The Philadelphia Phillies are nearing a stunning super-team threshold

There are some super teams in the major leagues this season. The Philadelphia Phillies' record after the London Series is 45-20, making this squad one of them.

The Phillies' .692 winning percentage (after games played through June 9) is a testament to their potential. Comparing it to other successful Phillies' seasons or those of 100-plus win teams, it's clear that crossing this threshold would almost certainly secure a playoff berth and potentially a National League Division pennant.

But in the still-early part of June, the Phillies' playoff hopes are only in doubt if they experience an epic collapse that would likely be driven by many injuries after the Trade Deadline.

Instead, the enticing possibility of playing .500 ball for most of the season and still winning 100 games is a real possibility. This could occur during this month if the Phillies maintain a near-.700 winning percentage for a matter of weeks, and then play no more than average baseball through the end of the regular season.

John Middleton, Dave Dombrowski, Rob Thompson, his coach staff, and the returning players from last season (along with those who remain from the 2022 World Series appearance) are focused on flexing regular season muscle and having fun. This organization is determined to finish the story and win its third trophy.

Everyone knows that no team in MLB is anywhere near statistically clinching a playoff berth. But the Phillies and other plus-.600 teams are all, in effect, playoff pre-qualifiers. That's remarkable and also speaks to the unbalance that the 2024 season represents.

Philadelphia Flyers: Potential Scott Laughton Trade Partially Telegraphed Through Two New Letters?

 

Naming Sean Couturier the Philadelphia Flyers' twentieth captain in team history makes sense. The longtime center has proven healthy following his extended rehabilitation from injury.

So, the organization believes he will be on the ice regularly. That factor played into him being named captain.

Travis Konecny was named assistant captain, joining Scott Laughton, who wore the team's lone designated leadership letter. That elevation also makes sense, as the Flyers forward and recent All-Star has come into his own. But strategy may also be part of the timing of Couturier and Konecny's elevations. 

Laughton's current contract runs through the 2025-26 season. The March 8 National Hockey League trade deadline can be counted in days, with this assistant captain widely believed to be a hot topic among various NHL brass.  

Ryan Poehling recently signed a deal that extends him through the 2025-26 season. Securing the first-year Flyer allows the organization to deal Laughton for a likely good return without creating an extra hole on next season's roster.

Add to the Poehling news, it can only be assumed that President Keith Jones, General Manager Danny Briere, and Head Coach John Tortorella did not want to elevate one player (or two) to the official leadership group due to a trade. While they could have gone without any assigned letters, the leadership announcements, only weeks before March 8, could imply that the organization anticipates trading Laughton. 

Jones, Briere, and Tortorella have routinely shared the same message. The rebuild is on, and the plan will remain unchanged, even if the team continues to play toward a playoff berth. Using that logic, trading Laughton (who turns 30 on May 30) for a solid return would further the rebuild. 

Like Couturier and Konecny, Laughton has only ever played for the Flyers, doing so since he was 18 in the 2012-13 season. Couturier and Konecny first played when they were 19.

Because the team now has a new captain and assistant captain, dealing Laughton would only reduce one A, rather than leave the Flyers with no lettered sweaters. 

Philadelphia Flyers: Trade Deadline Day and the Hockey Road Ahead

Philadelphia Flyers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager, Chuck Fletcher, spoke with the media today about the National Hockey League's trade deadline. He fielded questions with an eye toward building the franchise in a measured manner. 

There has been and will continue to be questions about the process that is underway. More answers about players currently in the organization will be determined as this regular season plays out, with various post-season decisions pending and more changes projected this summer. 

The following is courtesy of the Flyers' Media Relations department:

President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Chuck Fletcher

 

How close were you with JVR?

I didn't have any offers at all until about 1:40. I got a call from a team, and they had a concept that if they were able to move a forward off of their team, then they had interest in in acquiring JVR. We talked about the parameters of what the deal would look like. It made sense from that standpoint, but all along, it was conditional on the other trade going through. Eventually the other deal fell through.

 

That was just minutes before the deadline?

It was probably about 25 minutes before the deadline when I found out that the deal fell through. It was interesting. Interesting market. We've been working the phones hard for three weeks on most of our players on expiring contracts. The one offer that I did get on JVR happened at 1:40 this afternoon and it was a conditional offer. I didn't know what the market would be, but I thought there would at least be some offers that we would have to consider or not consider. So, it's the nature of the business, I guess. It is what it is. We would probably rather have a good pick and allow JVR the opportunity to play in the playoffs, but the market spoke, and it wasn't to be. He's a true professional. He is a good hockey player for us, and he'll be a good mentor down the stretch.

 

Did you have other teams that you went back to when you found that out?

I've been speaking to teams for three weeks; I've spoken to every team.

 

I’m talking about right before the deadline when that deal fell through.

Every team by then had already told me no several times. There was no – that deal didn't hold up anything at all. I never had an offer until that conditional offer at 1:40, which I found out at 2:30 wasn't going to happen.

 

Just to clarify, they acquired somebody else?

No, they didn't acquire somebody else. They were going to move a forward, the other team – I don't know the details of what they were doing, it wasn't really my business – but if they were able to consummate the other trade, then they were going to come back. But we had the framework of the deal done in case they were able to make that trade and they weren't able to make it.

 

There was a report from Elliote Friedman who said that it was pending a physical so that that wasn't true?

No, no, nothing. Routinely when you acquire players, teams ask about the medicals. They did ask and his medicals are fine. You guys have been covering JVR, he has no medical issues. It had nothing to do with us. Again, we agreed to the conditional part of the deal, but I understood the conditions. So, there's nothing untoward here. We understood that if the deal happened, we had a deal. If it didn't happen, we didn't have a deal. It was all up front. At that point, again, we were where we were.

 

You said there were no firm offers on JVR, but obviously, deals have been going on for the past week or so. Do you think that maybe your ask was too high in the early going and then there was no one left that had interest because they had already had their pieces by deadline day?

No, I don't think that at all. Typically, you make an offer and another team counters. if a team has interest, they typically counter. They accept your offer, or they counter your offer. And these are draft picks we're talking about it's not overly complicated. There's no smoking gun here, I guess is all I could say. We certainly made everybody aware he was available. We made everybody aware we would retain 50%. We made everybody aware that we could even take back a contract if that helped a little bit more on the cap or the cash. We talked about a different range and different ways of getting there – prospects, a pick, multiple picks, whatever it would be, conditional pick. We talked about all kinds of different scenarios. But ultimately, again, I can only control my half, and there has to be a willing buyer. Until 1:40 today, we never had any type of offer and the offer we got was conditional.

