[Drew]

Source: Brian Propp - PhiladelphiaFlyers.com

The Philadelphia Flyers started their 2002-03 season with a weeklong road trip. They also spent four days prior to that season doing some team building exercises in Banff, Alberta. They had a great start to the season, and I believe it was a result of the team being together without any distractions, along with the time together with their new coach and teammates.

This season, the Flyers did some team building in West Point, New York before the season started with two home games, in which they recorded a win and tie. A little like last year, they are heading out to the West Coast for an eight-day road trip to face San Jose, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Anaheim.

I believe that early on, at the start of every season it can be an advantage to play on the road. The Flyers did not make many changes in their lineup from last season, so they should have an advantage because most teams make a number of changes in lineups, coaches and systems from year-to-year. A lot of the teams are experimenting with new lines, new defense pairings and in some cases, goaltenders. It usually takes these teams anywhere from a month to two months to get used to each other and the new systems. They will usually make mistakes during the games and that will be where the Flyers will look to take advantage of these teams.

The home team usually feels pressure from their fans to produce, so a lot of teams will force themselves into mistakes. The Flyers have had a great record on the road the past few years and it has been because they play a patient game and capitalize on the other teams? mistakes. The Flyers have also been able to score the first goal on the road and that usually forces the home team to open up the game more. Breakdowns occur and the Flyers are very good in their transition game. That result is better scoring chances in the game, often leading to victories.

The time off between games on the road gives the players time to get to know each other better. They will have team dinners, go shopping or watch movies together. This is important for team unity and for the veterans to include the rookie players.

I remember when I was a rookie and veteran players such as Bob Clarke, Bill Barber, Bob Kelly, Frank Bathe and Al Hill included me in the dinners and movies. That made me feel like I belonged, and as a result it made the transition to the NHL much easier. The road trips were usually the only time where the whole team could get together, because at home a lot of the players had their families to spend their time with at home.

The Flyers will have some days off between a couple of these upcoming games and that is very important for practice time. The practice time allows the coaches to run their practices using drills prepared for the specific teams. The advanced pre-game scouting and video analysis prepares the team to understand each individual team and that team?s trends. The practice time is used to show the Flyers? players the best breakouts from their end, power play setups and penalty killing. These are the three most important aspects to know about your opposition.

It really helps going over these things in practice just before you play a team that you don?t see often. If the Flyers can execute their game plan better than their opponents, they will pick up some hard to get road points.

The Flyers are an experienced and very good hockey team. They all get along very well and are a close group. Teams that are close understand the sacrifice it takes to win a championship and play for each other. This early road trip will only help the Flyers to get closer, and that?s the first step to a championship.

[Jlg-28]

Don't let any leads slip fellas