The Philadelphia Flyers enter the offseason in search of two key positions. Positions that will shape the new era of Flyers hockey.
After hiring John Tortorella last offseason to lead the team on the ice, the Flyers are now looking for their two leaders off the ice – President & General Manager.
In recent history, the two positions have been connected and manned by one person. Going forward, the roles will now be separated.
The Flyers President search is being led by a certain group of people. The group is headed by the same firm – Modern Executive Solutions – the Flyers used last off-season in the search for a new head coach. Which resulted in the hiring of John Tortorella.
In addition to the firm, new CEO Dan Hilferty and CEO of Spectacor Sports and Entertainment Valerie Camillo are also heavily involved with the process. As well as, former Sixers GM Billy King.
Neal Glasberg, who owns PBI Sports, is also involved in the search.
Glasberg has come under some fire in recent days due to a potential conflict of interest. But, according to a source close to the President search, Glasberg is more of a consultant rather than part of the actual part of the process. Seen more as extra input rather than say in final decision.
One person who is not a part of the search at the moment is Interim General Manager Danny Briere.
According to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation, the Flyers have kept Danny Briere away from the process so far.
Briere, who has the interim tag, is expected to be named the 10th general manager in Flyers history in the coming weeks. However, Briere is still a candidate for General Manager and is not a part of the search process due to his interim status.
The Flyers are still keeping Briere in the loop with the search according to one source. But, at the moment, it is not known if Briere will have input in the final decision if still under the Interim tag.
The Flyers keeping Briere from the search is actually a prelude to how the new front office and management will be ran.
Danny Briere, once officially named General Manager, is expected to oversee and run the hockey operations department. The next president, once hired, is expected to oversee and run the Flyers business & brand operations. While also being the face of the franchise in the way of leadership.
At the moment, six candidates have surfaced that have been interviewed or expected to be interviewed for the President position.
Ray Shero – Emilie Castonguay – Scott Mellanby – Cammi Granato – Doug Wilson – Dave Poulin
Emilie Castonguay, who is an assistant General Manager in Vancouver, has already notified the Flyers of her interest to stay in Vancouver.
There is still no set timeline on the Flyers President search. But, 2nd round of interviews are expected to start in the coming days.