 

We're talking about a guy who has nearly 300 goals in the NHL. There were many other players that were dealt at this deadline that don't have the same pedigree that he has. How do you explain the lack of interest?

I've been using that line for three days. That's exactly what I've been saying to teams. This guy is a good player, he can help you. Can give him to you at 3.5 million. Let’s cut a fair deal. So, I can't answer that. Obviously, I can't speak for the other teams.

 

How disappointed are you that you couldn't get a draft pick for him? I’m sure going into it you thought you'd get at least a draft pick.

Yeah, that certainly was the hope and to give JVR an opportunity to play in the playoffs. He's a pending UFA, he's been a good pro for us, and I think it would have been a win-win for both sides. I would have much rather had a pick than not, but we never had that opportunity. So, it is what it is. There's only so much you can do. I spoke to every team in the league. Really, there's about 16 teams that were true buyers – I spoke to them multiple times. There was a couple of times I thought there might be a possibility, and then things would veer off. There's not much more I can say. We were willing, and we were accommodating, and we were open to ideas, but you need somebody to be a willing buyer.

 

In your conversations with those potential buyers, what was the biggest sticking point in them not wanting to get over the hump for JVR?

I’m not sure. I'm not sure. Obviously, a $7 million cap hit, you retain 50%, It's still 3.5. You can see some of the teams’ cap situations, I assume that was part of it. There's been some pretty good players moved, probably there's some teams that have preferences, players they preferred above JVR. But I can't speak to that.

 

Did you attempt to get a third party involved to retain some more of his salary?

Well, that would be up to the buying team to do that. Say, for example, you’re a team and you valued JVR as a fourth-round pick. You think he's worth a fourth-round pick, then you're going to give up another third or fourth round pick to have a team retain another 50% - you’ve now doubled your acquisition cost. I'm just trying to be really clear here – I didn't get a firm offer of even a fourth-round pick for JVR. So, just logically, I can't speak for those teams, but obviously, that's more than they wanted to pay.

 

You said that you were willing, if it would help, to take back an NHL level contract. Were there parameters on that?

You guys are going to beat this one up, holy gosh. Yeah, I told teams absolutely I'd take a player on an expiring deal, I would take a one-way contract in the minors, I could help on the cash. I was not interested in taking a player with term, unless that player could help us going forward. So, we tried to be as accommodating as possible. But again, we never had an offer, there was never anything that broke down, there was never anybody that said, “I'm only going to give you a third or a fourth or sixth and take it or leave it”, I never even got that. So, I don't know what to say. Yesterday, for example, I received two calls – one on JVR, one on another player – and I made 17. I just counted my log. We actively did our best to get an asset and to give JVR the opportunity to play in the playoffs and it didn't happen.

 

Do you think your explanation of this will maybe calm down your fanbase and sort of give them a sense of where you were throughout the process here?

Again, when you're selling at the trade deadline, it's not really a hockey trade. You're selling, you're trying to trade a player and get a draft pick. In order for that to happen, you need a team that's willing to give you a draft pick back. I can't control that end of it. I can only control making sure I talk to everybody, making sure I let everybody know we're willing to retain half, making sure everybody knows that we can take a contract back, let people know we're flexible in terms of what type of – we're not necessarily led to a pick, it could be a prospect, there's different ways to do it. From my experience, and every other deal I've done, typically you come in and say the player, we’re looking for x, and the other team says “well, that might be a little rich, I'll give you y”, and then you haggle. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I guess what surprised me was I wasn't even able to get a team to say “I'll give you this”.

 

You talked about retaining salary. Do you think if James was making less than 7 million, he would have more suitors? It seems like money was the biggest obstacle here.

That's my assumption. Probably in the next week or so – we have GM meetings next week, and I can ask a couple of teams what they felt and what happened. Again, there were some good players moved. A couple of teams came online a little bit later in the process and had some pretty good players that ended up getting moved. I'm not sure the exact reason, but certainly the cap hit at seven million is high in this environment, which is why we were willing to work with teams. I'd have to assume that was part of it for some teams.

 

Have you talked to him?

I haven't spoken to him yet. I spoke to his agent. I thought I would let you guys at me first, and then I'll speak with him.

 

The other day you mentioned that you wanted to sell some and get younger. For some of the older guys beyond JVR, did you get offers, and why did you decide ultimately not to deal some of your older players like Kevin, Provorov – the ones that you said you were taking calls on?

Well, you need to get value. I had a lot of conversations. I essentially told teams, look, we have our three pending UFA’s, and we'll listen on anybody. Essentially had conversations with teams and I think there were some good conversations that could be picked up in the summer in certain situations. The goal is certainly to get younger, as I mentioned, but also to make sure you're getting fair value for the players you have. There were a lot of names in the market, there were a lot of sellers, but from our standpoint, there was a couple of situations we looked at and things just didn't make sense at this point in time. That’s not to say they won't in the summer. There’s some things, again, that we can pick up. We were able to pick up a couple of draft picks today. I would have liked to have picked up a third one as we’ve just gone through, but that's what were able to accomplish.

 

You talked to us earlier this week, you said you wanted to get younger. The way today played out with not being able to find something for JVR, Justin Braun is still here, so not all the rentals got moved, how can people have faith that you can actually get this team going, because part of getting it younger is going to be to move out veterans?

Yeah, exactly, and we’re going to certainly look at that this summer. Again, you have to get value when you move guys out. As I mentioned to you guys a few days ago, our goal isn't just to gut the team or to get rid of players, it's to make trades that make you better, and make sure you get value, make sure you get market value for those players with existing contracts. Today is not the only opportunity to move those players. You're going to have an opportunity in the summer, you have an opportunity next year. There's going to be opportunities to make good deals for some of those players. But it didn't happen this time. In terms of players on expiring contracts, we moved two players today and two others we didn’t, and it wasn't for lack of effort. Again, you need to – for the rental type of market – you need a team to want to acquire a player and make you an offer.

 

I guess there's an element here, though, where – yes, these moves can be made in the summer, it can be made next year and whatnot – but the team has struggled for years, and obviously you're trying to stay in your position. Is there a concern that this shows that you aren't able to do the rebuild you guys want to do in terms of how ownership looks at it?

