Photo Courtesy of Philadelphia Flyers Public Relations
It’s been a whirlwind 72 hours for Danny Briere. At the time of his press conference yesterday it was 48 hours, “I’m just trying to survive those last 48 hours. My phone hasn’t stopped buzzing for more than about three seconds. It was a little bit of survival mode the last couple of days,” Briere said smiling.
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It appears that he and John Tortorella, whom is the Flyers new Head Coach, have developed a pretty good relationship. That is a big key for Briere, as Tortorella has been the face of the franchise for the majority of the season. Tortorella has been someone whom the fans trust, so the previous regime have placed him front and center to face the music at times, but this is key for Briere to stay within the organization somehow, even if he is not tabbed as the next General Manager or president for that matter, “There was a lot to like about John. I think what really was striking for me was how he was going to rebuild the culture over here,” Briere said as he was involved in the interview process for hiring a new coach last Summer.
Briere further elaborated, “Looking at the last couple years, it was tough to watch at times. I felt we were an easy team to play against. You don’t realize how important culture is until you lose it. We interviewed a lot of great candidates, guys that were probably great coaches and could have done the job. In my mind, I felt John Tortorella was the perfect guy at this time to get us back on track and I really feel we’ve seen this. We’ve seen it this year. You look at not just the way we play, but talking also to players around the league, executives around the league, and they all say the same thing: The Flyers are tough to face. They might not have the most talent at this point. They might be a little inexperienced at this point. But man, it’s tough to face you guys. We’ve heard that constantly over the year. I’ve been really proud of the players and our coaching staff, the way they enforce that and how tough they’ve made us to face the season. I think it was the right step in the process. The mentality is different around here, from what I’ve seen from the previous two years. It’s really exciting. I think and I still believe that John was the perfect decision at this time for us.”
Finally, from the heavens, some one said the word “Rebuild”
Briere wasted no time saying that the Flyers are currently enduring a “Rebuild”, and that this is not a short-term fix. He stated it could take several years to get back into to get back on the right track. The word “Rebuild” became a word that the prior regime, to include Dave Scott refused to use, “That’s my belief. It needs to be done the right way. At this point, I think that’s what’s needed,” Briere said. “That’s what’s going to be important moving forward and not rushing to things. We’re going to keep evaluating players. We’ll have a lot of discussions in which direction we’re going to move, but there’s no doubt that this is not a quick fix in my mind. I believe it’s going to take a little while, but at the same time, it doesn’t mean that we’re going to do a full fire sale and have a complete new team next year. There’s a lot of good players. There’s a lot of good young players on this team. We’ve definitely gone on the younger side and I think it shows at times. It showed this year and it’s going to show until the end of the year. We’re a younger team. We maybe lack a little bit of experience. I think it’s the right way to go at this time.”
“I believe it’s needed. We have to be careful, and I want to make sure that rebuild doesn’t mean fire sale,” Briere said. “There’s a big difference between the two. I want to make that clear. We’re not going to get rid of everybody. We have some good players here. Some players that are in certain roles that we’re going to keep as well. We’re going to look at every possible option out there to improve the team. I don’t think this is a quick fix. That’s my belief and that’s why I’m not afraid to use the word rebuild. As long as you all understand, those little asterix, that it’s not a fire sale.”
“That’s my belief and that’s why I’m not afraid to use the word rebuild.” – Interim GM Danny Briere
The Flyers finally admit they are in a rebuild with the right verbiages just 48 hours into Briere’s tenure as Interim GM. He really showed some honesty, but asides from this stated above. There wasn’t any shockers in his presser, asides from Brent Flahr remaining in Hockey Ops in same way shape or form, whether it be as a scout in some fashion or maybe as the Assistant GM still. Nothing is concrete and the situation remains fluid with lots of rumors, such as, one of Robert Esche, Chris Pronger, Eddie Olscyk, or even Eric Lindros being considered for positions, “I have a great relationship with Brent. He’s been tremendous. He’s included me on everything since I started working with Chuck. I have a lot of confidence in Brent. You look at his track record at the draft. It’s pretty impressive. So yeah, I would say so,” Briere said in regards to Brent Flahr remaining in Hockey Ops.
It’s refreshing to hear the word “Rebuild” being coined from someone in the upper echelon of the Flyers organization, especially in Briere’s first presser as Interim GM. That was a word that was afraid to be used under the past regime. Let’s see what happens, as the shuffling will begin in the Hockey Ops Department shortly.
