The Flyers have lost 11 of 12 games, but struggling now is likely the best thing for the team’s future

TORONTO — After the Flyers’ 7-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night, John Tortorella turned the corner and walked past the locker room over to the awaiting media and, after saying his team was outplayed, took the blame for the lopsided loss.

“It’s my job to prepare this team in this type of situation,” he said. “Haven’t done a good enough job the past couple of games.”

Does he sense frustration from his team after it played well against top teams like the Washington Capitals and Dallas Stars last week but did not get results, and then allowed seven goals for the second-straight game?

» READ MORE: Resetting the Flyers’ future: Which prospects beyond Jett Luchanko and draft picks do the Orange and Black have on the way?

“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,” Tortorella said before dropping a bit of a bombshell quote, depending on how you interpret it.

“I’m not really interested in learning how to coach in this type of season, where we’re at right now. 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.”

Well, the end is nigh — in at least one aspect: The Flyers have nine games left in a season quickly circling the drain. Tuesday was the team’s sixth-straight loss and 11th in the past 12 games, planting them firmly in the bottom third of the NHL.

With the loss to the Leafs — and wins by fellow basement-dwellers Buffalo and Nashville on Tuesday — the Flyers are inching even closer to guaranteeing themselves a top-5 pick. And as of Wednesday morning, they have a 9.5% chance of snagging the No. 1 spot (it took five taps on Tankathon’s simulation button to get the Flyers there).

So while we won’t use the T word, that four-letter word everyone always swears isn’t happening, the Flyers rebuild is definitely in full force.

There is no denying that the Flyers need high-end centers even after drafting Jett Luchanko with the 13th pick last season. Tortorella said in December that the team needed a center to play with Matvei Michkov. Although there isn’t a ton of depth in this year’s draft, the Flyers should have a top center prospect wrapped and under the tree awaiting them on June 27.

Michael Misa, James Hagens, Anton Frondell, and Caleb Desnoyers are all centers that could fit the bill for the Flyers.

When NHL.com’s two experts did their mock draft in late February, and had the Orange and Black picking seventh, they picked Frondell and Desnoyers, the younger brother of Flyers prospect Elliot Desnoyers. Both 2025 center prospects are 6-foot-1 but while Frondell has more goal-scoring upside, Desnoyers is a “strong skater with top-end offensive skill but also stands out for his hockey IQ, which helps him seemingly get into the right position at all times in all three zones.” Sounds like the latter could fit well with Michkov.

Misa is also 6-foot-1 and recently climbed TSN’s draft rankings to the No. 2 spot. He finished a historic regular season for Saginaw of the Ontario Hockey League with 62 goals (No. 2 in the OHL) and 134 points (No. 1), and is widely regarded as the top offensive talent in this class.

Finally, Hagens, who hails from Long Island, is a little shorter in stature (5-foot-11) but possesses high-end skating, playmaking, and skill that once had him as the favorite to be the No. 1 pick in this draft. The Boston College freshman has posted 35 points in 35 games for the Eagles, who play Friday in the NCAA tournament.

While the Flyers have accumulated young players and draft picks in recent years, they still need more franchise cornerstones to help build the foundation for their future. Outside of Michkov and Travis Konecny, there are still many pieces that need to be cemented. Oliver Bonk and Luchanko, two high-end talents and recent first-round draft picks, could elevate their games at the NHL level and become critical components of the rebuild. Noah Cates, Tyson Foerster, Bobby Brink, and Travis Sanheim have developed their games to be key guys, but more is needed to reestablish the organization as a contender. A third top-10 pick in recent years — albeit Cutter Gauthier is gone — would certainly help.

It may have shaken some of the team’s players to the core as Tortorella said before the loss to Toronto, but the Flyers made necessary in-season moves to create space and build for the future.

After not making any significant moves last offseason, and returning primarily the same lineup outside of Michkov, the Flyers now have several spots open. There are at least two at forward, with more possible openings on the horizon.

» READ MORE: Matvei Michkov has answered every question except one: Do the Flyers need John Tortorella to coach him?

Gone are Morgan Frost, who management was not too keen on paying a required raise to as a restricted free agent, and Joel Farabee, who had a contract eating a lot of cap space with limited production. Andrei Kuzmenko and Erik Johnson were set to be unrestricted free agents this summer, so the Flyers got something for nothing, and Scott Laughton — yes, he was literally the glue guy — helped the Flyers fleece Toronto for a first-round pick in 2027.

General manager Danny Brière, president Keith Jones, and the organization have long said patience is the key as they maneuver pieces around. Whether it all pays off is still to be determined. But trading several contributors ahead of the deadline, and thus ending any real postseason hopes, was a necessary evil.

With money already off the books, and more coming off this summer with Tony DeAngelo (buyout), Kuzmenko (retained), and Cal Petersen (buried), there is room to finally add some pieces in free agency or via a trade.

Or, now armed with an extra first-rounder in 2027, could the Flyers afford to sign a restricted free agent to an offer sheet for the price of a few of its own 2026 draft picks? Who doesn’t love the chaos an offer sheet brings? Several appealing young centers need a new contract, including Marco Rossi of the Minnesota Wild, Gabriel Vilardi of the Winnipeg Jets, and Buffalo Sabres center Ryan McLeod. Rossi, who has 22 goals and 54 points this season, might be the most interesting one, considering Wild GM Bill Guerin has to sign a bunch of guys this summer and give Kirill Kaprizov an extension.

The final nine games of the season on the ice figure to be a slog, but the reward could be worth it for the Flyers, who will enter an exciting offseason loaded with draft picks and with the flexibility to do several different things to improve this team.