Ex-Flyer James van Riemsdyk says he has ‘Philly forever in my heart’

Earlier this month, James van Riemsdyk skated into NHL’s history books as he reached his 1,000th career game. On March 16, the Boston Bruins winger was honored for his achievement during a game against his former team, the Flyers.

As part of the festivities, van Riemsdyk was presented with a silver stick from the Bruins. Ahead of the game, several of his former Flyer teammates met with van Riemsdyk for a celebratory meal. The special reunion continued a week later on Saturday afternoon when the Flyers welcomed van Riemsdyk back to the Wells Fargo Center for the first time since reaching the milestone.

“It’s definitely a special thing in this sport,” van Riemsdyk, 34, said in a phone interview. “Over the course of going through these 1,000-plus games, there have been lots of trials and tribulations, different things to manage. Obviously your health, and being able to play at a high-enough level to play in the league for that long. Things like that all come to factor. It’s definitely something that I’ll look back at the end of my career, it’s something that I’ll look back on with a lot of pride.”

Throughout his career, the 6-foot-3, 208-pound van Riemsdyk has developed a reputation as a talented net-front player who thrives on the power play. He regularly enjoys asserting himself near the crease and capitalizing on seam passes through traffic.

In 15 seasons with the Flyers, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Bruins, van Riemsdyk has compiled 311 goals, including 93 via the power play, with 318 assists for 629 points.

“[Van Riemsdyk] is an incredibly bright person and bright player,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery earlier in the season. “[He] understands the game at a high level and has done a lot to build our offensive game, especially.”

Through 65 games, Van Riemsdyk already has outperformed the one-year contract worth $1 million that he signed with the Bruins in the offseason. According to CapFriendly, van Riemsdyk ranks 20th among all NHL players in cost per point ($26,315). He has 11 goals and 27 assists this season.

The wave he is currently riding serves as a refresher for van Riemsdyk in the twilight of his career, especially given his rocky departure from the Flyers.

Van Riemsdyk was selected with the No. 2 overall pick by the Flyers in the 2007 draft and he spent his first three seasons in Philadelphia before he was traded to Toronto, where he enjoyed the best stretch of his career over six seasons. He netted a career-best 36 goals during his final season with the Maple Leafs in 2017-18. Van Riemsdyk then cashed in and returned to the Flyers in free agency in 2018, signing a five-year deal worth $35 million at age 29.

In his second stint with the Flyers, van Riemsdyk provided a consistent veteran presence. However, he never was able to match his production with Toronto, which eventually led to an unhappy fan base. Last season, former general manager Chuck Fletcher notably failed to move van Riemsdyk, who was set to be an unrestricted free agent, at the trade deadline. The franchise fired Fletcher shortly afterward on March 10, 2023.

Despite how things ended, van Riemsdyk insisted he always will be grateful for his time with the Flyers. He pointed to the lifelong relationships he has forged with several teammates.

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“The more experience you get, the more you realize just how far it goes as far as doing the right things and treating people the right way,” van Riemsdyk said. “I’m trying to pay it forward. I think it definitely leaves an impression. You try to set an example. It’s part of having a good culture organizationally with having guys that try to embody what it means to be a professional and be a member of that team. I was lucky to play with a lot of great guys over the course of my career, and that is certainly true in Philly. A lot of lifelong friends and lots of great people I was able to work and play with.”

Flyers captain Sean Couturier boasts a unique vantage point of van Riemsdyk’s impact. Couturier overlapped with van Riemsdyk during the latter’s first stint with the team in 2011-12, when Couturier was a rookie. Now playing in his 12th season, all with the Flyers, Couturier has developed some of his own leadership style from being around van Riemsdyk.

“He’s an awesome teammate, such a great guy,” Couturier said. “He’s a guy you can look up to and learn from with the way he is as a professional. I definitely learned a lot over the years being around him. It’s nice to see him, we had a nice little get-together for his 1,000th game.

“He deserves it. He’s been through so many ups and downs. It takes a lot to get to 1,000 games in this league. Just a few [reach the milestone], and he deserves it. I’m just happy for him.”

Van Riemsdyk, a native of Middletown, N.J., also noted the benefits of playing within 90 miles of his hometown, and how that factored into his personal life away from the ice. Van Riemsdyk married his longtime girlfriend, Lauren, in July 2019, and the couple had their first child, daughter Scarlett Everly, in May 2020. The former Flyer is one of three siblings. His younger brother, Trevor, 32, is a defenseman for the Capitals, and his youngest brother, Brendan, 28, played collegiately at New Hampshire and Northeastern.

Over his eight seasons with the Flyers, van Riemsdyk’s parents, Frans and Allison, rarely missed a home game.

“A lot of NHL guys aren’t in close proximity of family, they don’t see them that often. For me, my family was almost the other way. ... I almost maybe saw them too much,” van Riemsdyk said with a loud chuckle. “Geographically, you could be all over North America. Who knows how much time you get to spend with your friends and family, your parents. How lucky was I? Now, I have a wife and kids, so being close to my parents, it’s even more special. They get to spend the extra time, not only coming to games, but also seeing their grandkids grow up, and helping out my wife and developing that relationship, too. That’s something I do not take for granted.

“They’ve been such a big part of my life because of [Philadelphia]. I’ll always be grateful. When I look back on my time there, I think I can look back at it even fonder because I got to share it with special people.”

On Saturday afternoon, as the Flyers and Bruins retreated to their respective locker rooms shortly before puck drop, van Riemsdyk stayed behind to interact with an eager group of fans who hovered near the visitors’ tunnel. With more than a dozen of van Riemsdyk’s family and friends in attendance, the Flyers defeated the Bruins, 3-2.

Van Riemsdyk has shown he can still play at a productive level, but he isn’t certain where his journey will take him after the conclusion of the season. Nonetheless, he assured to himself that he’ll always hold Philadelphia in high regard.

“Anytime you hit those milestones, especially ones like this where they come over the course of years, it makes you appreciative of everyone that’s touched and supported you along the way,” van Riemsdyk said. “Different teammates. Different staffs. And then obviously your own personal support systems, whether it’s family, friends — the sacrifices they all make. You definitely feel very lucky to have those people in your life.

“I’m lucky to have Philly forever in my heart.”