The Flyers chose to turn to an area they feel is the foundation of success in the NHL: defense. They chose the upside of a budding defensive prospect in Oliver Bonk, in hopes that it will come to fruition with development.
Flyers interim GM Danny Briere met with the media on Sunday morning and officially went where his predecessor wouldn't. The Flyers are officially in a rebuild, one that Briere says "needs to be done the right way."
On Wednesday, you saw that the current regime is incapable of handling a rebuild. They insisted upon an aggressive retool for a fast fix, not the necessary rebuild needed. Now it’s time to start that rebuild anyway, but focus on the front office that has so clearly set the Flyers back.
John Tortorella certainly knew all the right things to say, but doesn’t have much of a filter. What you see is what you get with him, there’s no gray area. That hardly appears to be the case with Flyers management. There’s a lot of gray area right now, in terms of making decisions, who is on board with what, and what the future may hold.
One day after officially being named a special assistant to the general manager, Danny Briere met with the media on Wednesday morning to discuss the new role and how he factors into those plans.
After a busy offseason, is there still a chance for young players to make their impact on the Flyers roster this season? The possibility exists for sure. It always does. The road to get there is just going to be much more difficult this time around.
As GM Chuck Fletcher and assistant GM Brent Flahr met with the media on Tuesday morning, it marked the beginning of what should be a busy few weeks for the team. They need to get better. They know it. And they know time is of the essence.