Flyers interim GM Danny Briere believes franchise needs a rebuild Lightning captain Steven Stamkos injures left leg Capitals re-sign Trevor van Riemsdyk to 3-year, $9M deal Flyers fire embattled GM Fletcher, give Briere interim job Oilers escape McDavid scare, win 3-2 to snap Bruins’ streak

PHILADELPHIA. Danny Brier is not averse to uttering a word his predecessor deliberately avoided when charting the best course for the abandoned Flyers: recovery.

Brier knows the Flyers are in disarray — the team’s doldrums — a topic that former general manager Chuck Fletcher rarely broached head-on — and is using the time he has as interim CEO to show that he is the man who can fix them.

It starts with the bitter truth.

“I don’t think it’s a quick fix,” Brier said. “This is my belief, and that is why I am not afraid to use the word “rebuild”.

Brier was named interim general manager and replaced Fletcher after he was fired after 4 1/2 seasons and only one playoff appearance. The Flyers have just 24 wins, their 59 points are third in the Eastern Conference, and will miss the playoffs for the third straight season.

Yes, the record was terrible, but what ultimately doomed Fletcher was his failure to come up with a true plan to turn the Flyers into a perpetual playoff team. This season, he touted the Flyers as a playoff team, even with an inappropriate roster of aging players, overrated veterans, too few prospects, and so many injured players like Cam Atkinson And Ryan Ellis – It was easy to understand that the season in Philadelphia will be long.

Well, easy for everyone but Fletcher.

Coach John Tortorella was blunt about the tough days ahead of him from day one on the job and never backed down from the fact that the Flyers need a multi-year process to become a playoff team. The low point came in December when Tortorella said in various press conferences that same day that the team was “not even in the base, we’re in the footer” while Fletcher said the Flyers were still in the wild game. sign. place and he expected them to remain competitive for the remainder of the season.

The Flyers, who open a seven-game home stand this week, have won two games since Feb. 9 and are on a three-game losing streak.

Brier advocated hiring Tortorella, and the pair are on the same wavelength when it comes to the hard work needed to at least make the Flyers competitive, not to mention chasing Philadelphia’s first Stanley Cup since 1975. .

“What really struck me was how he was going to restore the culture here,” Brière said. “Looking back at the last couple of years, it was hard to watch at times. I felt it was easy to play against us. You don’t realize how important culture is until you lose it.”

Brier, 45, a beloved former Flyer who led the team to their last Stanley Cup Finals in 2010, has one caveat when it comes to recovery.

“I want to make sure the rebuild doesn’t mean a sellout,” he said. “We’re not going to get rid of everyone.”

Brière is likely to be of great importance in the direction of the franchise. The temporary label is not expected to catch on, and his rapid rise within the organization likely means he will land a full-time job. Brier said the temporary tag “was the right decision” for now, and team chairman Dave Scott said a “restructuring” of the front office was in the works. Fletcher also served as team president. Flyers will now use two people in these roles.

Brier was also quick to say that he respects Flyers veterans Bobby Clarke, Bill Barber, Paul Holmgren and Dean Lombardi, but doesn’t know how the four will influence future decisions.

The Flyers have only three free agents – and the failure of Fletcher James van Riemsdyk there was an organizational black eye at the exchange deadline — and plenty of veterans like Atkinson, Kevin Hayes, Travis Konechny And Ivan Provorov all on the hook for huge salaries for several seasons. Moving them can be a problem. Brier said that while some younger players such as Noah Cates, Owen Tippett And Cam York may be fundamental elements, no flyer will be left untouched in trade negotiations this summer.

Now Brière must think ahead, not just for this offseason, but chart the future for many seasons beyond.

Sketch the right perspective. Sign and trade for healthy, productive players. Keep your talent from regressing. Don’t look for labels. It’s a healthy cocktail that has eluded the Flyers for a decade.

Brier is ready to take on the challenge.

“Oh, I have no doubt that I can do this job,” he said.

TAMPA, Florida – Captain Tampa Bay Stephen Stamkos left in the first period against the Chicago Blackhawks with a left leg injury.

Stamkos tangled up with Chicago forward Joey Anderson in his zone less than three minutes before the end of the first period. Two fell to the ice; Stamkos stood up and rolled off the ice, holding on to the shin of his left leg.

