PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Philadelphia Flyers are on a franchise-record 13-game winless streak, after experiencing a 10-game winless stretch earlier this season.
After 43 games, they are last in the Metropolitan Division and appear to be on their way to missing the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1994.
The present-day product on the ice is not Flyers hockey as the fan base is used to seeing. Although the Flyers haven't won a Stanley Cup since 1975, one constant throughout their history prior to the 2012-13 season was a consistent playoff contender that always gave the impression that there was at least some chance they could go all the way.
It's a far cry from that right now.
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Amid this current winless streak, Comcast Spectacor Chairman and CEO Dave Scott and Flyers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Chuck Fletcher held a 38-minute press conference to address the mess that this season has become.
Here are 5 things to take away from the session.
1. Scott Is publicly expressing his unhappiness
It's no secret with the moves Fletcher made in the offseason that the Flyers were expecting to compete in 2021-22.
It hasn't happened, and Scott, who essentially stepped into the role of late Flyers founder Ed Snider, voiced his displeasure.
"I don't want to sugarcoat this from where I sit. We're in a terrible spot right now," Scott said. "I'm angry, I know our fans are more than angry, and the whole organization is angry. We're sick of losing. We talk about this every day and we've gotta figure out how to right the ship."
Scott apologized to Flyers fans for the product on the ice and acknowledged they deserve better.
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2. Scott publicly backs Fletcher
Fletcher has only been in control of hockey operations for a few seasons, taking over for former General Manager Ron Hextall. He was fired after taking a long time to put a winning product on the ice during what objective outside observers might categorize as a semi-rebuild.
But Fletcher also made a lot of noticeable moves in the off-season to put the Flyers in a “win now” direction. These moves include trading for players like Cam Atkinson, Ryan Ellis, and Rasmus Ristolainen.
Ellis has been injured for most of the season, and it's unclear if he'll need season-ending surgery. Atkinson is one of the highest offensive producers on a team that doesn't score a lot of goals. Ristolainen arguably hasn't produced for what the Flyers gave up for him, which included their 2021 first round draft pick. Ristolainen is on an expiring contract and could conceivably be dealt before the trade deadline.
Yikes.
Nonetheless, Scott gave Fletcher a vote of confidence.
Scott also said he doesn't view this as a long rebuild, though that would take three to five years. Fletcher described what they need to do as "aggressively retooling," and emphasized the need for "top-end talent."
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3. Claude Giroux's immediate future will be up to him
Flyers captain Claude Giroux, 34, is the longest-tenured current athlete in all of Philadelphia professional sports, having made his debut in 2008. Fletcher has touted Giroux as a future Hall of Famer, as well as a franchise icon that has played well enough to have his No. 28 retired by the team.
But he's on an expiring contract and is having a really good season, arguably the best on the Flyers.
It's fair to assume he could bring back a decent return for the Flyers, who are likely “sellers” before the March 21 trade deadline.
Giroux has a no-move clause in his contract. In other words, if Giroux doesn't want to be traded this season, he's not going anywhere.
Fletcher indicated what happens to Giroux will essentially be his call.
"We're at the halfway point where we're two months to the trade deadline. So, I guess the best way to put it is that we will continue to have conversations, and ultimately a decision will have to be made one way or the other. But it'll be Claude's decision," Fletcher said.
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4. Scott addressed low attendance at home games
You don't have to be in the building to see that fewer fans are going to Flyers games at Wells Fargo Center than in previous years.
"When you're not winning, you don't have a good product on the ice, it’s going to impact attendance,” said Scott.
“We're feeling it. I'm feeling for the fans. You've got team performance. You’ve also got COVID protocol. I mean, Philadelphia's very tough with this vaccination, so that's impacting attendance. It's impacting the Wings [professional lacrosse]. It's impacting the Sixers. Doesn't help the cause. But the bottom line is, we have to get better. We’ve got to figure out how to win games."
But, based on announced attendance numbers, per ESPN, the announced attendance aspect of Sixers games doesn't appear affected during Philadelphia's current policy.
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5. Scott disagrees that the Flyers are disconnected from the Ed Snider days
While the Flyers haven't won a Stanley Cup since 1975, one thing they could never be accused of is being disconnected from their fans, especially when late founder Ed Snider was running the show. Snider died in 2016.
Lately, some outside the team are sharing the belief that the Flyers have been disconnected from the way things were done when Snider was alive.
Scott disagreed with the notion, citing the tenures of both Fletcher and President of Business Operations Valerie Camillo.
"I feel if you talk to people inside the organization now, and I think it's been pretty stable for a couple of years now,” said Scott.
“Talk to the old-timers, people that are still with the organization. I think if you're on the outside looking in, you know, maybe you're hearing some things and seeing it differently. But with that said, you can always make it better. I want it to be a family atmosphere. I don't think it's changed. I mean, I've been living it from in my ninth season here, and we've just tried to build on what Ed started.
Scott also called Comcast, the controlling partner of the Flyers for 26 years, “the same terrific partner to me that they were to Ed."
A reporter then asked if Comcast is committed to remaining part of Flyers ownership, and Scott said they absolutely are.
"We're headquartered here. We have a lot of sports content throughout the company, and this is something that everybody gets excited about.”
