Van Riemsdyk

SOMETIMES, it looks like an old replay. A big body with long, raptor-like arms picks up a loose puck in the neutral zone and swoops down one side of the ice as opposing defensemen scramble to protect their net as prey defends its eggs. Sound familiar? Look familiar? "He's turned into a very fun player to watch," Keith Primeau said yesterday. He, of course, is James van Riemsdyk, the Flyers' 6-3 left winger who, after two seasons of occasional flashes, tortured and trashed Buffalo's defensive strategy in the first-round series by, in the word of Keith Jones, "bulling" his way through the neutral zone and into the opponent's zone the way Primeau once did. Van Riemsdyk scored four goals in the seven-game series and created havoc and uncertainty nearly every time he jumped over the boards, using his speed and reach to create countless scoring opportunities.

BUFFALO - James van Riemsdyk's dominating play has been a surprising development in the first three games of the Flyers' Eastern Conference quarterfinals against Buffalo. The second-year winger has a goal, a plus-3 rating, and a team-high 14 shots for the Flyers, who have a two-games-to-one lead heading into Game 4 Wednesday night in Buffalo. Van Riemsdyk, 21, whose physicality has intensified, credits last year's playoff run for preparing him for this spring's tournament.

James van Riemsdyk wasn't about to reflect on how he went from a forward who couldn't slide a puck into an unprotected net with his glove to one who recently has become one of the most productive on the Flyers. Why not just keep on rolling and not bother to give it much thought? "Maybe I'm a little bit more confident out there," the 21-year-old left winger said after his goal got the Flyers going in a hard-earned 2-1 win over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center.

FIRST, James van Riemsdyk was being shipped to Toronto last February. This week, he reportedly was holding up a deal to be sent to Columbus. Van Riemsdyk, 23, has heard the trade rumblings for the better part of a year now - since signing that 6-year, $25.5 million extension that kicks in this fall - but he can do little more than laugh. On Sunday night, NBC10's Howard Eskin reported that van Riemsdyk has delayed surgery on a torn labrum in his hip to "make it difficult for the Flyers to complete a trade" that includes Blue Jackets star Rick Nash.

James van Riemsdyk heard about the distractions other players dealt with during the season while contract situations loomed. Surely, this was something the 22-year-old wanted to avoid. On Tuesday, he steered clear of it. The former first-round pick agreed to a six-year contract extension worth $25.5 million. The average annual cap hit for the deal is $4.25 million. Van Riemsdyk and his agent, Alex Schell, each said that working out a deal before the season began was a priority.

OTTAWA, Ontario - If the Flyers are going to make a legitimate Stanley Cup run, they obviously need enigmatic goalie Ilya Bryzgalov to raise his game. He doesn't have to play out of this universe, but he can't resemble someone who has frequently looked like Ken Wregget in the season's first half. With crease-clearing defenseman Chris Pronger expected to miss the rest of the regular season and playoffs, Bryzgalov's play becomes even more magnified. But while most of the attention figures to be focused on the quirky Russian goaltender who became a sensation on HBO's Winter Classic series 24/7 , there is someone else who will be watched closely in the season's second half.

AFTER HEARING his player's name kicked around in trade fodder over the last few months like a shingle in a hurricane, Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said he addressed the rumors with James van Riemsdyk. His advice? "He should take that maybe as a compliment that he keeps reading his name like that," Holmgren said. "I like James. I think he has a tremendous future in the league. He's one of our most gifted goal scorers. " For the most part, van Riemsdyk has shrugged off the rumors.

TORONTO - When the Flyers sent left winger James van Riemsdyk to Toronto for defenseman Luke Schenn last summer, both players were considered underachieving former first-round draft picks whose careers might be jump-started by a change of scenery. A little more than three weeks into the season, that's exactly what has happened. Both are thriving with their new teams. Schenn, 23, has become one of the cornerstones of the Flyers' defense and is in their top pairing with Kimmo Timonen.

The Flyers will have to get along without James van Riemsdyk for the rest of the regular season and perhaps beyond. The 22-year-old left winger will undergo surgery Tuesday on his left foot and miss four to six weeks, the Flyers announced. The Flyers hope he can return when the playoffs start the second week of April. "I don't see why not," general manager Paul Holmgren said. Van Riemsdyk scored seven goals in 11 games in last year's playoffs. Van Riemsdyk broke a bone while blocking a first-period shot by Islanders defenseman Milan Jurcina in the Flyers' 6-3 win Thursday.

JAMES VAN RIEMSDYK'S season is not getting any easier. In the first period of last night's game against the Islanders, van Riemsdyk blocked a Milan Jurcina blast from the point and broke a bone in his left foot, according to Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren. Originally, van Riemsdyk tried to remain on the bench to fight through the pain but soon left to get X-rays. For now, the Flyers have offered no timetable for his return. He will be re-evaluated by Dr. Steven Raikin today.