Vanbiesbrouck to fill the crease in Philly

PHILADELPHIA -- Unrestricted free agent John Vanbiesbrouck signed a two-year deal Tuesday with the Philadelphia Flyers, a team he has beaten often as a goalie for the New York Rangers andFlorida Panthers.

The deal with an option for a third year was reportedly valued at about $11 million and will reunite Vanbiesbrouck with Flyers coach Roger Neilson, who coached the goalie with both the Rangers and Panthers.

"It was very flattering for me to have the Flyers organization come to me first and want to do a deal," said Vanbiesbrouck, who went 18-29-11 with a 2.87 goals against average in 60 games last season for Florida, which did not make the playoffs.

"With me, it was never anything more than getting that response from somebody and knowing I was wanted," said Vanbiesbrouck, who will be the starting goaltender.

In taking Vanbiesbrouck, 34, the Flyers passed over two free agent goaltenders they had been believed to have been pursuing_ Mike Richter, who played for the Rangers, and Curtis Joseph, who played with Edmonton.

"In our position it's preferable to have John Vanbiesbrouck than the other two goaltenders with Roger Neilson coaching the team," general manger Bob Clarke said. "In Florida, John Vanbiesbrouck was absolutely sensational playing for Roger."

The cost of those players was also a factor, Clarke said.

"The numbers thrown at us and the years involved were really going to handcuff us. Had we felt it was worth it, we would've done it. We just felt Vanbiesbrouck was the right goaltender for our hockey club," he said.

Vanbiesbrouck, a member of Team USA in the recent Olympics, has a 3.12 career goals against average, but only 2.58 in five seasons with the expansion Panthers. In 1996 he was instrumental in helping the Panthers get to the Stanley Cup finals. His 306 victories ranks him 13th on the NHL career list.

Florida took Vanbiesbrouck from the Vancouver Canucks in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft. Vancouver had picked him up in a trade from the Rangers, where he played parts of 11 seasons from 1981 to 1993.

"Two years ago we feel Vanbiesbrouck was by far the better goaltender than Joseph or Richter," Clarke said. "We didn't think any of them were better than the other last year. All three are terrific goaltenders. I don't think you can go wrong with any of them."

But by making a shorter term commitment to Vanbiesbrouck, the Flyers are also making it clear they hope by that point one of the younger goaltenders in their organization -- Neil Little, Brian Boucher or Jean-Marc Pelletier -- is ready to step in. In the interim, Clarke said he's offered veteran Ron Hextall, 33, another year on his current contract, which expires after this season.

Hextall's contract, with a no-trade clause, would pay him $2.5 million for the 1998-99 season. Clarke has said the last year of Hextall's contract may have to be renegotiated if the team signed a big-name free agent goaltender and Hextall became a backup.

Also Tuesday, the Flyers announced Craig Ramsay will replace Keith Acton as assistant coach. Ramsay, a strong two-way player and penalty killer in his 14-year career with the Buffalo Sabres, has known Neilson going back to his junior hockey days. More recently he was an assistant with the Panthers while both Clarke and Neilson were there from 1993-95.

Courtesy of ESPN