Tortorella fired by Flyers, whose rebuild hits 'rock bottom,' Briere says

PHILADELPHIA -- John Tortorella was fired as coach of the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday, marking what general manager Daniel Briere called "rock bottom" in the team's rebuilding effort.

"I really hope that this is the bottom," Briere said. "This is rock bottom for us today, and this is the turnaround."

The Flyers (29-36-9), who lost their final six games under Tortorella (0-5-1), are one point ahead of the Buffalo Sabres for last in the Eastern Conference. The Flyers play the Sabres on Saturday.

Following a 7-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, Philadelphia's 11th loss in 12 games (1-10-1), Tortorella said, "I'm not really interested in learning how to coach in this type of season, where we're at right now."

Briere said those comments weren't the singular reason for the Flyers' decision Thursday but one of several issues that had occurred in the past few weeks.

"I felt it was time," he said. "You're going to ask me, is there one thing that happened? It's not one thing. It's a series of things that have happened, and probably a little bit more in the last three weeks, that has escalated since probably around the Trade Deadline, right after that. So like I said, it's not one thing specific. It's an accumulation [of things] that have happened, probably more often lately."

Briere said he spoke to the players after the move was announced but said they had no input in the coaching change.

"This had nothing to do with the players," he said. "We didn't get any input from the players. But at the same time, we're very close to the room. [President of hockey operations Keith Jones] and I are always around. We know what's going on. Maybe not everything, but pretty aware of what's going on and how things are going."

Multiple Flyers players said after the 6-4 win against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday that it had been a tough day.

"It's tough. You build relationships, and it's someone that you're seeing every single day. And for me, someone that gave me an opportunity and believed in me, and I got my game to a different level. Nothing but respect," Flyers forward Travis Konecny said. "Again, it's a tough day when you go through something like this, but on the other side of it, pretty cool to see [Brad Shaw] be able to come in and get a win like that. It's a mix of emotions. We just got to keep moving forward. It's part of the business, like when you trade somebody, try to move on the best you can. But I'm sure at some point I'll talk to 'Torts' and have a conversation."

Shaw, who is in his third season as a Flyers assistant, will be the coach for the remainder of the season. It's his second time as an NHL coach; he went 18-18-4 in 40 games after replacing Steve Stirling with the New York Islanders in 2005-06.

"I'm going to thank him for laying the groundwork here. There's been a ton of good stuff," Shaw said after getting the win in his debut as Flyers coach. "We're going to reap the benefits for the next nine games of everything that he laid, as far as accountability and the right way to act, not just in the room but on the ice and as a professional. We're doing these guys a disservice if we're not helping them be good humans, too, and I'm not sure there's a better human being in the game. I couldn't have more respect for him, as a human being and as a hockey guy. He's always going to be a friend of mine, and I'm going to thank him for giving me the chance to work with him and learn and become better."

Briere said it's too soon to determine what the Flyers will look for in their next coach.

"We're not there yet," he said. "This happened really quick in the last few days. It's not like we have anything prepared. We haven't started looking or making lists or anything like that. We have bigger things to deal with right now, making sure the mindset is in the right place, helping out Brad and his staff, addressing the team, all these things. The focus has been on the team and on the players. There's nine games left. We're not going to bring in a different coach. Brad is the coach to finish the season. We'll be evaluating him and our coaches the rest of the way, that's going to be part of it. I'm not sure exactly what we're going to be looking for as a coach.

"One thing I can tell you is, we have a young team, so a coach that can teach is going to be important to start with. But as far as all the traits, I think it's a little too early to really dive deep into that."

Tortorella went 97-107-33 and did not qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in three seasons with Philadelphia. Last season, the Flyers were in position for a playoff spot as late as April 5 but finished four points behind the Washington Capitals for the second wild card from the Eastern Conference.

Despite the struggles, Briere credited Tortorella for establishing a foundation that the next coach will be able to build on.

"You've seen this team play hard over the years, they show they have a no-quit attitude ingrained in them," Briere said. "'Torts' is a very big reason for that, and that standard that he set back in place and over the last three seasons.

"When I look at the team now, I feel good that those are the guys that will help us moving forward. It's a young team, and it shows at time, that lack of experience. But the excitement of icing a young team and the prospects that are coming, makes it very exciting for me. I'm not saying that next year we'll take a huge step forward. It's going to be small steps. The patience part is the hardest part of a rebuild, but I feel at this time, it's rock bottom."

In 23 seasons as a coach with the New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Vancouver Canucks, Columbus Blue Jackets and Flyers, Tortorella is 770-648-165 with 37 ties. He's ninth all-time in wins and second among United States-born coaches, behind Peter Laviolette (841). On Jan. 30, Tortorella became the seventh coach, and first born in the U.S., to reach 1,600 games. He's sixth in NHL history with 1,620.

Tortorella won the Stanley Cup with the Lightning in 2004 and is a two-time winner of the Jack Adams Award as the NHL's coach of the year (2004, 2017).

At 66 years old, he was the oldest active coach in the NHL.

"Torts is a complicated man, he's a complicated coach," Briere said. "He's a blast to work with because he challenges you. I truly believe he made me a better GM. I loved working with him, and I think he loved working with me. He's not a yes-man. He had opinions and he's earned the right to share his opinion, and we listened to him. But again, myself, Keith Jones, [Flyers governor] Dan Hilferty, we felt that at this time, it was time to move in a different direction."