Mar 27, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Flyers center Sean Couturier (14) celebrates his goal with right wing Matvei Michkov (39) against the Montreal Canadiens during the first period at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
The Philadelphia Flyers are nearing the end of a disappointing season. Despite hopes of pushing forward and making the playoffs, the team stagnated and missed the postseason once again. It resulted in the firing of veteran head coach John Tortorella and the interim hiring of Brad Shaw.
As the season winds down, Flyers' captain Sean Couturier opened up about the troubling season in Philly. He spoke with Jimmy Murphy of RG and admitted that his relationship with Torts wasn't the best.
“It was just alright. I’m not gonna lie,” he said. “I think throughout the last year and a half and what was portrayed in the media — yeah, there wasn’t much of a relationship, I would say. We didn’t see eye-to-eye on a lot of things, and it was hard, but I just tried to work with him and do what’s best for the team because that’s my job as the captain."
It was an unsurprising but disappointing admission from the Flyers captain. The entire locker room had troubles with Torts over his tenure with the team.
Things took a turn for the worse this season, and the team tuned him out. Rookie winger Matvei Michkov entered his doghouse and was healthy scratched multiple times despite being the leading goal scorer. Defenseman Cam York reportedly had a verbal altercation with Torts shortly before his firing.
Things unraveled in Philadelphia, so hearing about the fallout was an inevitability. As captain, Couturier didn't want to go into detail about any specifics, but his candidness was telling.
The Flyers are eager to move forward. They have an exciting group of young players and the organization has potential. Taking the next step requires the entire team to buy in on whatever the next head coach is selling and follow their captain's lead. If so, they could turn things around in Philadelphia.
