Philadelphia Flyers Make More Major Coaching Changes After Firing John Tortorella
Photo credit: Philly Hockey Now
There are more major coaching changes coming for the Philadelphia Flyers, who already terminated John Tortorella late in the year after missing the playoffs again.
The Philadelphia Flyers already made the choice to terminate head coach John Tortorella with only a handful of games remaining in their year after it became clear they would not qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Assistant coach Brad Shaw was elevated to the position of head coach on an interim basis, and he went 5-3-1 in 8 games behind the bench as Tortorella's replacement.
Flyers general manager Daniel Briere has announced even more sweeping changes; assistant coaches Rocky Thompson and Darryl Williams will not return next year.
Additionally, assistant skills coach Angelo Ricci will also not return.
I would like to thank Darryl, Rocky and Angelo for their dedication and all of their efforts over the last several years to the Flyers organization. After careful evaluation, I felt that this was best for the future direction of the team.
Rocky Thompson played briefly in the NHL for both the Calgary Flames and Florida Panthers, and soon got into the world of coaching with the Edmonton Oil Kings and Oklahoma City Barons as an assistant.
Eventually, he was promoted to assistant coach of the Edmonton Oilers. He's also worked for the OHL's Windsor Spitfires and the AHL's Chicago Wolves before being hired as an assistant with the Flyers in 2022.
Williams played over 500 games in the IHL before he got into coaching; he's coached at various levels, and also became the first Newfoundland native to coach in the NHL as an assistant with the Vancouver Canucks.
He had been with the Flyers since 2021.
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 23 | 270 ANSWERS Philadelphia Flyers Make More Major Coaching Changes After Firing John Tortorella Can the Flyers return to the playoffs next year with a new-look coaching staff? | ||
| Yes | 88 | 32.6 % |
| No | 182 | 67.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
