Flyers coach John Tortorella will not be behind bench for game against Ottawa Senators

The Flyers coach has chosen to observe his team from a different perspective during the game.

Head coach John Tortorella of the Philadelphia Flyers watches from the bench earlier this seasonRead moreChristian Petersen / MCT

Published March 30, 2023, 6:58 p.m. ET

John Tortorella was not behind the bench to coach the Flyers in their 5-4 overtime loss against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.

Assistant coach Brad Shaw ran the bench and also handled postgame.

The Flyers announced an hour before the game that Tortorella had decided to watch from the press box at the Canadian Tire Centre.

He sat with interim general manager Danny Briere up top, where Tortorella was able to see the game from a different perspective. Players who have sat there as healthy scratches or because of injuries have said that the game looks very different from there.

It also gave Shaw the chance to coach the bench. Rookie Noah Cates, who has worked closely with Shaw on the penalty kill said it was “good to see.”

“They (the assistants) work so hard for us, and they’ll kind of get their opportunities here,” Cates said. “It’s cool to see and get a different look, a different guy back there.”

Cam York, who works with Shaw as a defenseman, said Shaw is a really good coach who knows the game well. However, nothing changed about the Flyers game with Shaw behind the bench. Defenseman Tony DeAngelo reiterated the sentiment, adding that there was nothing Shaw could have done to make the Flyers play better in their overtime loss.

After the game, Shaw said the shuffle was a “possible scenario” that had been in the works for a couple of days.

Tortorella and Shaw also did this in a preseason game for the Flyers, but Shaw said he’s never been in this situation for a regular season game. Most of the players haven’t, either.

“I obviously haven’t been around long,” Cates said. “But talking to some of the guys, they haven’t seen that either. It’s a little different, but, you know, I kind of like it.”

Shaw was an assistant for Tortorella in Columbus. He also has been an interim head coach for the New York Islanders and an assistant for the St. Louis Blues and Vancouver Canucks.