Danny Briere: Flyers’ New GM Says ‘Rebuild,’ Welcomes the Challenge

[SCFlyguy]

1 hour ago, GratefulFlyers said:

yeah this really doesn’t look good…for awhile there I was convinced the signs were clearly pointing to a new direction, a fresh approach….out with old in with the new. The Flyers were finally starting to do things different. Turns out…not so much.

I tried to tell you, but no, you had to follow "the signs".  Do you do tarot readings?

[CoachX]

5 hours ago, pilldoc said:

Officially changed title from Interim GM to New GM

Thats becasue I called them out on it in an official forum post. They want no part of me

[flyercanuck]

3 hours ago, FLYERS67 said:

I think they both may of came CHEAP!! Saved Comcast a few bucks.

 

Probably not as many bucks as they could have made with competent management and several rounds of playoff gate and concession receipts.

[OccamsRazor]

We will see...

 

 

[radoran]

30 minutes ago, OccamsRazor said:

We will see...

 

 

 

Philadelphia fans

[OccamsRazor]

3 minutes ago, radoran said:

 

Philadelphia fans

 

Yeah just another year of no hockey to really watch....meh. Go Eagles!!!

[flyercanuck]

4 hours ago, OccamsRazor said:

 

Yeah just another year of no hockey to really watch....meh. Go Eagles!!!

 

I'll just watch a real hockey team, again, with my junior team. 

 

If they get rid of Hayes, Deangelo, Risto and bring in some young guys, I'll start watching again. I have no problem with watching a rebuild. If they bring in more overpriced free agents, I may just stop watching the Flyers altogether. First time in my life I've despised my favorite team. 

[OccamsRazor]

55 minutes ago, flyercanuck said:

If they get rid of Hayes, Deangelo, Risto and bring in some young guys, I'll start watching again.

 

I can see them moving on from Hayes and TDA but Risto might be a tricky one and the guy they stuck with for another year at least.

[mojo1917]

17 hours ago, flyercanuck said:

 

I'll just watch a real hockey team, again, with my junior team. 

 

If they get rid of Hayes, Deangelo, Risto and bring in some young guys, I'll start watching again. I have no problem with watching a rebuild. If they bring in more overpriced free agents, I may just stop watching the Flyers altogether. First time in my life I've despised my favorite team. 

Get ready to hate then.

I can see a scenario where the Flyers are eating some bad contracts for the short term in order to gain some assets.

There isn't much draft capital and only some okay prospects on the horizon. 

Could be the Flyers "Arizona" for a year or two to reload. Which means a year or two of stumble bums on bad contracts. 

 

The problem I can see immediately will be the alienation of the fans.

[CoachX]

3 minutes ago, mojo1917 said:

The problem I can see immediately will be the alienation of the fans.

Speaking just for myself,  if the team is committed to a rebuild, I will show support and tune back in. If it turns out to be more of the same, I'm out. 

 

I get your point though, attendance will suffer if the team can't compete

[flyercanuck]

11 minutes ago, mojo1917 said:

Get ready to hate then.

I can see a scenario where the Flyers are eating some bad contracts for the short term in order to gain some assets.

There isn't much draft capital and only some okay prospects on the horizon. 

Could be the Flyers "Arizona" for a year or two to reload. Which means a year or two of stumble bums on bad contracts. 

 

The problem I can see immediately will be the alienation of the fans.

 

Eating bad contracts for decent draft picks is ok...I'm talking about signing more Hayes/JVR type deals. If they're doing it to rebuild, great. If they're "going for it", then I'm done. 

 

Go for it when you're ready to...not on a yearly basis no matter how much you suck.

[CoachX]

3 minutes ago, flyercanuck said:

 

Eating bad contracts for decent draft picks is ok...I'm talking about signing more Hayes/JVR type deals. If they're doing it to rebuild, great. If they're "going for it", then I'm done. 

 

Go for it when you're ready to...not on a yearly basis no matter how much you suck.

I think we can all feel confident that there won't be any more deals like this in the near future. There isn't any possible way they could be "going" for anything. 

 

JVR will sign elsewhere. Hayes will be dealt as soon as possible, same with DeAngleo 

[SCFlyguy]

22 minutes ago, CoachX said:

There isn't any possible way they could be "going" for anything. 

This has never stopped them.  They should have been rebuilding during the Hextall era.  They should have been been rebuilding in 21 when they should have realized (at the latest), that the Giroux era was never going to amount to anything.  They will find a way to go for it, trust me.

[SCFlyguy]

They'll take their lumps for a season, but at the first sign of improvement they will jump on the most hyped and overpriced UFA they think will put them over the top.

[flyercanuck]

8 minutes ago, SCFlyguy said:

They'll take their lumps for a season, but at the first sign of improvement they will jump on the most hyped and overpriced UFA they think will put them over the top.

