Philadelphia Flyers Governor Dan Hilferty and President of Hockey Operations Keith Jones sat for a 31-minute press conference with the media on June 5, discussing the team’s future, present, and organization as a whole. They remained relatively safe in terms of what information they gave away, but that doesn’t mean they revealed nothing.
From the press conference, what were some takeaways? Below are three of the most interesting topics they discussed.
Flyers Seeking Progress in 2024-25, Not Necessarily Postseason Berth
When asked, Hilferty touched on where he views the Flyers moving forward without giving a ton of detail one way or the other. He said that he wants the team to progress and be respectable, but didn’t put an exact date as to when he expects the Orange and Black to return to the postseason for the first time since 2020. “There’s got to be a level of patience around this,” he stated.
Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports had a good follow-up comment to Hilferty’s continued use of the term “progress,” which was, basically, considering the Flyers were nearly a playoff team in 2023-24, wouldn’t progression put them comfortably in a playoff spot next season? To this, Hilferty had a great response.
He essentially shot down the idea of making the playoffs, clarifying that he meant that he hoped the young athletes on the team improve. Specifically, he mentioned Tyson Foerster as a player he hopes can continue to get better. As a whole, he said that he is hopeful that other young players can take that next step, too. When taking a bit of a step back, that potentially exposes a bit of what the Flyers’ plans this offseason might be.
If young players like Foerster, Bobby Brink, and Jamie Drysdale continue to get better, that would potentially put the Flyers in a playoff spot with their roster construction as it is currently. Assuming they add a couple of free agents to help fill out the depth a bit when that time comes, they would likely be ahead of some teams that made the postseason in 2023-24—youngsters taking on a prominent role would shoot up their upside. The Flyers could surpass teams like the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals who barely clinched, which could put them in a playoff spot.
Instead of looking at it this way, Hilferty mentioned the New Jersey Devils as a team that missed the playoffs and should be a lot better next season. Isn’t that a bit pessimistic? Before the Flyers lost nine of their last 11 games, they looked like a solid 95-100 point team despite selling at the trade deadline, Brink not playing much, and Drysdale struggling.
If the Flyers were planning to keep much of their roster intact, Hilferty probably wouldn’t have talked the way he did. Instead of playing into making the postseason and saying it’s a possibility, he was very cautious on that front and dismissed it immediately. To me, this suggests that Philadelphia is more than open to trading veterans such as Travis Konecny, Joel Farabee, Scott Laughton, and others.
This might be a bit of an ambitious conclusion, but if the Flyers were set on keeping these players, Hilferty’s comments are somewhat strange regarding the postseason—shouldn’t he be more optimistic? He said that his idea of improvement has nothing to do with the team’s record, which is definitely something worth noting. Winning 38 games in 2023-24, that’s not a high bar for where the Orange and Black are as it stands.
Jones Not Giving Anything on Michkov
Inevitably, Matvei Michkov was sure to be discussed. Rumors have been circulating around his arrival in the NHL next season despite him being under contract in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) through the 2025-26 campaign, which would be amazing news for the Orange and Black.
Related: How Matvei Michkov’s Early NHL Arrival Would Impact the Flyers
When the topic came up, Jones claimed ignorance. We’re going to have to put our tin foil hats on again for this one, but this just seems like a flat-out lie. The Flyers have a pretty good relationship with Russia, and specifically Michkov’s KHL club, so it’s not like they’re completely in the dark about the whole situation. Whether he’s coming to the NHL next season or not, the Flyers have absolutely had conversations in some capacity with his SKA St. Petersburg club.
Jones approached the situation kind of like a fan would, saying that he’d be excited if that came to fruition but there’s nothing that he or the organization knows about Michkov at this time—they know just as much as anyone else. As the team that drafted him, it’s pretty clear that they have a little bit more of a scoop than the average person would. Maybe they don’t, but that seems very unlikely.
The Flyers need to approach their situation with caution, as Michkov is still the property of the KHL—it’s not their right to intervene. If anything, SKA would be doing them a favor. Something you don’t do for someone who is doing you a favor is gloating before everything follows through—that’s a great way to sour a relationship. That’s all just speculation, but being safe is the Flyers’ friend at the end of the day.
Hilferty Content with Jones, Briere, Tortorella
Throughout the press conference, Hilferty spoke highly of Jones who was alongside him, general manager (GM) Danny Briere, and head coach John Tortorella. He remained transparent in the fact that all of them might have their own ideas of going about things and that can lead to some disagreements, but he spoke of this in a positive light. Overall, he said he was happy with his experiences in his first season with the Orange and Black.
Not that anyone thought it would happen, but this suggests that all three of these figures are likely to have some job security for the time being. Regarding Tortorella, it’s not outlandish to assume he could take on a front-office role at some point down the line, seeing as he’s 65, and being a coach is a pretty taxing job. He has said that he wants to coach as long as possible, but that might not be the case forever. That aside, Hilferty feeling comfortable sharing that he is happy with the organization’s biggest pieces says a lot.
While this press conference didn’t have a major announcement or anything, it’s an interesting one to dissect. We won’t know the Flyers’ true approach and outlook until as late as the draft on June 28, but it is coming rapidly. Soon, the organization could take a massive leap forward depending on what they do.