John Tortorella’s letter to Flyers season-ticket holders: ‘We’re not there yet’
The Flyers coach is happy with some of what he's seen from his young team but acknowledged this year was always going to be just the first step in a larger process.
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John Tortorella has been in the saddle as the head coach of the Flyers for just seven months and 51 games. There have been highs (a 7-3-2 start), lows (a 10-game losing streak that directly followed in November), and seemingly everything in between.
In a letter sent by the team to season-ticket holders on Monday afternoon, Tortorella said he has been “very pleased with our team’s effort, drive, and hunger to compete” and that some of the kids “have impressed me.” Maybe more importantly, he acknowledged that the Flyers are very much in the building stages and that “we’re not there yet.”
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The letter comes as fans are deciding whether to renew their season tickets for next season and with the Flyers in a state of uncertainty.
At 21-21-9 coming out of the All-Star break, the Flyers have probably exceeded preseason expectations on the ice so far this season. That said, the team is in no man’s land, as it isn’t good enough to be a genuine playoff contender nor is it bad enough to be in the Connor Bedard draft sweepstakes.
The Flyers sit seventh out of eight teams in the loaded Metropolitan Division and are six points out of the final wild card, although they’ve played two more games than the Pittsburgh Penguins, who occupy that spot. The team is averaging 16,954 fans, according to Hockey Reference, which ranks 20th in the NHL.
After drafting center Cutter Gauthier No. 5 overall last season, the Flyers would pick ninth if the season ended today. With a team in need of an influx of young talent, the team’s standing is probably the worst-case scenario when taking a long-term view of the organization.
While the letter doesn’t go as far as to use the word “rebuild,” which the organization has bent over backward to avoid up to this point, it does hint that the team is in a period of transition. That in itself could be viewed as some progress.
“Now I’m not going to lie to you — and I want to be clear about this — we’re not there yet,” writes Tortorella. “This year was the first step in building the future of the Flyers and restoring our reputation as one of the most respected teams in hockey.”
Tortorella later added that the team is in the “midst of establishing an identity” that “reflects the city of Philadelphia and the proud history of the Flyers organization.”
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While the letter is a tactic to try and retain season-ticket holders and ask for patience amid the team’s well-documented struggles over the past few seasons, at least the organization is finally showing some self-awareness regarding its current situation.
The Flyers return to the ice Monday after a week-long break, as they take on the New York Islanders at 7 p.m. at the Wells Fargo Center.