The Philadelphia Flyers have been relatively successful this season considering where they were expected to be in the first official season of their rebuild. With that being said, head coach John Tortorella has consistently made questionable lineup decisions that have not only cost the team goals, but arguably games as well.
If the Flyers truly fancy themselves as a contender down the line, Tortorella’s recent history in coaching and current decision making makes him inadequate to help the Orange and Black bring a Stanley Cup back to Broad Street. They will need to find a replacement by the time they are ready to win, otherwise the rebuild is all but destined for lackluster results.
Tortorella’s Poor Decision Making
The obvious elephant in the room has been Tortorella’s lineup decisions. There hasn’t been any logic in his choices for the most part, and determining his rationale for putting pieces together has been especially difficult. It started with the benching of Morgan Frost, who has arguably been the team’s best playmaking center coupled with sensational two-way play. The 24-year-old has been sat out consistently — for more than half the Flyers’ games — instead of some of the underachievers on the Flyers’ offense, including Noah Cates and Scott Laughton. Both have appeared in every single game, yet neither have played particularly well.
Some Flyer forwards have been struggling, but Frost has not been one of them. Despite this, he is the one who is getting punished. It is questionable at best as to why he is sitting, considering he has rounded out his game, has been playing at the best level of his career, is creating chances, and playing sensational defense. Tortorella apparently doesn’t feel he is playing at a level good enough to play regularly, saying he needs to provide more offensively. Benched after scoring four points in his last four games, perhaps he was expecting the output of a true superstar.
In addition to the Frost debacle, defenseman Louie Belpedio has been another victim of Tortorella’s interesting decision making. Benched for his last two games coming off a very impressive stint, his replacements have struggled a bit. After 36-year-old defender Marc Staal was cleared to return from injury, he was put back in the lineup with no hesitation, even though he had been struggling when he had played. Belpedio, who truly earned a shot to play for the team, was taken out.
Related: Flyers’ John Tortorella Showing Bias in Decision Making
Belpedio has been a solid piece in all areas of the ice. The 27-year-old had just four-career NHL games played prior to his time with the Flyers, yet was on the path of getting a solidified spot on the roster. With a plus-6 rating and four points in 12 games, his play has translated to the scoresheet. Tortorella felt that defenders Egor Zamula and Staal deserved another chance after having poor games against the New York Islanders, slotting them back in against the New York Rangers. Losing against both divisional rivals, Belpedio might have been the best option. The Flyers’ coach disagreed.
Tortorella has usually not changed the lineup after a win, but benched Belpedio coming off of a five-game winning streak to sub Staal back in, even doubling down on his decision after the Flyers lost the first game with Staal in the lineup. The issue with the coach’s decisions is that they are inconsistent. He will usually keep the lineup the same after a win and change it after a loss, but has not done so recently. If the Flyers end up being a contender in the near future, they cannot afford to have unnecessary drama on their team.
In addition to Cates and Laughton’s struggles, Tyson Foerster has not really been the elite shooter he was expected to be. With just four points in his first 18 games, he has nonetheless found himself on the first line in recent games. The 21-year-old has more so become a forechecking forward, but that is not something that was expected of him.
Known for his great shot, his coach has tried to get that back from him desperately by giving him top minutes. He has been rewarded for underwhelming play, while Frost and Belpedio have been punished for the opposite. If Tortorella continues to display problematic logic, he cannot have a job with the Flyers when they look to become playoff contenders. It could limit their ceiling.
Tortorella’s Recent Playoff History
Tortorella gets his deserved praise for winning the Stanley Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning back in the 2003-04 NHL season, but it has nearly been two decades since that point. He has not fared too well in the postseason since then.
A 33-51 record in the postseason since winning the Stanley Cup isn’t too fantastic, and comes out to a winning percentage of just .393. Without a single appearance in the Stanley Cup Final in his previous 16 seasons of coaching, he has not gone back to matching the glory of his 2003-04 roster with the Lightning. Not all of this is his fault, but it is important to recognize that head coach Alain Vigneault took over a Rangers team that he had been fired from the previous season and immediately took them to the Stanley Cup Final. For whatever reason, Tortorella has had issues succeeding in the playoffs.
Other than when he and the Columbus Blue Jackets surprisingly swept his former Lightning club in 2018-19, Tortorella hasn’t made too much noise in the postseason in a little while. He had a good run to the Eastern Conference Final with the Rangers in 2011-12, but the positives have been few beyond that. While he could reinvigorate some of his previous playoff excellence with the Flyers, he has not proven his ability to do that. His lack of success isn’t all on him, but it is important to note that he is the only common denominator.
Lack of Power Play Success
The Flyers have seen Tortorella’s historical lack of success on the power play to the fullest extent during his tenure in Philadelphia. Even with some elite units on the Lightning, he has not overseen any truly dominant power plays in his career. For the most part, it has always been an issue for him regardless of where he is coaching.
In his time with the Lightning, Tortorella finished with a below-average power play in four of seven seasons. With his highest finish in that timespan being fifth, he did not find too much success with the elite duo of Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis. During his five seasons with the Rangers, his highest finish was just 13th. Finishing in the bottom-20 in efficiency on the power play in 2012-13, Vigneault took over and made them an above-average unit the very next season. Since 2013-14, splitting his time between the Vancouver Canucks, Blue Jackets, and Flyers, he has finished above 20th in scoring on the power play just once in nine seasons, including a dead-last finish last season and a likely finish near the bottom this season.
Tortorella shouldn’t be fully blamed for his team’s struggles on the power play, but it has usually been an issue for him. The best teams in the NHL are typically great on special teams, so the Flyers will need every advantage they can get. Unfortunately, that might not happen with him behind the bench.
While Tortorella has been coaching in the NHL for a very long time, it is unlikely he will find true success with the Flyers once they transition out of their rebuild. Showing some red flags with his time in Philadelphia and prior to it, the Orange and Black might be best off if they find someone else to coach them back to playoff relevance.
