Who Is To Blame For The Flyers Failures?

Photo Credit: Katelynn Reiss

Everyone (aside from maybe Claude Giroux.)

From ownership, to management, to coaching, to the players on the ice themselves, everyone from top to bottom is to blame for the situation the Flyers find themselves in. As somebody who considers himself an optimist, the Flyers have continually crushed that optimism. I distinctly remember reading about Travis Konecny and Ivan Provorov when I was in high school, and thinking they, along with Shayne Gostisbehere would be the saviors of our beloved franchise. Unfortunately over the past few years that hope has been crushed into tiny pieces. All this has led to where we are now. As of January 17th, 2022, the Flyers are tied for sixth place in the division with the New Jersey Devils, and the last place New York Islanders are just 4 points away from overcoming them. Many fans, myself included, are trying to pin blame on somebody or some group of people, but the reality is that the blame lies with all facets of the organization. In this article, I’ll attempt to explain why no group should be let off the hook, and why major changes need to come at all levels within the organization. 

First and foremost, the ownership. Since the passing of our beloved Ed Snider, it has felt to many fans that all the passion, excitement and tradition has all but left the organization. Ownership has slowly corporatized the Flyers, and it feels like the team is no longer centered around the on-ice product. I will not spend too much time trashing Gritty because I know he’s a fan favorite, but his appearance seemed to symbolize the shift in thinking from ownership. I personally used to take pride in the fact that the Flyers were one of the few hockey teams that did not have a mascot. It felt as though the team was above that, and was more focused on selling the on-ice product rather than the brand. At the same time as the introduction of Gritty, ownership decided to end another Snider-driven tradition, the symmetrical logos at center ice. Though it seems like small changes, the Flyers seem like they have ventured so far from their history, and have slowly become a brand – not a hockey team. Ownership has also made the mistake of giving the GM, in this case Chuck Fletcher, total free reign over the team. The same privilege was given to Ron Hextall, who allegedly ignored scouts and kept the team’s veterans out of the locker room. While also helping to stray away from their history, this GM autocracy has led to years of mediocre talent and what feels like a lack of accountability within the organization. Fletcher, and previously Hextall only have had to report to the Chairman and CEO of comcast spectacor, Dave Scott. The Flyers would benefit from hiring true hockey men in their front office outside of Fletcher, who is currently the acting GM of hockey operations, President, and alternate governor according to the Flyers website. 

This leads into the faults of the General Manager. The Flyers have not had a player score over 35 goals since the 2011-12 season, when Scott Hartnell potted 37. This is just totally unacceptable for a team that has had a top-tier playmaker in Claude Giroux for the last decade plus. From 1999-2000 through 2010-11, the Flyers had four seasons where they had 40 goal players like Simon Gange, Jeff Carter, and John LeClair. The lack of true scoring talent has hampered the Flyers since the start of the 2010s, and the decade of mediocrity we currently find ourselves in is a symptom of that overarching problem. Though 40 goal scores do not grow on trees, it is safe to say the Flyers have not had a true superstar outside of Giroux for their entire decade long skid. This falls on the general managers who have failed to draft, sign, or trade for any bonafide star players since Giroux. This is why earlier I left a caveat for Giroux, because he should not bear the responsibility of this team’s failures. The fact that he has been as good as he has so consistently throughout his career without another star to help him is a testament to his ability. For the past decade the rosters have been littered with mediocre players like Chris VandeVelde, Brandon Manning, Evgeni Medvedev, Chris Stewart, Andrew MacDonald, Jason Akeson, and Ryan White; none of whom were able to find full-time NHL jobs after their Flyers stints. Even currently, the Flyers have waiver claims on their roster pretty much every night. When your starting lineup is partially built of players other teams were willing to give away for free, it is hard to expect success. The Flyers general managers simply have not done enough to construct competitive rosters since the turn of the 2010s, and the blame falls on them for that part. 

The players and coaches are the last group that deserve a portion of the blame for the Flyers lack of success. At the end of the day, the players on the ice and the coaches around them have just not been good enough. There has to be a development problem within the organization, as players like Konnecy, Provorov, and Sanheim have largely stagnated or even regressed as their careers have gone on in Philadelphia. All three of these players were highly touted prospects earlier in their careers. Earlier in his career Provorov seemed like a lock for at least one Norris trophy, while Konecny seemed like a potential solution to the scoring problems this team has faced. Unfortunately both players seemed to have regressed or at least stagnated, and some of the blame has to fall on the coaching staff(s) they’ve been around, along with the players themselves. Konecny, Provorov, and Sanheim have seen four coaches all before any of them turned 26 years old. This cannot be good for their development, and the lack of stability within the organization can certainly be to blame for their stunted growths. 

To conclude, it is not hard to see that the Flyers need to make large changes within the organization to be competitive. I personally would advocate for a rebuild around Hart, as a franchise goalie is the centerpiece a team needs to truly be competitive. The Flyers need a 2003 Penguins-esque rebuild. They already have the franchise goalie that Fleury was, now we need to find our Malkin, Crosby, and Letang. Until then, I worry the team I -or should I say we – love will continue to spin the wheels of mediocrity and never take that step toward truly contending for a cup.  

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