The 33-year-old striker is second on the Lightning with 27 goals and third with 66 points.

Drafted No. 1 in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Stamkos spent his entire NHL career with the Lightning. He is the team leader with 508 goals and 1038 points. He reached the 1,000 mark on 1 December and scored his 500th goal on 18 January.

NEW YORK – Washington Capitals re-sign defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk to a three-year, $9 million contract.

General Manager Brian McLellan announced an extension of time before his team would face the New York Islanders. The deal for the 2025–2026 season includes a $3 million annual salary cap.

Van Riemsdyk, 31, and striker Conor Shiri were the only two unrestricted free agents not traded by Washington before the deadline. It wasn’t immediately clear how close the Capitals and Shiri were to a contract.

But they have made it clear that van Rimsdijk is part of their future blue line along with Nick Jensen, who received a three-year, $12.15 million contract to stay. Van Riemsdyk has a career-high 19 points in 66 games this season.

Middletown, NJ native and Jensen stepped up and played more minutes since No. 1 quarterback John Carlson was slapped in the face with a headshot in late December.

PHILADELPHIA. With the Philadelphia Flyers in need of a complete franchise overhaul, Chuck Fletcher made the NHL trade deadline and was left with nothing.

A day later, the Flyers sent Fletcher to represent the team at a City Hall meeting for season ticket holders, where he was nearly booed off the stage.

His week only got worse.

A series of bad contracts, embarrassing injuries, declining attendance and one of the worst records in the NHL ultimately doomed Fletcher, who was fired by the Flyers on Friday as general manager and president of hockey operations.

The team promoted franchise great Danny Brier to interim general manager, the latest front office reshuffle for an organization that hasn’t won a Stanley Cup since 1975. Brier, who served as special assistant to the CEO, is considered a rising star in the front office.

He may have a specific rebuilding plan that could include more lean seasons, which Fletcher hasn’t voiced in his 4 1/2 seasons on the job. The Flyers went 141-145-43 under Fletcher.

The Flyers, who have only had one playoff spot during Fletcher’s tenure, play Saturday in Pittsburgh. Philadelphia is 24-30-11 under freshman coach John Tortorella this season and is set to miss the playoffs for the third consecutive season.

“The Philadelphia Flyers have always stood for grit, determination and a standard of excellence. Over the past few seasons, our team has simply not lived up to that standard, so today we will begin charting a new path forward under a new governance structure for hockey operations,” said Flyers chairman Dave Scott.

Brier, who helped the Flyers in their last Stanley Cup run in 2010 when they lost to the Chicago Blackhawks, was promoted from player development to special assistant general manager last year.

“Flyers fans deserve a better team than they’ve seen on the ice over the past few seasons and a clear plan to get that team back in the Stanley Cup fight,” Scott said. “We know this is going to be a multi-year process and we’re committed to getting it right because we want to put this franchise on the path to winning the Stanley Cup, period.”

Brière didn’t know how he wanted to keep playing hockey after he ended a 17-year career in 2015 with 307 goals and 696 points.

He soon met with former Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren, who signed Brier as a free agent and invited him to spend time on the administrative side of the operation. Brier learned the business from the ground up — marketing, ticketing, social media, finance — and took a break in 2017 when the Flyers’ parent company bought the Maine-based ECHL team. Brière mainly oversaw the day-to-day operations of the team.

Scott said the Flyers will look to restructure the front office, and that will begin by dividing the roles of general manager and president into two positions.

“We see this as a critical opportunity to not only restore the quality standards our fans expect, but also bring new energy, responsibility and strategic vision to our organization,” he said.

The Flyers have not won the Stanley Cup since back-to-back championships in 1974 and 1975, and have advanced to the second round only three times since 2010.

Fletcher’s biggest misses may have been last week when he didn’t receive anything by Friday’s deadline for James van Riemsdyk or other aging, expensive players.

“The deals that were presented to me were not good for the Philadelphia Flyers. More aggressive behavior didn’t work in the Philadelphia Flyers’ favor last summer, Fletcher said last week. “Maybe it will improve my appearance in the short term, but we don’t need band-aids anymore. We want to build it right and we are determined to do it. These are my words, my actions will have to confirm them, but we intend to do so.

He went…