FROM NHL/FLYERS MEDIA RELEASES

Briere hard to replace
by Chris Kober | Hockeytalk.biz

JANUARY 1, 2011 -- In 2006-07 the Philadelphia Flyers finished dead last in the league, 11 points behind the number 29 Phoenix Coyotes. After the Buffalo Sabres fell to Ottawa in the Eastern Conference final that year, Danny Briere (left) signed an eight year, $52 million contract with the Flyers and neither team has been the same since.

Briere led the Sabres in points two of the three full years he played in Buffalo and the team has struggled to replace his offensive contribution. Derek Roy has led Buffalo in scoring each of the three seasons since Briere’s departure, however Roy’s increased production hardly makes up for the 50 points per season average that Briere has accumulated with Philadelphia.

Last year was Buffalo’s best post-Briere season which ended in a first round playoff defeat to the Boston Bruins. Meanwhile, the Flyers have made the playoffs in each of Briere’s three seasons with Philly, including an Eastern Conference Final and a Stanley Cup Final .

Briere’s 30 points – 12 goals 15 assists – led the league last year in the playoffs and was the highest total in a single playoff season by a Philadelphia Flyer ever. His 12 points in the Stanley Cup Final was one short of Wayne Gretzky’s record of 13 points during the 1988 finals against Boston.

The Gatineau, Quebec native wasn’t always the offensive force and impact player that he is today. Drafted 24th overall in 1996 by the Phoenix Coyotes, Briere didn’t become an NHL regular until 2002, his fifth year in the league.

While in the Coyotes’ system, he spent long stints with the Springfield Falcons of the AHL where he was named the American League rookie of the year in 1998, and even found himself in the Las Vegas of the International Hockey League for one game in 1999. His maturity level is the one area of his game that he believes has grown most since those days in the minors.

“You get more mature,” Briere said, “You learn to play the defensive side of the game a little better. I always knew that I had it offensively but it was just a matter of time.”

His increased maturity manifested itself in 2005 when he was named co-captain of the Sabres along with Chris Drury. Of course, Briere’s game isn’t all about offensive production and maturity, as a Philadelphia Flyer he is required to have somewhat of a mean streak.

Earlier this season Briere was suspended three games for a crosscheck to the head of Frans Nielsen of the New York Islanders. It was the third suspension of his career after two-game bans for high sticking Brian Leech in 2006 and leaving his feet to check Scott Hannan last year.

It doesn’t hurt a smaller player like Briere (5-10, 170 lb.) to make some room for himself with a bit of a physical edge, but he isn’t looking to make it a big part of his game.

“You’re always improving,” he said, “You’re always looking to get better and to work on your game. One of the things I try to do is work on the things that takes me apart from the other guys: Shooting the puck [and] quickness.”

As the Flyers attempt to battle out of a small slump, losing three out of four, Head Coach Peter Laviolette has moved Briere onto a line with team captain Mike Richards and James van Riemsdyk.

“I feel comfortable playing with him,” Richards said of Briere, “I know where he is on the ice … Sometimes you just need a little bit of a shakeup to get things going and maybe a little bit of beginners luck with the lines but it was nice to get.”

Briere has put together two multi-point games during this mini-skid for the Flyers, but he is more concerned with the way the team is playing.

“The last couple of games, we’ve been a very soft team.” Briere said after a 6-2 loss in Vancouver. “We’ve been easy to play against, and we’re not winning any battles. If we keep playing this way, it won’t take long. We’ll disappear.”

It’s that combination of leadership, production, grit and passion that’s been so valuable in Philadelphia’s return to Cup contention and so difficult for Buffalo to replace on and off the ice.

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