By Brian Capobianco

I know it’s the middle of summer.  I know it’s a time when most people are thinking about the Phillies fighting their way back into playoff contention, the beginning of Eagles training camp, or how Evan Turner is performing in the summer leagues.  But lets take a minute to address the end of an era not just for the Flyers but for Philadelphia sports as a whole: the Philadelphia Flyers have traded away left winger Simon Gagne.

Gagne was drafted by the Flyers in 1998, meaning he was in the Flyers system before Eagles mainstays Andy Reid and David Akers came to town. Gagne is one of only three players to play 10 or more years with the Flyers since 1990 (the other two being fan favorites John LeClair and Eric Desjardins).  He has seen two general managers, six different coaches, and seven different captains, all the while becoming the rock that the Flyers faithful could cling to during times of turmoil.

Statistically speaking, Gagne’s time with the team has put him in an elite class of Flyers players.  He is one of only 13 players in the Flyers’ 43 year history to score 40 goals in a season, and one of only 10 to do it multiple times. Gagne’s 259 goals make him the 10^th highest goal scorer in Flyers history and his 524 points are the 11^th most ever scored by a player wearing the orange and black.  Gagne skated with the top line every year he was with the team, playing with the likes of Flyers greats Eric Lindros, Jeremy Roenick, Peter Forsberg and Mike Richards, all players who could be in the Hall of Fame someday.

And on top of all his statistical achievements, Gagne was one of the most professional players the Flyers have had in a long time. In 2002 when Gagne was still a fresh faced 22-year-old, Keith Primeau and Mark Recchi led a mutiny against their coach and Flyers legend Bill Barber.  Gagne would have no part of it, feeling it was wrong for players to try and oust their coach.  He retained that professionalism throughout his career with the Flyers, in sharp contrast to the rumored behavior of a few current Flyers (see, Frat Party, Temple).

Simon Gagne’s time with the Flyers wasn’t perfect.  He spent a lot of time on the disabled list, missing 156 games, nearly 2 full seasons, due to injury.  He lost another year of play to the work stoppage in 2004.  He came out of the lockout as the team’s top player, recording back to back 40+ goal seasons, before he was bitten by the injury bug again.  A pair of concussions during the 2007-2008 season kept Gagne in the press box for most of the season, including knocking him out of the 2008 Conference Finals against the Penguins.  Had Gagne played even part of the series the Flyers probably would have beaten Pittsburgh and would of had a chance at the Cup.

            Alas, now Flyers fans have to deal with life without Simon Gagne, who will now be joining the Tampa Bay Lightning, possibly turning the Lightning in to a Stanley Cup contender. Tampa has stumbled around in mediocrity since the lockout, but this year was going to be the year when everything changed even without adding Gagne. The 2008 1^st overall pick, Steven Stamkos, led the league in goals last year and 2009 2^nd overall pick, defenseman Victor Hedman (who draws many comparisons to Chris Pronger), is looking to have a breakout year this year. Gagne joins a team with three of the top 20 players in the league, and adding the 30-year-old veteran left winger could move them from pesky young upstart to legitimate Cub contender. Gagne will most likely play on a line with Martin St. Louis and the afore mentioned NHL goal leader Steven Stamkos, both of whom scored over 90 points last season with noted traffic pylon Steve Downie on their line.  Putting an established scorer with those two All-Stars could allow that line to score 300 points in a season, likely turning Gagne back into a 40 goal scorer and nabbing him the first 100 point season of his career.      

So this is our final goodbye to Simon Gagne, a player who has earned the right to be included as one of the all time greatest Flyers, but now may not even be remembered for being a Flyer at all. At 30 years old Gagne has great things a head of him, All-Star appearances, a possible Stanley Cup, and if he’s healthy long enough maybe even a place in the Hall of Fame. Some players will always be Philly guys no matter where they go, so like Brian Dawkins, you may be gone Simon Gagne but you will never be forgotten.