The Philadelphia Flyers made a big change on Friday, firing general manager Chuck Fletcher and replacing him with long-time NHLer Daniel Briere on an interim basis, for now.
On Sunday, Briere had his introductory press conference and told reporters that the Flyers have a long road ahead of them and that it won't be a quick fix, adding that he's not afraid to use the word rebuild. Briere also went on to say that it won't be a fire sale.
"We have to be careful. I want to make sure that 'rebuild' doesn't mean fire sale," Briere said.
He added, "There's a big difference between the two. So I want to make that clear. We're not going to get rid of everybody. We have some good players here, some players that are in certain roles that we're going to keep as well."
The 45-year-old was named 'assistant to the GM' by the Flyers back in February 2022 after serving as the General Manager and Vice President of Hockey Operations for their ECHL affiliate in Maine for several years.
Briere showed confidence during the press conference, telling the media that he's knows that he'll be able to do the job in Philadelphia and always believed he could be a General Manager in the NHL.
"There's no doubt in my mind that I can do the job," he said. "I'm going to have some great people around me as well. It's not something that I'm going to do alone. I'm not gonna lie: It's something that I saw myself doing from early on when I was playing. I always believed that I could be in this position one day."
The Flyers currently sit seventh in the Metropolitan Division with a record of 24-31-11 through 66 games. As Briere pointed out, it's going to take a while for things to turn around and for the Flyers to become a contender once again, but his biggest and first opportunity for change will come at the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, when the team will no doubt have a top-ten pick.
When it comes to moving players out, one name that's likely at the top of the list is
Kevin Hayes, who was linked with a move to the Columbus Blue Jackets, but nothing materialized before the 3 p.m. ET deadline on March 3rd.
Ivan Provorov's name was also circulating before the deadline, but as of now, it's unclear if Briere will move the 26-year-old.
The Briere-era in Philadelphia began on a losing note on Saturday, losing 5-1 to their state rivals, the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Flyers will be back on home ice on Tuesday to take on the Vegas Golden Knights.
Source: theScore
