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Daniel Briere signing with the Flyers fills the team's top need to add a No. 1 center as it attempts to quickly rebuild into a playoff contender, writes Bill Clement of MSNBC.com.

Action on several fronts
The Flyers knew to improve they needed to be active not only in free agency but also in the trade market. Philly dealt a young defenseman, 23-year-old Joni Pitkanen, and a veteran winger, Geoff Sanderson, to Edmonton in return for 23-year-old winger Joffrey Lupul, and a defenseman 10 years the elder of Lupul, Jason Smith, who was the Oilers' captain last season.

Pitkanen's play had fallen off — he was a minus-25 last season — so the deal with Edmonton is seen at least as addition by subtraction. The Flyers, however, hope that Lupul and Smith prove it to be more than that.

Another move made was the re-signing of goalie Antero Niittymaki, a restricted free agent, who inked a two-year contract. Niittymaki is an important piece going forward for the Flyers even though he struggled last season, posting a 9-29 record with a 3.38 goals-against average and .894 save percentage in 52 games. Holmgren feels the 27-year-old Niittymaki, who is coming off surgery on his left hip in April and is expected to need about 10 weeks to recover, is a very good young goalie who is still on the upswing.

Martin Biron, who was acquired from Buffalo for a second-round draft pick in late February, was the Flyers' starter down the stretch last season. He signed a two-year, $7 million contract in March. While some see Niittymaki as Biron's backup, I see more of a 1A-and-1B goalie tandem. Niittymaki was blamed for a lot of things that went wrong for the Flyers last season, but he wasn't the main problem, and should get his fair share of playing time next season.

Another re-signing made by the Flyers was that of defenseman Lasse Kukkonen, who got a two-year deal worth $1.75 million. Kukkonen is known to play an all-around game. He also moves the puck well, and has shown himself to be very disciplined in the defensive zone. Philadelphia is banking on Kukkonen being a top six defenseman.

Holmgren out to prove himself
Once last season looked lost Holmgren became proactive in improving the Flyers for the future. He was handed a mess when he took over after Bobby Clarke stepped down. A lot of people rolled their eyes at Holmgren becoming the Flyers' general manager as they pretty much remembered him as a tough-nosed player who had not proven himself on the managerial level.

Unless one really knows Holmgren, he is easy to underestimate. He's bright, very astute, extremely hard working, and he has the courage to pull the trigger on trades. He took the mess he was handed and by the time the season was over he had converted at least some of the assets that weren't going to be of any use to the Flyers in the future into new players who could help reverse the team's fortunes.

By dealing Forsberg to Nashville, Holmgren was able to acquire top prospect Ryan Parent, Scottie Upshall, and two high draft picks. The fiery Upshall can play either wing effectively. Upshall came to Philadelphia as a restricted free agent, but in May he re-signed with the Flyers getting a two-year deal. Holmgren was also able to get Alexei Zhitnik from the Islanders in December, and then trade Zhitnik to Atlanta in February for defenseman Braydon Coburn, who should be a top four defenseman for a long time.

What's taken place with the rebuilding of the Flyers is linked to the competitive philosophy of the team's chairman, Ed Snider, who when the club hit the skids last season paced his office like a caged animal. Snider tries to put a championship team on the ice every season. He isn't shy about allowing his general manager to spend the money to try and do that, and he is extremely dedicated to the Flyers' fan base. He strives to give them a winning team.

Snider hopes the moves made will turn the Flyers around next season. They look good on paper, and he's expecting them to pan out on the ice. If they don't, no one will be more disappointed than him.

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Heading to the Cup finals

Adam Henrique scored off a wild scramble in front early in OT and the New Jersey Devils defeated the New York Rangers 3-2 to advance to their first Stanley Cup finals since '03. The new Eastern champs will face LA next.

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Highlights: OT goal delivers Devils to Cup finals

  Check out highlights as the New Jersey Devils advanced to the Stanley Cup finals by defeating the New York Rangers, 3-2, in overtime.

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