Look, Charlie, I said last time our goal is to get younger. We do want to add more young assets. We are a younger team this year. We do have some pieces in Lehigh Valley and elsewhere that we think could be part of the solution going forward. We do have some veteran players on our team – mid-range age guys – we think can be a part of this too as we go forward. We're going to just continue to look at every opportunity to get better, and the trade deadline was one opportunity. There was not fair deals, in my opinion, to be made. There are some things that potentially could happen in the summer, and as we go forward, we'll just continue to look at those opportunities. But we will get younger, we're going to continue to add more young assets, and we're going to continue to build this up.

 

You’ve expressed the need for high end talent. Cutter Gauthier has had a great season up at Boston College. is there a possibility that the Flyers are willing to extend an ELC to him? I spoke with him last week, he said he was going to sit down with his family and the Flyers. Have the Flyers reached out in any way and does the lack of success this particular trade deadline now force the hand to sign Cutter to at least give the fanbase something to be proud of?

I don't think you want to – even going back to Charlie's last question – I don't think we want to just make moves for the sake of making moves. With Cutter, we have to sit down with Cutter and really have a good conversation with Cutter, with the coaches at BC, with their own development people. Out of respect to the fact that they're starting playoffs next week, it's not a conversation you have during the year. We speak with Cutter all the time. I've been up there a few times, other staff members have been up there. We’ve met with the coaches, I speak with his advisor. Ultimately, the decision we make has to be about what's right for Cutter and his development. He's too important to make a decision not based on what's right for him. I think there's conversations that have to be had, and at the end of the season, we'll certainly sit down and do that.

 

Is Brendan Lemieux a guy you’re going to look at for the future, or was that deal basically for the fifth round pick?

When I when I spoke with Rob Blake, we'd spoke about Zack. They had interest. We talked about a fifth-round pick and we thought that was fair. But he said to me, “I need a little bit of time, I need to move Brendan Lemieux in order to bring in Zack MacEwen”, and I said, “well, I'll just take him – with the fifth – but I'll take Brendan as well”. He agreed to that. Brendan's a pending UFA and we can give him a 20-game tryout here to see what he can do, but the deal was for the fifth. Then, again, Rob had indicated that for whatever his reasons were, that if he could move Brendan, he would do the deal. So, I thought I'd just make it easier.

 

With Patrick Brown, a lot of times on deadline day, guys who win faceoffs and kill penalties tend to be in demand on deadline day, and they tend to be late in the process kind of deals. How did Patrick’s deal come around?

Again, I've been speaking to teams for a while on all of our players on expiring contracts. I talked to a few teams and just, gave them some of my thoughts. I thought Patrick, actually played really well for Vegas in the playoffs a couple of years ago, and his faceoffs on the right side are excellent, and he can kill and he's willing to block shots, and you can really bring an element that teams might need. A few teams call back and Ottawa was willing to give a pick. Another team was willing to offer a minor league player back, but I would have just kept Patrick in that case. But the pick was worthwhile, and it gives Patrick a chance to push for a playoff spot as well.

 

Charlie, I'll just go back to your last question because I don't know if I answered it as accurately. Look, I understand our fans are really disappointed. The last two, three years, there's no question we've been trying to be a competitive team. We've been trying to be a team – in particular two years ago, going back to the Summer of ‘21 – trying to be a team to maximize the last year of Giroux on his contract, to be a team that could compete and make a playoff spot. Clearly, I haven't done that. I haven't done that job. There's no doubt. Last year we had a couple devastating injuries, absolutely, with Couturier and Ellis, and even Hayesy. This year with Couturier and Atkinson has been very difficult. But that's not the only reason. We need more talent and that's on me. So, I get it. Last Summer I think we were a little tepid. We didn't want to be overly aggressive, in pursuit of talent because we did have some concerns about Couturier in particular, then Farabee had been hurt and we didn't know what we exactly were going to have going into the year. So, we put some kids on the team, we gave them that opportunity. As we go forward, we recognize we have to get more talent and we are going to build it. I'm not worried about my job – whatever happens with me will happen with me. That's up to Dave Scott. But everything I do is about doing what's right for the Philadelphia Flyers and not taking shortcuts, and that's in part why we didn't make any more deals today. The deals that were presented to me were not good deals for the Philadelphia Flyers. Last Summer, being more aggressive was not going to be good for the Philadelphia Flyers. Maybe in the short run it makes me look better, but we don't want band-aids anymore. We want to build this the right way and we're committed to doing it. Those are my words, my actions will have to back it up, but we're committed to doing it.

 

Behind the Hockey Scenes: Philadelphia Flyers vs. Chicago Blackhawks

Pregame - Press Level - Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA.

Introductions

Philadelphia enters the afternoon tilt (3 PM puck drop on ABC) at 16-28-10. The Flyers are in last place in the Metro. 

Chicago is 20-27-8 and in seventh place in the Central division of the Western Conference. 

Both teams will be selling into the National Hockey League's trade deadline on March 21. The pending end of the Claude Giroux era highlights this Flyers' season and current plight. 

Martin Jones starts in goal for the Flyers. 

Kevin Lankinen starts in goal for the Blackhawks.

The Marvel Comics theme event resulted in what appears to be one of the larger actual attendance volumes of the season. 

First period

Philly scored first on a nice tip in front by Oskar Lindblom - His ninth of the season at 4:46. Assisted by Travis Sandheim and the returning Kevin Hayes. 

Giroux was dumped in front of the Blackhawks' net moments later, with the captain getting up slowly. The interference penalty did not result in an injury, which is not what this organization needs, weeks before the anticipated deal of one of its all-time great players. 

Back-and-forth play through the frame, with few high-percentage chances.

Shots: Philadelphia – 12 – Chicago 10

Score: Philadelphia – 1 Chicago 0

Intermission: Mites on Ice included a great goal by number 28. Fitting.

Second period 

Chicago's leading goal scorer, Alex DeBrincat scored his thirty-first of the season, 24 seconds into the period. Assisted by Jonathan Toews. Philadelphia could not hold the lead on multiple occasions against Minnesota on Thursday, eventually losing 5-4.

Caleb Strome scored his tenth of the year at 12:39 on a close-in shot that Jones had no chance to stop. Assisted by Patrick Kane and Dominik Kubilick. 

A sharp tic-tac-toe play gave Cam Atkinson an easy goal at 15:28, to tie the game at 2-2. It was his nineteenth of the season. Assisted by Joel Farabee. A melee ensued after the goal with a roughing penalty to Toews, putting the Flyers on the powerplay. Derick Brassard and Calvin De Haan also were to the box for roughing. 

Chicago quickly reclaimed the lead, with Strome scoring at 18:02. Jones could not stop the wrister over his left shoulder from close range. The goal, his second of the game, was unassisted. 

