Confirmed with Link: The new coach of the Philadelphia Flyers is John Tortorella

[LegionOfDoom91]

Tortorella seems like a cool guy to drink beers with. So he’s always going to win people over from that standpoint.

 

[Embiid]

We are going to need a lot of beers...

 

[JojoTheWhale]

I've avoided this coaching chatter and this coaching thread since the season ended because I didn't need to use my limited brain capacity to fret over who was eventually going to take over this tire fire.

I have now listened to the Torts introductory press conference, so I am finally ready to chime in.

Everything we have seen from the Fletcher regime indicated they were never going to think outside the box with this hire. Chuck proved that going over his checklist. Anyone who has only coached outside the NHL never had a chance at getting an interview.

With that premise, you start to wonder which re-tread would actually fit here, with today's roster and where the organization is going. I was surprised to see mention of DeBoer and Capuano (wat) as finalists, but Torts fits the exact profile of what I expected, especially after hearing Chuck's checklist.

I was pretty certain AV wasn't the right fit when he was hired, but I actually think Torts, accepting we were going to see a re-tread here, might be the right guy at the right time. The question really is, right time for what? This is a shitty hockey team with minimal options for significant improvement in the short term. So, how can Torts be the right guy here?

His answers today were refreshing. He said a lot of things I was hoping to hear but didn't expect. He's very self aware of what he failed at in the past. He specifically made mention of protecting Hart better (of all the failings of the team under AV, this was always my biggest annoyance). He spoke about getting in contact with all of the players away from the rink before training camp (AV, hello?). He mentioned getting an assistant coach who can run a successful powerplay, who potentially could speak to the skilled players about other puck possession attributes that Torts himself is not equipped to do. These are great things to hear, if he puts them into practice.

I also think having Atkinson on the roster already will help everyone else understand the Torts personality better at first, so Torts doesn't blitz through the room like a bull in a china shop.

But, again, why does any of this make Torts the right guy? What's the end goal for his tenure? Obviously he and management hope that within these four years, there's a parade down Broad Street with a giant silver mug. Even the most ardent supporter of the hiring has to know this is very unlikely.

I think what could make Torts the right guy for this team now relates to a couple of things he said and one thing he didn't.

1) He clearly understands the role of a coach, even if his previous methods haven't necessarily projected that to the general public. A coach's role is to get the most out of a player individually and out of the team collectively. He definitely has coached teams that have exceeded expectations. I honestly haven't looked close enough to judge his success with individual players.

2) One of the points he mentioned repeatedly was structure away from the puck. This team had been a train wreck for years away from the puck. If he can instill a competent defensive structure, he'll succeed in accomplishing something we haven't seen since Lavi.

3) He didn't once talk about coaching to play with the puck and that had me pause for a minute. This roster isn't talented, overall, but if Torts has learned from his mistakes and if he's genuine that he learned from being able to watch other teams' structures during his year off, then it is possible that he can apply this to be more hand's off with play moving forward. Where I am skeptical, is that it takes a fine balance for a coach to allow free play with the puck and not lose your shit when a turnover affects "play without the puck". Torts clearly is more interested in improving the play away from the puck, so any key to success is directly tied to how free he will allow the team to be with it.

I expect that the Flyers will struggle to make the playoffs unless a roster overhaul is done and/or the Flyers have a superstar emerge from the prospects out of nowhere. This team is unlikely to be exciting to watch and very well may be stuck in "just missed the playoffs" purgatory, but that might be why Torts is the right guy at this time. Comcast wants a team that is in touching distance of the playoffs and Torts can get them there.

By the way, who is Dan Geston (spelling)? His question was so dumb I forgot his name. I recognized everyone else, I think.

I want to be clear that I don't think we're far apart on the ultimate conclusion here. I would add that I think he serves their remaining core fanbase perfectly. They should be hiring to make those people happy, not me.
It also helps that I don't think I have ever hated a coaching hire more than Vigneault because I had just gotten done closely watching him ruin the Rangers.

Tortarella already had his epiphany. Remember when he was throwing out quotes about Werenski playing Rover? What happened to that?

I'm also concerned about his tendency to overplay some young players to ridiculous degrees. I don't buy that grinding key players into dust in the regular season is the way to go anymore. If you need that to make the playoffs, we know what that means. I know we're already used to Provorov playing too much, but some of his early Columbus years had the top 4 D in the 48/49 Minute range. That doesn't strike me as sustainable for most teams in 2022.

 

[BiggE]

It was 100% not criticism, and his tone was almost gushing. He said he was "anxious" to work and talk with him. He said he didn't want to single out any players he was excited to work with, but then later said he lied and was elated to work with Kevin Hayes, that he's a "yuuuge piece to the puzzle." "If we can get him to that next level, what can he do for this Flyers organization down the middle?"

If the puzzle is “how to get yourself fired halfway through year 2 and make 10 million from the comfort of your own home” then yeah, Hayes is absolutely a big piece of the puzzle.

