I’m starting to believe that the Philadelphia Flyers have an inferiority complex with their neighbors across the state. I use the term neighbor loosely considering the Pittsburgh Penguins and Flyers are hardly neighborly to one another.

Back to the inferiority complex. The Flyers haven’t won a Stanley Cup in almost 40 years. The Penguins are the glamour franchise that gets splashed across the television sets, magazines and any other media outlets. They have the most marketable star in Sidney Crosby and have lifted Lord Stanley’s cup only four years ago.

To say that the Flyers are in the shadow created by Pittsburgh (and the NHL) is an insult to shadows everywhere. They are hardly chopped liver, boasting one of the bright young stars in the league, Claude Giroux, and one of the most passionate fan bases in all of hockey. The problem seems to lie in the front offices on Broad St.

The NHL’s collective bargaining agreement that was ratified only seven months ago contained verbiage that allowed teams to buy out two contracts on their payroll. This amnesty clause was put in place to provide cap relief for teams that had painted themselves into an awful financial corner. It is more or less a “do over” caveat to amend the transgressions from years’ past. Call it a NHL equivalent to the Staple’s “That was easy” red button.

The Flyers were certainly one of the teams that stood to benefit from this clause. They were among many teams that sat atop the salary cap table, boasting contracts that had extended way beyond the production of the signatures on them.

Daniel Briere and Ilya Bryzgalov felt the wrath of the “Do Over” button and were sure to be released from their contracts. Almost $12 million in cap relief was on the way and the next Flyer announcement would be the long-term extension for Giroux, right?

Wrong. What the Flyers did next defies explanation. They traded for defenseman Mark Streit who is a career minus-52 and will be 36 in December. Oh yeah, they also signed him to a $21 million contract over the next four years. Face goes to palm. Shakes head. Really? Mind you, this took place before the Flyers bought out any contracts officially, so it put Philadelphia almost $2 million in the red.

Perspective here. Paul Holmgren, you traded the Vezina Trophy winner to Columbus. For draft picks.

Ok, then here is the timeline. Briere and Bryzgalov are bought out. The $12 million comes off the books. Better financial picture, for now, but goaltending and defense still need to be addressed.

The goaltending trio of Brian Boucher, Chris Mason and Michael Leighton won’t cut the mustard if the Flyers want to make the playoffs. With the pile of consistent injury problems among current Philly defensemen, and the abject avoidance of staying at home by their new acquisition Streit, defense must be addressed. Right?

Wrong. The next Philadelphia Flyers announcement please. Vincent Lecavalier has signed a five year contract at $22.5 million. Face back in palm. The dollar amount isn’t catastrophic, but $4.5 million per year to a player in obvious decline over the next five years is simply asinine. The Flyers don’t need veterans. They don’t need centers. They might need leadership. BUT THEY NEED A GOALIE FOR GOD’S SAKE!!

Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren has been given enough rope to hang himself with and appears to now be working on a noose. The next few weeks will determine his fate in the city that is running perilously short on patience and “Brotherly Love”. The Stanley Cup is won on the ice, but the foundation is being laid now. Hopefully, for his sake, he has a trick or two up his sleeve, or he will see his own contract washed away with owner Ed Snider’s “Do Over” button.