Shots: Philadelphia – 7 – Chicago 12

Score: Philadelphia – 2 - Chicago 3

Intermission: Fan attempts at goal targets reinforced the skill seen on the ice in-game.

Third period 

Farabee appeared to tip in a shot Brassard shot through Lankinen at 3:09. But the puck crossed the goal line before Farabee added the helper. It was Brassard's fifth tally of the season. Assisted by Atkinson, along with the aforementioned Farabee.

Atkinson ripped the puck with a wicked wrist shot past Lankinen at 8:28. It was his second of the game and twentieth goal of the season. Assisted by Farabee. 

Kevin Connaughton left the ice after being hit hard against the boards by Kirby Dach, who was not penalized. He was involved in a few physical plays before the last hit he received. 

All players on the ice by the Flyers goal, including Jones, became involved in pushing, shoving, and some fisticuffs at 11:49. 

Off-setting roughing penalties to Connor Murphy, Caleb Jones, Travis Konecny, and Rasmus Ristolainen resulted.

Seth Jones held Lindblom at 12:42. But Lindblom was charged with a double-minor for high-sticking, giving Chicago the power play. 

An undisciplined Too Many Men On The Ice penalty gave the Flyers a power play with 1:26 left in the game. Served by Kubilick. 

Chicago pulled their goalie and called a 30-second time out with 29.3 seconds remaining after a stoppage due to the puck hitting the screen in the Flyers' offensive zone.

Shots: Philadelphia – 8 (27 total) Chicago -7 (29 total)

Final Score: Philadelphia – 4 Chicago - 3

After the horn sounded

The team responded to head coach, Mike Yeo's impassioned post-game address that he described as a one-way talk.

The Flyers went 0-4 on the power play. 

Hayes looked solid in his return to the team after being out since mid-January.

Unless he misses a time, Giroux's 1,000 game in a Flyers' uniform will happen at home on March 17, against the Nashville Predators. 

(Photos courtesy of Sean O'Brien.)

Per the Flyers Media Department: Philadelphia's regular season home winning streak against Chicago dates back 17 games, to March 31, 1998. Of course Flyers fans recall that the team lost one playoff game to the Blackhawks in 2010. That was the decisive Game 6 loss in the Stanley Cup Final. The 4-3 decision happened in overtime and represents the last time the franchise has appeared in the Final since that fateful June 9 day in Philadelphia.

The following quotes from the post-game presser are courtesy of the Flyers Media Department, with media questions noted: 

Philadelphia Flyers Interim Head Coach Mike Yeo

 

After Thursday's game and then again on Friday you sent a message to the group that you expected more. Are you happy with the response today even though it wasn't a perfect game?

No, it wasn't a perfect game, no question. Set it off in the second period and we talked about a winning attitude and just kind of recognize that we are down a goal and at home here. I liked the way we came out in the third, that's for sure. So positive stuff. 

 

How pleased were you with the first and the second line as a whole?

Oh they were outstanding obviously. We needed something. It was disappointing to give up that goal late in the period because that should of been a moment to really build off of in the game. Not just the fact that they scored it, but how they scored it. For a little while here lately, I feel like we have been a rush or nothing team. When you play like that you end up defending too much and obviously it is a little more difficult to create some offense as a team who hasn't given up a lot against the rush. So for us to recognize that and get it off the forecheck, that is what we needed in that situation. 

 

How was it to see Kevin Hayes come back in the lineup?

I thought he looked good and had some looks. One thing about Haysey is he has got great instincts. He sees the ice and sees the game well. But he was clearly moving better than he was when he left the lineup when he was playing earlier in the season. Hopefully a real positive step and hopefully he can maintain that because he is a real valuable player for our group. Both from the leadership perspective and his love of the game and also the way he can play and contribute.

 

Mike, did you like the way Derick Brassard responded? Said he came into your office yesterday to get to work.

That is what we are looking for. I said it before the game. Accountability, it is one thing to say it, but you've gotta go out and do it. He definitely did that tonight. 

 

Mike, what is Kevin Connauton’s status right now?

I haven't got an update, but obviously what I saw it did not look too good. I went in after the game to try and find him, but he was still getting looked at so I haven't gotten a report yet. 

 

Chicago Blackhawks Head Coach Derek King

 

So was that not the way you wanted the third period to go?

It wasn’t exactly the way we drew it up. Overall, I think that we battled and played well. We just couldn’t hold on to that lead. We got a little sloppy at times and maybe a little anxious. They strike on you. They got some guys that can put the puck in the net.

 

How do you explain the four too many men penalties in two games?

That’s on me. I can do a better job on the bench. Making sure these guys know exactly who is out there. That’s my responsibility. There’s a little bit of anxiousness where we trying to do the same right things, we’re working and we’re jumping a little too early. We just want to get in there and try to be that guy that gets a goal. That’s definitely on me and I’ll clean that up.

 

At the end there, you guys had seven guys in the o-zone. How does that happen?

Maybe I didn’t have the right guys going on that. It’s just miscommunication. I’ll be better.

 

Was this a fun game to be a part of?

It was like an old 80’s game at the old Spectrum, with the scrums and everything after. We always want to play exciting hockey. I thought we were doing a good job. We just kind of cut back on our heels. They tilted the ice on us. We made a few mistakes with passing and penalties weren’t going right our way. There’s some work we have to do. Clean up in some areas and go right back at it tomorrow.

 

Lankinen’s been playing well but gets a few by him…

He’s playing. He deserves better. I think we deserve a little better. He’s making some saves. He made some good saves for us earlier in the game. It’s unfortunate that the one that goes in that goes over him that he was screened on was a little unfortunate. Again, no excuses. We know we’re down and we pull our goalie, there’s no excuses for a too many men call. Again, that’s on me and I’ll work to be better at it. Hopefully, the next time we’re in that position, we have the right guys on the ice and we score a goal.

Philadelphia Flyers LW Joel Farabee & C Kevin Hayes

 

Kevin, first game back. How did it feel out there?

It felt pretty good. I was lucky enough to get a few chances right away and get my confidence back. It is nice when you are getting grade A’s right away and playing with good players. 

 

Kevin, we just talked to Mike and he said he felt like you were moving better in this game than the past. Did you kind of feel that as well?

This is ‘night and day’ compared to how I felt the previous I don't know 15 games I played. 

 

Joel, it has been awhile since you, Cam and Derick were in a line together. Was it really easy to find that chemistry? 

Yeah, I think in the first we were kind of fighting it a little bit. I think Derick said to me “just stick with it.” I think playing with two older guys they really understand that part of the game. We kind of just waited for our chances and executed when we needed to. 

