Chuck Fletcher was the easiest move to make in terms of firing. He accumulated a record of 141-144-52 as General Manager of the Philadelphia Flyers, when he began his tenure on December 3, 2018. It’s just not good enough for a General Manager that was marred by tons of injuries, Covid, just being unlucky, and not being creative enough to add high-end talent. In the same token, he wasn’t creative enough with trades to acquire top-end talent, rather he used cheaper Band-Aids to stop the bleeding.
Flyers fans deserved better, and they can be thanked for the ousting of Fletcher earlier than expected. As I stated in a previous article earlier in the week, it was very unlikely Fletcher was going to make it unscathed after a dismal trade deadline. This move comes earlier than expected, and that is mainly due to not only the lackluster trade deadline, but persistent Flyers fans being very unhappy and expressing their thoughts at the Town Hall last weekend, to include a protest that is scheduled for today in terms of “Firing Fletcher and Selling the team.”
“In the coming days, we will begin the process of re-structuring our Hockey Operations Department by separating the President and General Manager positions,” Former Board of Governor of the Flyers Dave Scott continued to say. “We view this as a critical opportunity to not only re-establish the standard of excellence that our fans expect, but also to bring new energy, accountability, and strategic vision to our organization.”
Now part of that statement indicates there will be more changes for the Hockey Operations Department, which will finally separate the President and General Manager roles. Danny Briere was initially tabbed as the Interim General Manager, and as I have been writing for the past month or so he has been tabbed as a permanent GM and the 10th GM in Flyers history. Today Keith Jones has been hired to become the President of Hockey Ops. Jones was mentioned early to be involved with this search with a slew of other names like Eddie Olscyk, Doug Wilson, Ray Shero, Émilie Castonguay, Cammi Granato, and Dave Poulin.
Jones, Briere, and John Tortorella will now spear head the Flyers rebuild. Fortunately, Jones comes with a plethora of contacts throughout the NHL, his old style hockey knowledge, and a wealth of Cap knowledge. Some forget or fail to realize that he represented himself as an agent of a new contract during his playing years.
It has become clear that Comcast wanted someone who could hold the team accountable in a such a way, to include Briere and Tortorella if need be. Jones is an excellent communicator, and I can personally say this as I have had many conversations on the balcony at Flyers Training Camps. He never appears to make himself higher than others, and I think that rubbed the new Board of Governor of the Flyers Dan Hilferty the right way.
To be in this position of power. One has to be stern and communicate effectively, and Jones does this well. In the end congratulations to Jones and Briere on their new ventures in hockey. Hopefully, they continue to right the ship for the orange and black.
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