 

I don't think there's a sane person on here who can dispute that....until it actually doesn't happen. We can only hope.

[CoachX]

1 hour ago, SCFlyguy said:

This has never stopped them.  They should have been rebuilding during the Hextall era.  They should have been been rebuilding in 21 when they should have realized (at the latest), that the Giroux era was never going to amount to anything.  They will find a way to go for it, trust me.

They shoulda.....they shoulda....they shoulda

 

We've heard this story. Hindsight is 20/20. I hear ya.  Enjoy your day with the comfort of saying, "I was right". Good for you

 

For me, this looks different. You being right in past issues won't change that. If they do the same crap again, so what? I'm already predisposed. The only difference this time is they are telling us the recognize how bad it is and are going to fix it. They go back on that, it will be worse then ever before. I dont think they have a choice

[mojo1917]

8 hours ago, SCFlyguy said:

They'll take their lumps for a season, but at the first sign of improvement they will jump on the most hyped and overpriced UFA they think will put them over the top.

So what then, would be the criteria and timeline that would suit you when this eventuality becomes real.

Because, it's going to,or seems to me like it's going to have to.

 

There needs to be a talent to build around, right?

Currently, that guy isn't on the roster.

There are two 1st picks next year, #7 this year and whatever else Daniel can scrape together around the draft.

Most likely the pick from Florida won't be lottery, the pick from the Flyers will likely be in the 7 to 12 range. 

Not going to find the cornerstone there. 

 

If a guy becomes available via trade or money where do you think the Flyers should be in their development before they make a play ?

 

Personally, I wouldn't have hurt feelings if the rebuild doesn't last 8 years. 

Say for instance, Toronto wants to try to trade Matthews for something and not extend him?

this is a hypothetical @radoran has kicked around. Say Hart and Provorov go the other way. 

Now the team is building around a top 5 forward, that's bad in your book?

mind explaining your thinking around this?

 

Edited May 13, 2023 by mojo1917

[pilldoc]

https://theathletic.com/4514661/2023/05/12/flyers-daniel-briere-gm-hire/

 

Comcast Spectacor chairman and CEO Daniel Hilferty didn’t shy away Friday from shedding light onto the process that ultimately led to the Philadelphia Flyers choosing Keith Jones to be their president of hockey operations.

 

They spent weeks whittling their list of candidates — which at one point was over 100 — down to three. They employed the help of outside advisers, namely Modern Executive Solutions (which included former Sixers GM Billy King) and Neil Glasberg, who aided in their coaching search last summer. They listened and learned about different team- and organization-building perspectives from all of their candidates. And this week, it finally came to a close with the announcement that Jones was the pick.

 

But in the minds of Hilferty and the rest of the decision-makers in the organization, there was no need for such a search to fill the “open” general manager position. No interviews were held.

Why? They already believed they had their man in interim GM Daniel Briere, who had the tag removed and was officially named the team’s 10th general manager on Thursday.

“I can tell you from the first day that we really interacted, I viewed him as the next GM of the Philadelphia Flyers,” Hilferty said. “So the process went on in my head, in conversations with Valerie (Camillo) just watching how (Briere) and (John Tortorella) interacted, we just felt strongly there was no need for a process. We had our general manager.”

 

Sure, much of the talk Friday from Hilferty and Camillo centered around the importance of collaboration — communication between the three members of the new hockey triumvirate, improved relations between the hockey operations and business departments, which they expect Jones will help foster. And of course, there was much discussion about getting the Flyers back on track in terms of on-ice results.

 

But throughout it all, one truth was abundantly clear: rebuilding the hockey team will be Briere’s show.

 

“It was clear to all of us from the start that Danny Briere was the right person for this job,” Camillo added. “He’s brilliant. He’s data-driven. He’s analytical. He’s hardworking. He’s a great guy. I’ve known him for going on almost five years, and he is ready to rebuild this team into a perennial contender.”

 

Briere himself expressed his gratitude for the confidence placed in him, and his belief that he can indeed justify their faith.

 

“If there’s one message that I want to send out today, especially to our most loyal fans, is that you have my full attention,” he said. “It’s been an incredible honor to serve the last two months as the GM of the team and the fact of the matter is that it’s only made me hungrier to turn this thing around.”

 

 

For the Flyers, the buck stops with Briere when it comes to constructing the team. And Jones didn’t shy away from acknowledging as much in his first remarks since the hire.

“I’m here for Danny Briere, whatever he needs, whenever he needs it,” Jones said. “I will give my opinion to Danny, and Danny will make the final decision on player personnel, trades, etc. He’s going to be busy. I will be there for him at all times. That will be my role.”

 

But make no mistake — when it comes to hockey decisions, Jones will be a resource to Briere, not his superior.

 

And Jones unsurprisingly is perfectly fine with that.

 

“The most important thing I think, is collaboratively working together,” he said. “That’s something I’ve done in every job that I’ve had in my life, whether I was playing or in my post-playing career in television.”

