Flyers fire power-play coach Rocky Thompson and two other assistants
Thompson's power play converted at a league-worst 14.1% in his three years at the helm.
While the Flyers’ head coaching search is still in its early stages, the organization announced Wednesday that assistant coaches Rocky Thompson, Darryl Williams, and Angelo Ricci will not be retained.
“I would like to thank Darryl, Rocky, and Angelo for their dedication and all of their efforts over the last several years to the Flyers organization,” general manager Danny Brière said in a statement released by the team. “After careful evaluation, I felt that this was best for the future direction of the team.”
The firings don’t come as a huge surprise, as the new Flyers coach always likely was to bring in his own assistants and coaching staff. The writing on the wall was especially clear for Thompson, who lasted three seasons despite running a power play that converted on just 14.1% of its opportunities in 246 games. The Flyers’ power play ranked last in the NHL in each of Thompson’s first two years and finished third from the bottom this season (14.5%).
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“There were baby steps this year, definitely,” Brière said Saturday of the power play, a response that was met with some raised eyebrows. “We went from 12 to 15%. Is it good enough? Absolutely not. But there’s baby steps. It went from 32nd to 30th, that’s a baby step. I know you want it to go into the top 15 right away, but it’s not going to happen that way.”
Thompson was appointed by John Tortorella in 2022. Williams arrived in Philadelphia the previous season under Alain Vigneault. Ricci, the team’s skills coach, had been with the organization since the 2019-20 season. Tortorella was fired on March 27 after nearly three seasons.
The release notably did not include any mention of Brad Shaw’s future. Brière said Saturday that Shaw is still a candidate for the head coaching position, while Shaw said he’d be interested in the job and might even consider returning as an assistant.
Goaltending coach Kim Dillabaugh also was not mentioned in the release, indicating that he is being retained for now. The Flyers ranked dead last in the NHL this season with a .879 team save percentage.
There has not been much news regarding the Flyers’ head coaching search. Brière said Saturday that the process had not begun in earnest, and the team still had not compiled its short list of candidates.
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One explanation for the relaxed approach could be former Flyer Rick Tocchet’s situation with the Vancouver Canucks. Tocchet’s coaching contract expires June 30, although it includes a club option for next season.
Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford said this week that the Canucks want to retain Tocchet as head coach with a contract extension but said the team will not trigger the club option if Tocchet does not want to stay. A source recently told The Inquirer that Tocchet is high on the Flyers’ coaching wish list. Tocchet is expected to make a decision on his Canucks future this week.
In addition to Shaw and Tocchet, Pat Ferschweiler, who won a national title with Western Michigan on April 12, has been heavily linked to the Flyers job. A source told The Inquirer that at this point, Denver’s David Carle is not expected to be a serious candidate for the Flyers’ vacancy. Brière said the team has no specific timeline for when it wants to name its next coach.