*Photo from Broad Street Hockey*
As the playoffs reach their winding point, the coaching carousel is beginning to heat up. The Philadelphia Flyers have hired John Tortorella to be their next head coach, according to Kevin Weekes of NHL Network. The Flyers have confirmed the deal.
With the hiring, Tortorella becomes the 23rd head coach in Flyers history, after interim head coach Mike Yeo was fired. His contract is for 4 years, and is in the neighborhood of $4 million per season, according to Weekes. The Flyers first interviewed Tortorella back in May for the vacancy.
Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher said of Tortorella that "John demands the best out of his players every single game. He is a Stanley Cup champion and has a lengthy track record of both regular-season and playoff success. During the interview process, we discussed a number of factors that are crucial to bring this team immediate success, and it became clear to me that his vision and style make him the right person to restore a winning environment to our locker room."
Tortorella most recently served as the head coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets, and was fired at the conclusion of the short 2021 season. He has also coached the New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Vancouver Canucks, and has won the Jack Adams award twice.
In his head coaching career, Tortorella has a 673-541-132 record, with 37 ties in 1,383 games as a head coach. He has the 14th most wins by a head coach in NHL history, and his 673 wins are the second highest by a US born coach, trailing only Peter Laviolette. Tortorella won the Stanley Cup in 2004 with the Lightning.
Asked about joining the Flyers, Tortorella said that "I am very excited to be joining such a historic and well-respected franchise like the Philadelphia Flyers. From my very first conversation with Chuck, I knew this was the right fit for me and I believe in the direction this team is heading. Having faced the Flyers for several years, I know first hand how tough of a city Philly is to play in and I look forward to being on the right side of the bench on opening night in front of such a loyal and passionate crowd of Flyers fans."
The hiring of Tortorella makes him the 3rd head coach hired by a team this offseason. The other two were Lane Lambert, who became head coach of the New York Islanders, and Bruce Cassidy, hired by the Vegas Golden Knights.
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