 

Hilferty also pushed back on the criticism that the two hires were just business as usual for the Flyers by once again picking two former players to manage the club. In fact, Hilferty brought it up unprompted in his opening remarks, even before the question-and-answer section of the news conference.

 

“I know some are thinking, here they go again. Hiring two former Flyer players isn’t a fresh start,” he said. “Let me share with you that during the process, our goal was to hire the best candidates. It just happens that they’re former Flyers.”

 

Tortorella, in quintessential Torts style, combatively backed Hilferty up in that regard as well.

 

“I don’t want to speak out of turn, but I don’t get sometimes when in this process, when people start talking about Flyers alumni — Jonesy an ex-Flyer, Danny an ex-Flyer. What has happened? Why do people think that they’re diseased?” he asked.

 

In Tortorella’s mind, that Briere and Jones are former Flyers is a positive point in their favor, not a negative.

 

“I’m proud that they are Flyers,” he said. “I’m proud of these guys over here, and other alumni that care about this organization. And that’s what thrills me the most — I think we have strong personalities, and I think they care. And I don’t get some of the thinking out in this city, how it’s ‘ex-Flyers’ and they’re doing it the same way. Goddamn. It is so important to have that belief.”

 

Hilferty, unsurprisingly, agreed.

 

“When you pick the right person, it doesn’t matter where they’re from,” he said. “I just want to make sure that everybody knows that we understand and appreciate this proud tradition of this organization. The fact that these two individuals know it and understand it, I think is an advantage, not a disadvantage.”

 

That said, Hilferty admitted that it’s on the Flyers to change the minds of doubters, who he sees and acknowledges.

 

“There’s going to be naysayers,” he said. “I understand that. I read it. I read everything — well, not everything, there’s some things I won’t. But the proof will be in the pudding.”

 

And it will be Briere with the biggest role in making that pudding.

[radoran]

42 minutes ago, pilldoc said:

Comcast Spectacor chairman and CEO Daniel Hilferty didn’t shy away Friday from shedding light onto the process that ultimately led to the Philadelphia Flyers choosing Keith Jones to be their president of hockey operations.

 

Good to see that the retired health care executive is rock solid behind the two rookie executives he hired to run the hockey franchise.

 

Now do something.

 

Edited May 13, 2023 by radoran

[pilldoc]

37 minutes ago, radoran said:

Now do something.

 

[CoachX]

5 hours ago, pilldoc said:

“I know some are thinking, here they go again. Hiring two former Flyer players isn’t a fresh start,” he said. “Let me share with you that during the process, our goal was to hire the best candidates. It just happens that they’re former Flyers.”

This statement from Hilferty has significant impact. It's not what he said directly, but the message behind it. To me it openly acknowledges the "ex-flyer" dynamic has been a problem. One that they are aware of. If I'm anyone of the life members of the Bobby-bunch, I take this as direct call out that they were, and are, the problem

[SCFlyguy]

5 hours ago, pilldoc said:

“I know some are thinking, here they go again. Hiring two former Flyer players isn’t a fresh start,” he said. “Let me share with you that during the process, our goal was to hire the best candidates. It just happens that they’re former Flyers.”

This franchise is truly blessed to have such amazing candidates as former players.

[LegionOfDoom]

9 hours ago, CoachX said:

This statement from Hilferty has significant impact. It's not what he said directly, but the message behind it. To me it openly acknowledges the "ex-flyer" dynamic has been a problem. One that they are aware of. If I'm anyone of the life members of the Bobby-bunch, I take this as direct call out that they were, and are, the problem

I wonder if this was why Hexy shut the doors from Alum that were trying to get in?

[flyercanuck]

16 hours ago, mojo1917 said:

 

If a guy becomes available via trade or money where do you think the Flyers should be in their development before they make a play ?

 

Personally, I wouldn't have hurt feelings if the rebuild doesn't last 8 years. 

Say for instance, Toronto wants to try to trade Matthews for something and not extend him?

this is a hypothetical @radoran has kicked around. Say Hart and Provorov go the other way. 

Now the team is building around a top 5 forward, that's bad in your book?

 

 

My issue with this is we're always chasing that guy at top dollar. Will he make us better? Sure. He'll also help us get a worse pick the next year. I'd rather build slow and stockpile young assets myself. Chasing a Matthews is the way we've always done it. 

 

Meanwhile, he had 2 assists in the 2nd round, first time he's ever been there. 

 

While ex-not good enough for us Flyers Bobrovsky Cousins and Gudas all we personally responsible of eliminating him and the Leafs.

[CoachX]

5 hours ago, flyercanuck said:

While ex-not good enough for us Flyers Bobrovsky Cousins and Gudas all we personally responsible of eliminating him and the Leafs.

Maybe the issue was never really talent, but how that talent was used, how motivated they were, and the culture/attitude of said talent