 

[Don Nachbaur 26]

We did miss a legendary HFBoards moment where Fletcher hires Capuano from out of nowhere.

That one threw me for a loop. Wonder what the connection to Philly is.

 

[DJ Mix]

Charlie O’Connor: What about your talk with Chuck made you think this is a team that could turn it around quickly
Torts: Let’s talk about the logo…..

 

[Tripod]

It was 100% not criticism, and his tone was almost gushing. He said he was "anxious" to work and talk with him. He said he didn't want to single out any players he was excited to work with, but then later said he lied and was elated to work with Kevin Hayes, that he's a "yuuuge piece to the puzzle." "If we can get him to that next level, what can he do for this Flyers organization down the middle?"

In JT's defense, he spent multiple days with Fletch. Imagine how many of those hours Fletch spent talking about Hayes and him being the face of the franchise.

But I agree with you, he is looking forward to trying unlock another level on Hayes. He did say he has been shovelling dog shit.....

 

[BiggE]

Would unlocking another level from Hayes mean he would finally stop peeing on the carpet and wait til he goes outside?

 

[Embiid]

Honest question....will the tortoise shell focus on D lend itself more to injuries?

 

[CanadianFlyer88]

I want to be clear that I don't think we're far apart on the ultimate conclusion here. I would add that I think he serves their remaining core fanbase perfectly. They should be hiring to make those people happy, not me.
It also helps that I don't think I have ever hated a coaching hire more than Vigneault because I had just gotten done closely watching him ruin the Rangers.

Tortarella already had his epiphany. Remember when he was throwing out quotes about Werenski playing Rover? What happened to that?

I'm also concerned about his tendency to overplay some young players to ridiculous degrees. I don't buy that grinding key players into dust in the regular season is the way to go anymore. If you need that to make the playoffs, we know what that means. I know we're already used to Provorov playing too much, but some of his early Columbus years had the top 4 D in the 48/49 Minute range. You just can't do that anymore.

What he said today doesn't matter if it never translates to the on ice product. An introductory press conference is the easiest place to be optimistic if the speaker "says the right things".

I have no idea if he actually has learned from his Columbus days or if it was just that he felt that reining Werenski in was the only way to help a relatively talentless club be better overall. If it's the latter, Flyers hockey has no chance at being entertaining with him in charge.

From what I have seen of Torts, I expect him to be able to get more out of this roster than many others, but that doesn't matter much if the roster's ceiling is a bubble playoff team.

That's what frustrates me about this process. What benefit is there when the end result of the roster moves and coaching hires just continues to perpetuate a period of mediocrity?

With respect to your last paragraph, he didn't address that directly and I was hoping someone would ask him about it. He mentioned that the game has evolved since his Lightning days, but he didn't address whether or not his roster deployment and overreliance on certain players is one of the things he will change about his player deployment. I'm not sure him saying anything about it would matter today; we'll know for sure when the regular season rolls around. I also don't know if it matters because the roster isn't good enough, anyway, so I'd personally rather see an extra few minutes of the younger players.

 

[Ghosts Beer]

Torts is a good coach & the exact coach the Flyers need right now.

As I said throughout last season, I’ve never seen a team struggle so much with basic execution.

They couldn’t even execute the simplest of passes with any consistency.

They’d inexplicably lose pucks off their sticks time & again.

They’d routinely miss coverages, fail to put sticks in passing lanes. Players would glide around instead of moving their feet with purpose.

Just a pervasive lack of focus & intensity, & a barrage of lazy mistakes & poor execution.

It was sloppy team with completely broken fundamentals.

The players need their bad habits & structure to be completely torn down & rebuilt, & there is no better coach to tear down & rebuild a player’s game & a team’s foundation than Torts.

 

[Beef Invictus]

Torts is a good coach & the exact coach the Flyers need right now.

As I said throughout last season, I’ve never seen a team struggle so much with basic execution.

They couldn’t even execute the simplest of passes with any consistency.

They’d inexplicably lose pucks off their sticks time & again.

They’d routinely miss coverages, fail to put sticks in passing lanes. Players would glide around instead of moving their feet with purpose.

Just a pervasive lack of focus & intensity, & a barrage of lazy mistakes & poor execution.

It was sloppy team with completely broken fundamentals.

The players need their bad habits & structure to be completely torn down & rebuilt, & there is no better coach to tear down & rebuild a player’s game & a team’s foundation than Torts.

This is actually almost the exactly what you used to say about Gordon lol. How he's some savant at teaching/instilling basics and a very bright, good coach.

I have heard this spiel before.

 

[Hanover Fist]

Definitely not my first choice but I’ve got to admit I’m excited to see how this unfolds

 

[Flyerfan4life]

finaly got to listen/watch the Torts interview..

say what you will, but this guy understands his job..

im looking forward to seeing him behind the bench. just dont expect much given the utter shit roster

 

[Rebels57]

He's 30 years old! The only levels left are downward....

