi-Year Contract". Tampa Bay Lightning. June 30, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
16. "Flyers Trade Rights to Vaclav Prospal to Tampa Bay". Philadelphia Flyers. June 18, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
17. "Flyers Trade Umberger to Columbus". Philadelphia Flyers. June 20, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
18. "Flyers Acquire Steve Eminger from Washington". Philadelphia Flyers. June 20, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
19. "All-Time Trades in Ducks History". Anaheim Ducks. July 15, 2011. Retrieved November 24, 2014.
20. "Flyers Acquire Niskala from Nashville". Philadelphia Flyers. June 24, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
21. "Flyers Acquire Defenseman Ramholt from Calgary". Philadelphia Flyers. June 30, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
22. "Flyers Trade Niskala to Tampa Bay". Philadelphia Flyers. June 30, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
23. "Flyers Acquire Pair from L.A." Philadelphia Flyers. July 1, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
24. "Hurricanes agree to terms with Alberts". National Hockey League. July 15, 2009. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
25. "Flyers Acquire Andrew Alberts". Philadelphia Flyers. October 13, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
26. "Flyers Acquire Gratton from Nashville". Philadelphia Flyers. October 30, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
27. "Flyers Acquire Defenseman Matt Carle". Philadelphia Flyers. November 7, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
28. "Flyers Acquire Carcillo and McLaren". Philadelphia Flyers. March 4, 2009. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
29. "Flyers nullify McLaren trade; defenceman failed physical". TSN.ca. March 6, 2009. Archived from the original on April 8, 2014. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
30. "Flyers Sign Four Players". Philadelphia Flyers. July 1, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
31. "Flyers Sign Forward Arron Asham to a Multi-Year Contract". Philadelphia Flyers. July 7, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
32. "Flyers Sign Aubin To One-Year Deal". Philadelphia Flyers. September 18, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
33. "Flyers Agree to Terms with Johan Backlund". Philadelphia Flyers. March 26, 2009. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
34. "Flyers Agree to One-Year Contract with Ray Emery". Philadelphia Flyers. June 10, 2009. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
35. "Flyers Sign Carter to Multiple-Year Contract". Philadelphia Flyers. June 26, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
36. "Flyers Sign Eminger to One-Year Contract". Philadelphia Flyers. June 29, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
37. "Flyers Sign Randy Jones and Riley Cote". Philadelphia Flyers. July 2, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
38. "Lupul Extends Contract". Philadelphia Flyers. July 21, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
39. "Flyers Sign Defenseman Marshall". Philadelphia Flyers. July 22, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
40. "Flyers Sign Sbisa to Contract". Philadelphia Flyers. October 1, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
41. "Flyers Sign van Riemsdyk to Entry Level Contract". Philadelphia Flyers. April 1, 2009. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
42. "Habs claim Glen Metropolit off waivers". Montreal Canadiens. February 27, 2009. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
43. "Canucks claim Ossi Vaananen". Vancouver Canucks. February 27, 2009. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
44. "Panthers Sign Quartet". Florida Panthers. July 3, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
45. Stefan Ruzicka biography at Legends of Hockey, retrieved November 23, 2014
46. "Bulletin: Senators Sign Jason Smith To A Two-year Contract". Ottawa Senators. July 8, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
47. "Former Flyers forward Patrick Thoresen signs one-year deal with Lugano". National Hockey League. CP. July 14, 2008. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
48. Meltzer, Bill (July 29, 2008). "Odds and ends for July 29". HockeyBuzz.com. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
49. "Jaroslav Modry leaves NHL to play for team in Czech Republic". The Hockey News. CP. July 31, 2008. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
50. "Steelheads Agree To Terms With Beauchemin, Rookies Nelson, Sullivan". ECHL. August 21, 2008. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
51. "Bears ink forward Darren Reid for 2008-09". American Hockey League. August 28, 2008. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
52. "Flames Re-Assign Watt To Wranglers, Goalie Houle Added". OurSports Central. October 22, 2008. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
53. Jesse Boulerice biography at Legends of Hockey, retrieved November 23, 2014
54. Carchidi, Sam (November 18, 2008). "Gagne, Flyers on record pace". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
55. Gulitti, Tom (April 7, 2009). "Clemmensen hit in finger again; Dowd "formally" announces his retirement". The Record. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
56. "2008 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". hockeyDB.com. Retrieved November 12, 2013.
57. "2008 NHL Entry Draft Pick Transactions". Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
58. "AHL Franchise Statistics". P. Anson. Flyers History. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
59. "AHL Season Overview: 2008–09". P. Anson. Flyers History. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
60. Hockey owner hopes for success: Officials and Brooks Group work on lease for upcoming season Glens Falls PostStar April 10, 2009
61. 2009 Calder Cup Playoffs - East Division Semi-finals Preview PhantomsHockey.com April 15, 2009
62. "Non-AHL Affiliates". P. Anson. Flyers History. Retrieved October 26, 2013.

External links

• Philadelphia Flyers Historical Salaries from CapGeek.com