 

Joel, we heard that Derick said he wasn't pleased with how he played last game. How do you think he stepped up and adjusted?

Yeah, for sure. I think with Brass he is a guy that is really good on faceoffs and is really responsible. When he is playing his A-game it is fun to play with and he is a huge part of this team.

 

Philadelphia Flyers RW Cam Atkinson

 

How does it feel back together with Derrick and Joel, your line, looks like you guys found that chemistry together again right away?

Yeah I think in the first period we were easing our way into it a little bit but once we started making plays and supporting each other that’s when the right plays were there to be made and we just capitalized on opportunities.

 

Is there something special about the way those two guys play or the way you guys all complement each other that makes that line flow so well?

I think they’re always looking to play. They know I like to shoot the puck. I think we just support each other, that’s the biggest thing. That’s what we talked about before the game is being close and making those little 5-foot plays. It was nice to finally get a couple goals as a line.

 

Did it surprise you how quick the chemistry came back?

No. Those guys are really good players. I think we had our legs, too, which helps. Like I said, I don’t think our first period, it wasn’t anything special. But when we started making those plays and feeling good about ourselves and wanting the puck and wanting to make a difference, that's when things opened up for us.

 

Chicago Blackhawks D Seth Jones

 

How would you sum this game up?

I thought we played a pretty good game. We had a lead on the road at a tough building to play in. Up 3-2, we were feeling pretty good about our game. The last two goals that we gave up were unforced errors on our part.

 

How do the too many men penalties happen?

I don’t know to be honest. Two in our last game, two tonight. That should be good for the whole season. We need better communication.

 

What was it like to be in a game like today’s?

It was fun. I think everyone loves playing in games like that. It was intense. There were a lot of team meetings in front of each net. Tonight, it felt like a playoff atmosphere. We were in it physically and mentally. It sucks being on the wrong side, but I love the intensity we were playing in. In the scrums, all of our guys were in there. It was great to see especially in the tough time that we’re in right now. We have got to stick together.

Philadelphia Flyers G Martin Jones

 

Martin, what do you think the difference was between this third period and the third period you guys had on Thursday? You kinda flipped the script there.

I thought we tracked really well all night. Just the way the game was, it was obviously a very physical game and the guys didn’t really have a choice but to be engaged and kinda battling out there real hard. I thought we did a good job around the net and checked real hard.

 

Martin this was a game trailing after two periods really could have gone sideways the rest of the way (inaudible) was the mood in the room that this game was still winnable going into the final period?

We were down one goal, of course it was winnable. We’ve talked a lot recently about games that have been right there for us and we’ve talked about closing games out and just doing a better job just making sure we’re detail oriented and doing all the little things that help you win hockey games especially in the third period.

 

Martin, Kevin Hayes said that Mike Yeo called the team out pretty loudly after the last game. Do you think his message was perceived by you guys?

Yup.

 

How do you think the message was perceived? Obviously you guys showed it in the third period (inaudible).

I think the whole game we we’re really physically engaged and it was a strong game for us.

Chicago Blackhawks C Dylan Strome

 

Tough one. How would you sum that one up?

Yeah, I mean obviously it’s a tough way to lose. Have a lead going into the third gotta play better than we did, and then obviously can’t take that penalty that late in the game. Kind of finally got that power play there after all the scrums and couldn't capitalize so obviously that one sucks. It felt like we played pretty good and probably deserved a bit better than that.

 

That too many men on the ice, I don’t remember who was on for it, but how does that kind of thing happen now 4 in 2 games?

I mean that can’t happen obviously so gotta clean that up. It’s obviously not one guy, it’s kind of everyone gotta be aware of who you’re taking on the ice. If your guy comes off, you gotta go on, and if he doesn’t come off you’ve gotta be aware of that. It maybe looked like he was coming off and he didn’t come off. Those types of things happen. I’m really not sure how many how many we have this whole year but I don’t think it’s more than like six, and we have one in the last two games so the first 40-50 games, we’ve had two. That stuff happens sometimes so obviously gotta clean it up and give ourselves a better chance to tie it at the end.

 

Two goals for yourself, continuing to play well individually lately, what have you thought of your game?

I thought the line played pretty good. Some good chances. Capitalized, obviously Kane makes a great pass I just had to put it in the net. That was a heck of a play. Second one tried to hit Cat, puck came back to me.  Tried to help the team win obviously, playing more minutes you want to be the guy that’s relied upon to score and to help the team win. I feel like that’s what I can try to do to help the team win and get it done and obviously we were close tonight.

 

Philadelphia Flyers C Derick Brassard

 

What changed between the last game and today’s?

Just trying to play better in the other game. It’s a long season. There’s going to be some ups and downs. Not everything is going to go your way every night. You’re not going to play your best, but you have to bounce back and just try to bring my density a little bit higher. I haven’t played in a while. You know this is my fourth game since all that time. Just trying to go harder tonight.

 

How much help did you get with playing with Joel and Cam?

They’re two really good offensive players. I think we had success early on in the season. It’s just that the playmaking game of Farabee and the finish of Atkinson… I think it’s a good line and tonight we came out big for the team. We scored some key goals in some key moments in the game and those two guys were buzzing around.

 

Is it easier to play in a very physical game?

With everything that has been going on this year, it’s been pretty hard on the guys and we’ve been battling pretty hard the last few months. We’re trying to build something here.  We met and we felt like we could play better today. I think that the intensity of everyone went up tonight and we competed hard and it kind of shows that when we work hard, that we’re going to have success. It was a really good effort by our team tonight. Everyone played really strong. We know when with the intensity and the scrums after the whistle, the crowd likes that and gave us some energy so I think we used that tonight.

Philadelphia Flyers Look To the Future

General Manager Chuck Fletcher and his staff continue assessing his team's roster along with those of various other potential trade partners.

Claude Giroux, Derick Brassard, Justin Braun, Keith Yandle, Martin Jones, and potentially, Rasmus Ristolainen, if he does not agree to a new deal before the National Hockey League's trade deadline on March 21, could be moved due to their contract status. 

A cited need for high-end talent, increased team speed, and more assertive, if not aggressive play in all zones means that the roster adjustments that began last off-season will continue. That, along with the development of current and obtained prospects, will be geared toward putting the team back in playoff position by next season. 

It is a tall order. But there are enough pieces on the Philadelphia Flyers' roster, which include players (Sean Couturier, Kevin Hayes, and Ryan Ellis) who have missed significant time this season due to injury, to make a drive toward postseason access next season plausible if other efforts payoff between now and then. 

