Inside the Flyers’ Coaching Search: Who’s on the Radar and What the Team Needs Next

The Flyers need a new head coach, and curiously, one of their theorized candidates, Rick Tocchet, was confirmed Tuesday to be leaving his post with the Vancouver Canucks. 

“This is very disappointing news, but we respect Rick’s decision to move to a new chapter in his hockey career," Canucks president Jim Rutherford said in a press release on Tocchet's departure. "We did everything in our power to keep him, but at the end of the day Rick felt he needed a change."

And so begins the speculation of whether that change is to Philadelphia, and whether he's the right fit for this rebuilding team.

The Flyers are approaching a pivotal summer, with a load of draft picks to use in June, a handful of notable prospects on the cusp of turning pro, and finally, a bit of money to spend in free agency if they choose to go that direction. 

But at the forefront is the search for a new head coach, a process that general manager Danny Brière said the organization was only in the very early steps of during exit day in Voorhees a couple of weeks ago.

It's vital in where the Flyers' ship is headed next, though.

Here's everything we know so far...

What they're looking for?

In short, someone who is going to excel at developing youth. 

The Flyers were the third-youngest team in the NHL by season's end, at an average of 26 years and 3 months per QuantHockey, and they stand to get even younger if prospects like Jett Luchanko, Alex Bump, Denver Barkey, and Oliver Bonk prove ready to make the jump soon. 

Effective communication and teaching, Brière said, are going to be significant traits the Flyers want in whoever is the next coach. 

"I always believe communication is important, so that's gonna be something we look into," Brière said at the end of the Flyers' locker cleanout. "Someone that can come in and teach will be an important one as well. Communication and teaching are probably two things that will be at the forefront of our next coach. Just when you have a young team in place, I really think those two attributes are extremely important."

Who's available?

Tocchet has been one of the leading names in rumors and speculation since the Flyers fired John Tortorella in the home stretch of the season. He's had head coaching stints in Tampa Bay, Arizona, and most recently Vancouver, with middling degrees of success, but those all do come with the caveat that there was at least some degree of organizational disarray above him at each stop.

The real standout on his resume was when he was an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins, where he played a huge role in their offensive structure and power play during their run to back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.

But the other thing that will jump out at fans is that Tocchet is a former Flyer, which is a polarizing point of contention for those who are desperate to fully break away from the past. 

Brad Shaw, the assistant coach who took over in the interim, did wonders for the development of the Flyers' young defensemen over the past couple of years, and is a popular figure within the organization. He's going to get a shot at keeping the job. 

Other possible candidates who are pre-established in the NHL include Mike Sullivan, who has those back-to-back Cups with Pittsburgh on his resume but just parted ways with the Penguins on Monday; Dan Bylsma, who was let go by Seattle even after he built its AHL affiliate into a contender; Jay Woodcroft, who is looking for his next turn in the league after being fired from the Oilers at the beginning of last season; and Peter Laviolette, who was fired by the Rangers and who was beloved in Philadelphia when he was here in the early 2010s but more than likely wouldn't work for the kind of team the Flyers have now. 

Then there's the college ranks. 

David Carle is the mega-star coach at the University of Denver, and the one many fans put at the top of their list as soon as the Flyers' job opened up, but he isn't expected to be considered as a serious candidate, per The Philadelphia Inquirer's Jackie Spiegel.

Jay Pandolfo is another coach gaining increasing notoriety at Boston University, and Pat Ferschweiler just led Western Michigan to a national championship with Flyers prospect Alex Bump skating as one of their best players. 

The Flyers will have their options available to them, and from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. 

And right now, Brière doesn't seem like he'll be dismissing anyone. 

"If it's the right fit," Brière told the media at cleanout day. "I know there's some names you're interested in. We're definitely going to look into it."

Who they're up against

With the Canucks losing Tocchet, there will be seven other teams outside of the Flyers looking for new head coaches.

They're as follows: Anaheim, Boston, Chicago, New York (Rangers), Pittsburgh, Seattle, and Vancouver.

Anaheim and Chicago are young teams working on a rebuild, too. They're likely to be going after similar candidates as the Flyers. 

The Bruins and Rangers were contenders over the past several years but each had the bottom fall out from under them this season. They're at a crossroads between still trying to contend with what they have or taking a year or two to retool. Pittsburgh is in a somewhat similar boat, as well, mainly because as long as the Penguins have Sidney Crosby, they'll have to try and shoot for the playoffs. 

Seattle and Vancouver, meanwhile, are teams in a bit of an identity crisis and could go various routes with their next coach, which could rush up against the Flyers' plans also.