Scott #HartnellDown: Seriously Misunderstood

Posted 8:20 PM ET | Comments 1

Philadelphia fans have such a love-hate relationship with the man known to many as #HartnellDown. People say the player is a clown on skates or laying on the ice in many cases of the past. Scott Hartnell signed a 6-year contract extension with an average cap hit of 4.75 million dollars a season. This is a steal for the Flyers by only giving him a raise of 550,000 thousand dollars. He is not an elite winger in the league by any stretch but he is a very good player. There isn't anything he can't do. He has scored huge goals in the playoffs (Game 6 vs. Chicago in 2010 SCF, Game 6 vs. Buffalo 2011 ECQF), has had no less than 43 points in his time in Philadelphia, he fights, hits and agitates other teams, coaches and fans. Not to forget he is an iron-man on the ice. He has played no less than 80 games a season during his time here at the corner of Broad and Pattison.

Hartnell learned a ton from Jagr in this past year and it showed as he grew as a player and became more than just a pest. He emerged as a leader in many ways and can help show younger players how to play with grit and skill as he finally began to learn how to toe that line. He was crucial on the powerplay where he showed he could be a shooter from the top of the circles and was very effective from the front of the net creating chaos during even strength play.

This contract will give the Flyers some flexibility during the coming seasons in terms of cap space and allows them to help keep this young team together with the previous signings of Wayne Simmonds and Jakub Voracek. Hartnell will continue to do his job whatever that entails from celebrating a goal by punching a Maple Leaf in the face or raising money for charity with his #HartnellDown campaign. Overall, Flyers fans should be happy with the signing of Hartnell and look forward to his contributions to this team in the coming years.

From the Box,
Alex

Filed Under: Hartnell Flyers contract