Trade Deadline Offers Great Opportunity

Philadelphia Flyers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Chuck Fletcher is looking ahead to next season and beyond as he and his expanding staff prepare for the National Hockey League's trade deadline on March 21. 

Opportunity was a keyword that is being used regarding this season. Danny Briere, the recently appointed Special Assistant to the General Manager, referenced during his introductory presser earlier this month. 

Only injury would likely prevent the trade of captain Claude Giroux, with that specific, anticipated transaction representing the end of an era in this franchise's history. 

A change in the team's roster should include the addition of NHL-ready younger players arriving via trades, a handful of off-season free agent acquisitions, with cap space allowing one or possibly two larger contracts, and the hope for a score of solid draft choices this summer (with the event being held on July 7 and 8 in Montreal at Centre Bell), with those prospects providing hope for the future.

Recent presser comments from Fletcher (Feb 11) and Briere (Feb 9) provide a glimpse of current organizational perspective regarding the near-term and beyond. Courtesy of the Flyers media department...

Philadelphia Flyers President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Chuck Fletcher

Was Coots’ back surgery something you expected as you saw it progress or did it come as a surprise?

Well, this wasn't an issue that was bothering him coming into this year. I think he started having issues in the fall. Tried to battle through. We tried to treat things non-surgically. Couple epidurals to be exact and trying to resolve the issue that was there. Ultimately, you try to do your best to avoid back surgery if you can, but ultimately the doctor and Sean felt confident that the best way to resolve this going forward would be to have this surgical intervention. It was successful today. It’s about a three-month return to play, which will take him out of this season. Fortunately for him and for us, it will give him the chance to have a normal summer of training and come back healthy for the ‘22-‘23 season. 

 

Do you expect him to be 100% at training camp?

Yeah. Doctor’s confident on that.

 

Do you have an update on Ryan Ellis? Is he looking like he needs surgery or can you guys avoid that?

Yeah, that’s what we’ve been trying to do, again. If Ryan does have surgery, whether it was two months ago or now, it’ll knock him out for the season. We’ve been trying to avoid surgery and look at different ways of rehabbing and treatment to allow him to play. We’re starting to get to a point in the year though where obviously his health is first and foremost and the second issue would be making sure he’s ready for next year. We’re getting close to that point. I just spoke with Ryan about twenty minutes ago and he’s worked hard. He’s done everything he can. We’ll see where we’re at, but in the next few weeks, we’ll have to make a decision. 

 

We see Kevin Hayes skating, is there a level of concern though in bringing Kevin Hayes back too soon?

I don’t know about bringing him back too soon. It’s certainly a lot going on in that area for him. The core muscle, the groins, everything. I think with Kevin, it’s 50/50 that he can come back and play. He also may need some additional work done to get ready for next year. We’re doing what we can. He’s seen different specialists. We feel we have a good grasp on where we’re at. We’re just going to have to see how he responds to the treatment and the skating that he’s doing now. Again, the focus for all these guys is what’s in their best long-term interests in terms of their health and can we get them ready for the 22-23 season.

 

You say Hayes may need something else, do you mean surgery?

Yeah. 

 

We’ve seen Tyson Foerster here, what’s the update on where he’s at?

With the shoulder surgery that he had, I don’t think he’d be a candidate to play this year. The good news is, as you’ve seen, he’s skating every day. Rehab’s going well. Everything’s trending the right way. I don’t know that we’ll be in a position to get him to play games this year, but again, he’s working on skating right now. Going to be able to work on his lower body strength and then when his shoulder begins to progress, he’ll be able to work on the upper body. We’re very confident he’ll be good to go for next year. We’re just trying to take advantage of the time that we have to work on some areas that a lot of young players need to work on. 

Do you expect to Ryan Fitzgerald to play this year after giving him an NHL contract in the offseason?

We’re hopeful. I don’t know if I want to speak out of turn, but Tanner Laczynski, I believe, will be able to return to play a week from today and another week is the goal. It could be off a day or two. Ryan would be another week or two after that. They’ve both made tremendous progress. Laczynski’s skating every day. Skating hard. Working on conditioning. Ryan is a couple weeks behind him, but we expect both to be able to play. They’ve put a lot of time and effort in, so I’m excited for both of them to get playing as well as Lappy. 

 

Morgan Frost and Cam York were sent to the Phantoms during the All-Star break and Isaac Ratcliffe is back up here. What are you looking for to get them back up with the Flyers?

The idea isn’t to rush to get them back up here. It’s just allow them to continue to play. Play in all situations and develop. If that’s up here, it’s fine, but if it’s down there, right now it’s just about development with them. These guys are very important parts of our future. Ice time, roles, opportunity to get puck touches. We feel that Lehigh Valley is the best place for them to achieve that.

 

How would you rate their development while they were here?

Tough league to develop in. I thought Morgan was getting better. Showing signs. I thought with Cam, he played well. There’s times he played a top four role and there’s times he played a third pair role. Once his minutes dropped a bit, that sort of I guess pushed me a little bit to consider the Lehigh Valley option. For me, it’s just about playing and getting a lot of reps. We’re not in a rush. He’s 21 years old, Cam. He’s a really good player. He showed everybody what he can do in terms of retrievals, puck movement and his ability to play on the power play. He’s not the biggest body, but he defends well, particularly for his size. I think he has all the attributes to be a long-term NHL player. I just think there’s a lot of times we rush these kids and we don’t give them a chance to fully develop.

 

With Couturier being ready for next year, do the doctors believe that this injury might linger into his later years of his career?

Not at all. That’s why the surgery. Again, there were things we looked at, non-surgically, that may have helped short-term, but there were some concerns about long-term. The procedure he had today, to the best of everybody’s knowledge at this point, should resolve the issue. 

 

Getting back to Bill’s question about Cam and Morgan. Does there come a point where you say you have to start taking a more serious look at some of the young guys coming up?

We have been. Right now, we’re only carrying twelve healthy forwards. Isaac’s here, and Max Willman, Bunnaman, and Mayhew. Other players have had a look at various times. Out of necessity, a lot of players have had that opportunity. I think the most important thing is to the extent that you have enough bodies, just to do what’s right for them for their long-term development. I think you’ll see various players get some games up here, to have that opportunity. Playing in Lehigh Valley, Lappy and that team had a tough start. Didn't win a lot of games the first two months. I think from December and on, we’ve had very few regulation losses. They’re playing hard. They’re playing the right way. It’s just a great learning and winning environment right now, which I think is really beneficial for these kids long-term.

