The Flyers are currently teetering between years of mediocrity or contention for a cup but this off-season is going to be one of the most crucial in recent team history. With the latest iteration of the core being torn apart from the ground up, we are seeing the formation of a brand new core with youth, skill and speed.
The coaching change has been a huge question mark since the firing of Berube but there are a few coaches who could turn this team around and play to their full potential.
With the departures of Claude Giroux, Jakub Voracek and Shayne Gostisbehere, the Flyers leadership group has been wide open. The injury to Sean Couturier has also left a void that some of these young guys have been able to fill. This new core will consist of Kevin Hayes, Couturier, Travis Konecny, Joel Farabee and Ivan Provorov.
While Cam Atkinson has been good, he is still fairly new to this team. His leadership on and off the ice, though, will play a key factor to helping these young guys take the right approach to this game.
The Flyers have seemingly been playing a different form of hockey since his Claude Giroux’s trade to the Florida Panthers back at the deadline. This team has had a culture of losing and underachieving and it was time for a change. Whether Giroux comes back or not, that should not hinder the way you attack this off-season and the aggressiveness you bring to get some stars into this building.
While there is something here to build upon, it just isn’t enough to take you to the next level. You need to get younger and faster but there are some veterans who maybe available to help this team. You also need to move on from some of the current veterans who are weighing down this roster.
There will be trades made at the draft and the off-season. The continued remolding process of this team will continue and Fletcher has full reigns on what he wants this team to look like. With how he started to construct the current Minnesota Wild team before he was let go, I think he can do something similar here.
In a flat cap era as well, the best way to build a team is through the draft and trades. While there are some RFA’s worth looking at, there are plenty of young players on this roster who can be on this team after training camp.
There is a new breathe of fresh air that is surrounding this team. This new era can be the start of meaningful hockey, but it starts with a great coaching hire, leaders in the locker room and overall perfect system that helps this team excel and overall enhance the abilities of each player and what they bring.