Coming off of multiple core surgeries lmao

 

[Curufinwe]

Hayes had 22 points in the last 28 games after he finally got healthy.

it’s funny to see people writing him off who I know were happy to defend other Flyers who took a full year to get back to their best after core surgeries.

 

[Beef Invictus]

I'm not certain he is fully recovered yet. It can take a really long time and he was tweaking things well into the season. If he's ridden hard to try and unlock Secret Potential he could get driven into the dirt.

 

[deadhead]

I'm also concerned about his tendency to overplay some young players to ridiculous degrees. I don't buy that grinding key players into dust in the regular season is the way to go anymore. If you need that to make the playoffs, we know what that means. I know we're already used to Provorov playing too much, but some of his early Columbus years had the top 4 D in the 48/49 Minute range. That doesn't strike me as sustainable for most teams in 2022.

2016-17:
Jones 23:24
Savard 21:50
Johnson 21:49
Werenski 20:55

Foligno 18:26
Wennberg 18:23

2017-18:
Jones 24:36
Werenski 22:35
Johnson 19:33
Savard 19:23
Murray 18:26

Panarin 20:08
Atkinson 18:54

2018-19:
Jones 25:49
Werenski 22:54
Murray 21:26
Savard 19:45

Panarin 19:51
Atkinson 19:23

TB:
2019-20:
Hedman 24:04
McDonagh 20:42
Sergachev 20:22
Cernak 18:57

Point 18:54
Kucherov 18:52

2020-21:
Hedman 25:03
Sergachev 21:58
McDonagh 21:54
Savard 20:26
Cernak 19:47

Point 18:26
Stamkos 18:16

2021-22:
Hedman 25:05
Sergachev 22:28
McDonagh 22:27
Cernak 19:09

Kucherov 19:59
Point 19:28

 

[flyersnorth]

What he said today doesn't matter if it never translates to the on ice product. An introductory press conference is the easiest place to be optimistic if the speaker "says the right things".

I have no idea if he actually has learned from his Columbus days or if it was just that he felt that reining Werenski in was the only way to help a relatively talentless club be better overall. If it's the latter, Flyers hockey has no chance at being entertaining with him in charge.

From what I have seen of Torts, I expect him to be able to get more out of this roster than many others, but that doesn't matter much of the roster's ceiling is a bubble playoff team.

That's what frustrates me about this process. What benefit is there when the end result of the roster moves and coaching hires just continues to perpetuate a period of mediocrity?

With respect to your last paragraph, he didn't address that directly and I was hoping someone would ask him about it. He mentioned that the game has evolved since his Lightning days, but he didn't address whether or not his roster deployment and overreliance on certain players is one of the things he will change about his player deployment. I'm not sure him saying anything about it would matter today; we'll know for sure when the regular season rolls around. I also don't know if it matters because the roster isn't good enough, anyway, so I'd personally rather see an extra few minutes of the younger players.

I think the one point Torts nailed is when someone asked about the team's timetable (legit contender, playoff push, or are they rebuilding).

He basically said the media puts their label on it, not him. His goal is in the day to day, week to week management of his roster. Pushing players, getting a gameplan, seeing physical and mental development, etc. That's pretty much his sphere of control.

In the end, the limiting factor is the roster. He has won a Cup before, he has had deep playoff runs, so as a coach, he's capable of it. But the Flyers roster has to be up to snuff.

Which brings us to Fletch...

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

Have at it, @Captain Dave Poulin

Hahahaha that's great

Some company the Flyers hired for this process. Represented Tortorella and Capuano (no word yet on DeBoer) in the past through other agencies.

Oh my f***ing word This is seriously real life Holy shit

 

[Deep Blue Metallic]

Chuck did not look like a guy who is happy or excited to have John as coach

He had the look of a guy who didn't agree with the hiring, but knows he'll get blamed if it doesn't work.

 

[JojoTheWhale]

2016-17:
Jones 23:24
Savard 21:50
Johnson 21:49
Werenski 20:55

2017-18:
Jones 24:36
Werenski 22:35
Johnson 19:33
Savard 19:23
Murray 18:26

2018-19:
Jones 25:49
Werenski 22:54
Murray 21:26
Savard 19:45

You and I both know what you did here, or more accurately did not do.

 

[Magua]

What if we think Hayes was meh before surgeries? Pump up a middle 6 player with constant 1C usage and PP1 time, that player will score. But it’s part and parcel why they get outscored.

 

[DancingPanther]

Have at it, @Captain Dave Poulin

Speaking of hard, some poor guy came in with priapism last night after 12 hours. A trucker who couldn't make it to the hospital sooner. 5 phenylephrine syringes didn't help, so they had to drain the ischemic blood with a needle. Engorged again immediately. More syringes. Finally got it down. 13 hours. No reason for it either. Also happened 10 years ago. Wild shit.

 

[Rebel247]

Any word on his assistants?