 

Can you talk about Danny Briere and what would be his most important role?

I’m very excited about Danny. Danny’s been involved with us since the ‘19-‘20 season. With that 2020 Draft, he spent a lot of time with Brent, watching a lot of videos on the top kids. The year we took Tyson Foerster, I think. He’s been in every meeting we’ve had since that season, whether it’s free agency, trade deadline, draft, end of the season strategic meetings. He’s been involved in every meeting. He’s been involved with our player development staff, even spent a few games on the bench with Lappy in Lehigh this year when we lost some coaches to COVID. Danny’s been really involved. In terms of the timing, I think it’s worked out really well for Danny. He’s obviously the President and Governor in Maine. Up until last summer I believe, he was taking an executive business program at Wharton. I think the timing really worked out really well for him to transition into a full-time role with us. I think interviewing with the Canadiens really showed him that this is something he really wants to pursue and jump into. I think the timing is great for him and for us.  I know speaking with Brent, Brent’s already got him scheduled out. He was on the road last weekend. He is on the road this weekend. He’ll be focusing probably on the pro side through the trade deadline. After the trade deadline, he’ll focus on the first round of the draft and he’ll sit in on all of the meetings. Going forward, we’ll get him more involved in everything that we do. Brent and I had this experience with Andrew Brunette in Minnesota at the end of his career. We brought him in and Andrew did player development, spent time with the farm team. He did pro scouting. He ended up coaching a little bit with Mike Yeo as he determined his career path and what he wanted to pursue. Now, he’s head coach in Florida. I kind of see a similar type of path for Danny. He’s going to have a bright future in this game. He has to see what areas he likes, but he’s got a tremendous knowledge of the game. He knows players. I think this is a great opportunity for us and for him. 

 

Back to Ryan Ellis for a second, can you sense how frustrated he is with only being able to play 4 games this year?

Yeah, it’s been terrible for him. We go on the road and he stays behind. He comes in early to get his rehab done, so you don’t even feel like you’re part of the team. I know there’s been a lot of frustration from Ryan. What's ailing him this year hasn’t ailed him before, so it’s hard to know how these things happen. He’s dealing with it the best he can. Again, at this point really our focus is on next year, trying to do what’s best for him and for our club going forward.

 

When it comes to Kevin Hayes, is the situation like Couturier’s where you will go non-surgical as much as possible?

I think that’s what the doctors and Kevin are speaking about. If he can come back, play, feel good and not do any further damage, that’s great. If it’s not healing to the extent we need it to be and to the level we need it to be, then we’ll have to look at additional surgery. It’s still a little bit up in the air, but I think everyone’s realistic about the situation.

 

How does the outlook of the team change with Couturier and Ellis not being able to return this year?

Again, Ryan only played 4 games for us. I thought three of those four games, he and Provorov played really well. Provorov’s game without him has been okay, but it looked like they had the ability to have good chemistry. He’s an all-situation player. He plays power play and penalty kill, plays late in a game when you’re up a goal, late in a game when you’re down a goal. He’s an impactful player when he’s healthy and playing to his ability. We’ll have to use the limits we have. If he and Provy guide us to what we think they can bring next year, it makes it a little bit more challenging. Obviously, we’re a bit more familiar with Coots and Kevin Hayes. I don’t think it changes things too much. Right now, it’s been an extremely difficult season but there’s opportunities for the players that are here to show what they can do. I think there’s a great opportunity for our organization to look at ways to improve, whether it’s the trade deadline or this summer. Going into next year, we have to take advantage of these opportunities, where it’s the players that are getting them or the management, coaching staff, looking at ways to get better for next year. It’s all looking forward now. How do we get better? There’s going to be opportunities for not just the players, but for our group to do that as well. 

 

Can you talk about the expansion to the analytics department? Can you talk about the two people that you added?

It’s really exciting. Ian Anderson heads up our analytics side. Ian and Jake have been here a long time while we added Matt a couple seasons ago on the analyst side. They’ve been doing great work, but we’re now getting this massive data dump from the NHL. There’s going to be incredible opportunities for teams to try to figure out how to manipulate and best utilize the data that we’re going to have. We’re trying to get ahead of it. Katie and Cole are two tremendous hires. Ian did a great job going through the process. We had hundreds of applications. These two young people, we’re very fortunate to hire them. Both Katie and Cole are technically very skilled, but they also have experience within the hockey industry. Katie’s been part of the UMass program that just won the National Championship. She’s getting her second masters. She’s worked for the Boston Bruins and she’s a young woman. Her work ethic is off the charts and talk about multi-tasking. She’s got all these things going on. She comes very highly recommended from Greg Carvel at UMass as well as from the Boston Bruins. We’re excited to get her in here in the spring after UMass’ season is done. Cole, a former goalie, played junior hockey. Played at Amherst college. He’s done a lot of work in the public domain, in terms of goaltending and tracking and projects of that nature. We’re very excited to bring him in. He works in the tech industry now and has that very good technical skill set, and again a love of the game of hockey. To find these people with a high level of technical expertise combined with knowledge of hockey and working with coaches, in Cole’s case playing the game, I think this is tremendous. They’re great hires. I know Ian is still looking to add to our staff and our goal is to be best in class, to be top. No different from our player development program we’ve worked on, our strength program, added Danny Briere to our management staff, and adding Alyn McCauley and promoting Tom Minton, now with the addition of Katie and Cole. I think we’re very fortunate. Dave Scott, at times I feel like he’s given me an unlimited budget and I’m trying to go by, trying to exceed it. We’ve been able to have some great people. We have a great staff. We have opportunities here to get better, but the people we have, I feel very confident that we’ll find some good solutions. 

 

Are you confident in getting several of the prospects signed this year once their season ends?

I hope so. They’re playing, so out of respect to their collegiate programs, I don’t know that I want to stir the pot, muddy the waters too much. Look, we’re having a tough season. This is the land of opportunity right now. We’re looking for talent. We’re looking for high-end skill. A young man like Bobby Brink’s top scorer in the NCAA. Ronnie Attard, one of the top defensemen in the NCAA. Noah Cates scored a goal in the Olympics yesterday. Fedotov, the Russian goalie, has had back-to-back shutouts. Desnoyers had four goals the other night. All these kids are knocking on the door and are more than ready to start their professional experience with the Flyers. We’re looking forward to that infusion of talent as well as what we hope to add in the next few months.

 

When do you start the permanent coaching search and who will be involved in that?

