NHL news: Flyers fire John Tortorella after three years as head coach

The Philadelphia Flyers announced Thursday the team would be moving on from head coach John Tortorella after his nearly three years with the organization. 

The decision to fire the coach, who won the Stanley Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004, came after he made a questionable remark about his “interest” in coaching “this type of season.” 

The Flyers put out a statement announcing their decision with just nine games left in the regular season. Associate coach Brad Shaw was named interim head coach.

Philadelphia Flyers head coach John Tortorella talks with center Sean Couturier (14) during a game against the Washington Capitals at Wells Fargo Center April 16, 2024.  (Eric Hartline/USA Today Sports)

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“Today I made the very difficult decision to move on from John as our head coach,” general manager Daniel Briere said. “John played a vital role in our rebuild. He set a standard of play and reestablished what it means to be a Philadelphia Flyer.

“John’s passion on the bench was only equaled by his charitable work in our community. As we move into the next chapter of this rebuild, I felt this was the best for our team to move forward. I’d like to thank John for his tireless work and commitment to the Flyers.”

Tortorella, who has long established himself as a no-nonsense leader, went 97-107-33 with the Flyers. He was fired with one year remaining on his contract. The decision to part ways came during a brutal slide for the Flyers, who lost 11 of 12 games and won only six times in the last 25 games. 

Philadelphia Flyers head coach John Tortorella during the second period against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden April 11, 2024. (Danny Wild/USA Today Sports)

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After Tuesday’s 7-2 loss to Toronto, Tortorella appeared to take the blame but made a strange remark regarding his coaching interest. 

“When you’re in this type of situation, and you’re losing all the time, and there’s nothing at the end of the tunnel for you, there’s certainly going to be some frustration. But this falls on me. I’m not really interested in learning how to coach in this type of season, where we’re at right now,” he said, via Yahoo Sports. 

“But I have to do a better job. So, this falls on me, getting the team prepared to play the proper way until we get to the end.”

Philadelphia Flyers head coach John Tortorella reacts on the bench against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the third period at PPG Paints Arena March 11, 2023. (Charles LeClaire/USA Today Sports)

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Briere said at a press conference Thursday that Tortorella’s comments Tuesday did contribute to his decision. 

“It’s one of the things that’s happened along the way. That’s not the specific reason, and there’s not one specific reason,” Briere said. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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