Anybody that followed the Philadelphia Flyers this season knew there was something going on between John Tortorella and Kevin Hayes.
The team had to do damage control so that the media wouldn’t run with the story that there was a clear fracture between both sides, and every time it was mentioned, Tortorella was firm that everything was fine and that people were making a big deal out of nothing.
The last thing the Flyers, Tortorella, or Hayes wanted was for the fractured relationship to take over the team throughout the season and cast a darker shadow over the doom and gloom that was another bottom-finish.
Hayes and Travis Konecny were both benched during the third period of a game against the San Jose Sharks on the 23rd of October – only the 6th game of the season. The Sharks took a 1-0 lead midway through the second period before doubling it up with 1:31 left in the frame. The Flyers had their chances in the third period, but Tortorella was firm on his decision and kept them on the pine the entire 20 minutes.
After the game, he did not want to discuss what had happened and it also seemed that both players understood the decision and were willing to move on. Hayes was benched yet again during a game against the New Jersey Devils on the 15th of December – one the Flyers won 2-1. The following game, Tortorella scratched Hayes against the New York Rangers and it brought the ire of the entire league because at the time, Hayes was the team’s leading scorer.
From the San Jose benching to the Devils game in mid-December, Konecny scored 8 goals and 20 points in 19 games and Hayes scored 8 goals and 21 points in 25 games. In totality, Konecny had 12 goals and 26 points in 25 games up until that point and was second to Hayes’ 29 points through 31 games. Tortorella once again did not want to comment on the decision, but the fans we were well aware that his coasting, lack of a 200-foot game, and lack of hustle was going to cost him at some point.
From that moment onward, Hayes finished the season with 9 goals and 25 points through the final 50 games, which included a 23-game goalless drought and he recorded just 7 points in his final 28 games. The energy, joyful attitude, and emotion was gone from Hayes, and the 2019-20 version of himself was zapped out completely. His end-of-season comments didn’t help when he mentioned that he understands the team is getting younger and that he most likely doesn’t fit into their plans.
In totality, Hayes had a good season. He was named an All-Star, he was 1 point away from tying a career-high, was 7 goals away from his previous career-best, and tied his career-high in assists with 36. In saying that, the veteran centreman had 15 goals and 45 points in his first 49 games. He was only 10 goals and 10 points away from those aforementioned career milestones – with 32 games left on the season. It was almost inexcusable that he finished the season with 3 goals and 9 points when everyone else around him was still putting in total effort.
Konecny had 7 goals and 12 points in that 16 games in that same span, Owen Tippett had 14 goals and 23 points, Morgan Frost had 9 goals and 22 points, Noah Cates had 6 goals and 18 points, Scott Laughton had 6 goals and 15 points, and even Joel Farabee who had struggled mightily from his injury finished with 6 goals and 14 points.
Hayes’ heart was no longer in the game, his head was out, his play was mystifying at best and it was hard to watch at times.
Hayes’ journey in Philadelphia is most likely coming to an end, with Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli once again reporting about the fractured relationship and how the Flyers are antsy in trying to get a deal done.
At the trade deadline, it almost seemed like a deal was extremely plausible if the Flyers retained $2.142 million – leaving the recipient on the hook for $5 million. I’m sure the Flyers would’ve done that deal by now, so it’s starting to seem like more needs to be retained and could be inching closer to almost half of his salary.
Even if it’s 50%, it’s not the end of the world because the Flyers are not going to be spending to the maximum for years to come. They don’t need to worry about the salary cap for the next 2-3-4 years, and if it facilitates an easier trade and they get the desired package they’re interested in, then no harm no foul.
Sure, it’s not ideal to retain $3.571 million for the next 3 seasons, but you’re doing yourself a favour by 1) getting a better package, 2) getting more teams involved to get a bidding war started, 3) getting rid of a fractured and possibly cancerous relationship from the locker room that will be full of young players, and 4) no longer blocking your prospects because you’re begrudgingly holding onto a 50 point scorer for 3 years on the basis of not wanting to retain too much salary.
The problem that arose when he was first signed was the contract. The term and the annual salary in all. It was unfortunate that the one year the Flyers actually had money to burn was during one of the weaker FA classes – imagine if they had $34 million last summer. Hayes was at the top of a lot of teams’ want-list, he was the best centre available, and teams like Chicago and Colorado were swooping in quickly. Chuck Fletcher traded a 5th-round pick to Winnipeg for his negotiation rights before signing him to a 7-year deal worth $50 million.
It was always going to be an overpayment, and you never come out on top during the free agent madness – especially for one of the more coveted players. If the Flyers could’ve signed him at his actual value, the contract could’ve fallen somewhere in the $5 million-$5.75 million range for 4-5 years. A deal like that would’ve been a lot easier to swallow and would have merited proper value – but that doesn’t happen during free agency anymore.
Playing behind Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, and the idea of Nolan Patrick worked like gangbusters in his first season and Hayes really shined. The Flyers were a lot deeper and he was able to fit in seamlessly in the middle of that group. However, when he was thrusted into a larger role, he wasn’t able to meet the requirements of the lofty contract. Hayes also had to deal with an extremely tumultuous 2021-22 season where he had to go under the knife three times while dealing with the passing of his brother.
It’s entirely unfortunate that he could not become the player the Flyers had hoped for when they signed him to that mega-deal. Everything around him crumbled, Giroux was traded, Patrick didn’t pan out, Couturier and Cam Atkinson have been injured, and Jakub Voracek was booted out among so many other issues.
Wherever Hayes ends up, it’ll be a fresh new start for him, and he will succeed because he won’t be thrusted into top-minutes and he’ll have legitimate wingers with a contending team around him. It will be a repeat of 2019-20 and he will be coming in at a reduced cost, which is even more palatable. Hayes from anywhere between $3.5 million-$5 million for 3 years on a contending team is going to be a steal, but the Flyers won’t regret the decision, they won’t have second thoughts, and it’ll help both sides.
Colorado, Boston, and Carolina have been rumoured teams with interest and putting him on any of those teams would be beneficial for all parties. The Avalanche will be without Gabriel Landeskog and are lacking centre depth, the Bruins likely won’t have Patrice Bergeron or David Krejci down the middle, and the Hurricanes need another centre.
John Tortorella is the face of this team – or at least one of them – and they have to choose one or the other to move forward into 2023-24. Tortorella isn’t going anywhere for the time being, and Hayes has seemingly overstayed his welcome with a troubling second-half performance that started with the one healthy scratch he received for his poor on-ice play. He made it out to seem like his ice-time dramatically dropped afterwards from 22 minutes to 10, when in fact it only really dropped off by a minute or so. Those end-of-season comments couldn’t have sat well with the Flyers’ brass either.
The prospects need room to grow and if veteran leadership is required, the Flyers still have Sean Couturier, Cam Atkinson, Scott Laughton, and Travis Konecny to help.
2024 Stadium Series Trip
Flyers Nation and Philly Sports Trips have teamed up to bring you on an amazing bus trip to the 2024 NHL Stadium Series between the Flyers and Devils. Place an early deposit to reserve your spot at the ultimate tailgate experience at MetLife Stadium before the game. The package includes a game ticket, round-trip charter bus, an all-inclusive tailgate party with unlimited cold beverages, “Philly Style” catered food, live entertainment, and more.