We’ll get to the end of the season. I’ve been working with Mike and the coaching staff now. Certainly, think about this all the time, but at the end of the season, we’ll sit down and look at every department and look to make the changes we want to make when we have more time. Right now, there’s still a lot of hockey to be played. A lot of issues that we’ll have to deal with in the next few months, whether it’s injuries, whether it’s the trade deadline, whether it’s signing some of our top prospects, whether it’s college free agency, whether it’s preparing for the draft. There’s a lot of things, and certainly at the right time, that will become a priority. 

 

With the trade deadline, when does the conversations start to pick up?

It started really about the last week. Teams typically have their pro scouting meetings either late January through to mid-February. For example, our pro scouts are coming in next week. We’re going to have five days of meetings to get organized for the next couple months. Some teams have just finished; some teams are just starting. Usually coming out of those meetings, the level of communication increases, and that’s what we’re starting to see. 

Philadelphia Flyers Special Assistant to the General Manager Daniel Briere

 

Do you know what your duties are going to be?

I think it’s going to be scouting, evaluating, maybe some player development. I know the organization pretty deeply from all my time and years here. It’s probably over the years, or the next few years going to increase. I’m not sure yet at this point how deep it’s going to go, but from what I was told, I expect to be more and more involved as time goes on. 

 

Does that include the NHL draft as well?

That’s the plan. For us with the situation we’re in and unfortunately with the way the season has gone, the focus coming up will be what we decide to do the trade deadline. That will be the first focus coming up shortly. A re-shift maybe towards the amateur draft coming and the position we’re in. Again, it’s unfortunate right now but it might be an opportunity that we have to take advantage of. We have to be prepared for that. That will probably be the next step after the trade deadline.

 

[Inaudible question]

I would say that probably forced me to have a better vision of the way I see things. Building an organization from all aspects, but at the same time, the situation that I’m coming in here with the people that are already in place that I’ll be working closely with. When I think of, obviously Dave Scott and Chuck Fletcher, but also Brent Flahr and Barry Hanrahan, who have been in those positions for years. They have a lot of experience. It’s a pretty cool situation for someone who’s starting in the business. I feel very, very fortunate to have people that have that experience all around me.

 

What did you gain from that experience?

I think more and more we're seeing that the business side and the hockey side collapse more and more moving forward. That’s just the reality of how it is in today’s game. It’s important. You look at how the players now, like all the revenues are tied to the player’s contracts. It’s more important. It’s more critical. I think it’s going to keep expanding and growing so for my own development and my own understanding. I remember when I stepped off the ice, I had no idea all that it entailed on the business side. I had no clue at the time, seven years ago, all the work that was done on the business side. It opened my eyes. I think it was great experience and I have the chance to practice it. Not just learn it but really experience it with the Mariners and oversee it, making tough decisions at the time on the business side. That experience alone was good for my development.

 

[Inaudible question]

There’s a lot of people. It started with Paul Holmgren bringing me aboard, along with Shawn Tilger. Valerie believing in me to keep doing that. Mike Shane has been great in teaching me the last few years. I had a lot of help from Adam Goldberg in Maine, and that’s one thing I want to say. Our staff in Maine, this last season has grown in revenues, our season ticket base by up to 25, maybe even more percent. Our staff there has been tremendous in making me look good, so I definitely want to give a shout out to them in all that they’ve done. 

 

Why would you want to stay in Philadelphia?

I played here. I had a lot of success with the Flyers. Along with Buffalo, they were probably the two teams I spent the most time. When I retired this became home. The family, the kids, love it here. We made it our home. I was very fortunate I was able get involved here with this organization. I got to know a lot of people from the business side and the hockey side. A lot of people from the players, from juniors to the ECHL, American league, and to the NHL. I know from top down the people in an organization. It makes it a lot easier. I don’t have to move. I’m staying home. I keep working for an organization that I love and where I had a lot of success. It couldn’t be a better set up honestly.

 

When do you see a turnaround happening?

That’s a good question, and it’s tough to tell how long it could take for that turnaround. Obviously, we would love to see the turnaround starting tonight. Being realistic, it might be next year or the following year. Who knows? I think there's a lot that comes into play. Let’s say we don’t make a push here to make the playoffs and we become sellers. Well, it becomes who’s available to sell at the deadline, and it also depends on what's available on the other side of the table. When you get a draft pick, it might take a little longer. If you get guys who are coming to the lineup right away to help you out, that might rush it a little bit more. It’s tough to tell at this point. One thing I know is there’s a lot of good players and I don’t think we’re a team that’s as bad as what the standings are showing at this point. You just look at the beginning of the year. We were supposed to have Couturier, Hayes, Brassard and Brown as our number 1 through 4 centermen, but how many games have these guys played? I mean we pretty much lost our top four centermen to start the year. That puts us in a tough position. That’s where I believe we’re definitely not as bad as what it’s showing on paper.

 

What do you think are the biggest needs? 

I agree with Chuck when he said high end talent. Difference makers that can on a nightly basis come in. Obviously, Coots not being there really hurts. G has pulled more than his weight. He’s been awesome, but they’ll need support.

 

About drafting and developing players…

That’s another key, the development of those guys. Tyson Foerster, I believe he eventually could be a great player for us, but there’s a lot of guys that you’re waiting to see how they develop. That’s going to be critical for the Flyers’ future. Bobby Brink is having a great season. Samu Tuomaala, that we drafted last year, showed some great promise about being a kid that can make a difference. Zayde Wisdom. Morgan Frost, we’ve seen him here. He’s going in the right direction but he’s got to keep doing it. And on defense, we’re seeing Cam York playing more and more minutes. I think he’s going to get better. At the end of the day, it’s the development of all those young kids that are going to make it or not for the future of the Flyers. 

 

How much of it is injuries and how much of it is relying on young players?

Yeah, they’re going in the right direction. We have to help them take the next step and become difference makers. That's definitely an area that I believe we can do a better job and we’ll have to do a better job to get the Flyers where they belong. 

 

Do you see some parallels between this team and the one you signed with?

I certainly hope so. I remember when I signed the year, I think the Flyers were last the previous season. It looked pretty bleak. Sometimes you got to look a little deeper and find the positive. At the time, I believed in what Paul Holmgren was doing. I believed in the players that were in the system coming up. I thought it was a team that was being built for the future, not just for a year or two. That’s why I was so interested in joining the Flyers back then. Hopefully we can have that same kind of turnaround. I said it earlier, sometimes you have a bad season, well you’ve got to take advantage of it. There’s other opportunities that show up in front of you, you’ve got to jump on that.