Flyers fire general manager Chuck Fletcher
The Flyers have fired general manager Chuck Fletcher after four-plus years in charge.
Fletcher was hired in December 2018 and oversaw one playoff run, two coaching searches and a last-place finish in the Metropolitan Division last season.
The Flyers currently sit in seventh place in the Metropolitan, 15 points out of the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
Comcast Spectacor chairman and Flyers governor Dave Scott released the following statement Friday morning:
“The Philadelphia Flyers organization has always been defined by grit, determination, and a standard of excellence. Over the past several seasons, our team simply has not lived up to that standard, so today, we will begin to chart a new path forward under a new leadership structure for hockey operations.
“This morning, we released Chuck Fletcher from his president and general manager responsibilities. We are grateful for his hard work and dedication to this organization, and we wish him nothing but the best moving forward. Chuck faced significant challenges during his time as president and general manager, including some that were outside of his control, but we have reached a point at which we must move in a different direction and look to the future under new leadership.
“Flyers fans deserve a better team than what theyve seen on the ice over the past few seasons, and a clear plan to return this team to Stanley Cup contention. We know that this will be a multi-year process, and we are committed to doing it right, because we want to put this franchise on a path toward winning the Stanley Cup, period.”
The move comes just one week after Fletcher failed to trade James van Riemsdyk’s expiring contract at the NHL trade deadline.
“I’m not worried about my job whatever happens with me will happen with me. That’s up to Dave Scott,” Fletcher said after last Friday’s deadline. “But everything I do is about doing what’s right for the Philadelphia Flyers and not taking shortcuts, and that’s in part why we didn’t make any more deals today. The deals that were presented to me were not good deals for the Philadelphia Flyers.
“Last summer, being more aggressive was not going to be good for the Philadelphia Flyers. Maybe in the short run, it makes me look better. But we don’t want band-aids anymore. We want to build this the right way and we’re committed to doing it.
“Those are my words; my actions will have to back it up, but we’re committed to doing it.”
This is a developing story and will be updated.
