The NHL's collective bargaining agreement was ratified Saturday and a memorandum of understanding was signed, meaning players and coaches can finally get on the ice together.
The Flyers will open their six-day training camp in Voorhees at 11 a.m. Sunday - about four months late because of the NHL's labor dispute.
There will be only a handful of job openings, but there will be some interesting questions at camp. Here are some of them:
1. How healthy are center Danny Briere and defenseman Andrej Meszaros?
Briere might miss about a week of the season, which opens Saturday against the visiting Penguins, because of a left wrist injury suffered in Germany.
Meszaros is still rounding into form after undergoing Achilles tendon surgery in the offseason. "I'll know more after this week in camp, after I really put it to a test," Meszaros said.
2. Can hotshot Scott Laughton - the 18-year-old center who was the team's No. 1 pick in June - earn an opening-day roster spot?
Besides his talent, Laughton - who had 33 points, including 13 goals, for Oshawa of the OHL this season - has two things working for him: Briere's injury could give him an early opening, and he can play five games before the Flyers have to make a decision on whether to keep him or send him back to juniors.
3. Who will replace right winger Jaromir Jagr on the first line with Claude Giroux and Scott Hartnell?
Jake Voracek is the favorite. He had good chemistry with Giroux and Hartnell when he played on that unit because of a Jagr injury last season. Jagr (19 goals, 54 points) signed with Dallas in the offseason.
4. Will Giroux be named the franchise's 19th captain?
All signs are pointing that way. From talking to players, coaches, and management last week, all believe he is ready.
5. How will newcomer Luke Schenn fit into the defensive rotation?
Schenn gives the Flyers some much-need physicality on the back end, and a change of scenery might be just what the 6-foot-2, 229-pounder needs to jump-start his promising career. He figures to be on the third pairing, but if Meszaros isn't ready, he will climb the ladder.
6. Will the abbreviated camp, directed by coach Peter Laviolette, be enough time for veterans to be ready for the start of the season?
It's likely to take the veterans a little longer, especially those who didn't play in Europe during the lockout.
7. Is colorful goalie Ilya Bryzgalov, starting his second year with the Flyers, primed for a more consistent season?
Bryzgalov, 32, believes having a year to become familiar with the area, his teammates, fans, and the media will make him a better player. He seemed relaxed, confident, and in a good frame of mind during the team's informal practices last week.
8. Will general manager Paul Holmgren tinker with the roster?
Don't look for any major moves for a while, but Holmgren was expected to tweak the roster late Saturday (after the CBA paperwork is done) by adding unrestricted free-agent defenseman Kurtis Foster, who has a cannon point shot on the power play.
9. What will be the most spirited battles for positions?
Feisty wingers Zac Rinaldo, Tom Sestito, and Jody Shelley are candidates for a fourth-line spot, and Eric Wellwood, Tye McGinn, and Laughton (a center who can play wing) are among the candidates for the other fourth-line wing.
There are many candidates for one defensive opening (two if Meszaros isn't ready), including Bruno Gervais (the favorite), Andreas Lilja, and Foster.
10. How will the lines look?
An educated guess: Giroux centering Hartnell and Vorack; Briere (if healthy) centering Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds; Sean Couturier centering Ruslan Fedotenko and Matt Read; and Max Talbot centering Rinaldo and Laughton.
