Newly appointed goalie coach Jeff Reese, has spent little time in Philadelphia outside of looking at houses with his wife. But even after limited sessions with new Flyers’ goalie Ray Emery, Reese’s first order of duty includes calming the aggressive backstop.
“We’ve been on the ice twice and he’s really itching to go,” said Reese about Emery. “He’s really itching to get back in there he has been off awhile. My only concern is that I don’t want him to overdue it. He’s so hungry to get back and to prove himself, we don’t want him to burn out.”
With no previous history with Emery, Reese expressed his eagerness to get to work.
“I’m excited about working with Ray,” Reese said. “He’s an athletic guy that has taken his team to the finals. That tells me he can handle the pressure. He’s also just 27-years old, so he’s still just a baby as far as a goalies go. He’s a competitive guy, a fiery guy, and the fans are going to be really excited about watching him.
“He’s bigger than I remember. He’s a good size and very athletic. He’s very strong and very competitive.”
Reese has been trying to slowly ease Emery back into playing shape. But at the same time, trying not to move too fast.
“Its early. Right now all we’re doing is a little bit of movement and getting some shots,” Reese said. “We’re just getting back into the flow, I’m not going to run him into the ground. But as we go along we’ll be feeling each other out and we have to get to know each other. That’s when things start to click.”
Knowing Emery’s negative history with goalie coaches, Reese was asked if he needed to be more strategic with his coaching of the historically hot-headed goalie.
“We’re not concerned about that,” Reese said while laughing. “But ask me again in November.”
Phila.Bright 