In the summer of 2010, the Philadelphia Flyers were 2 games away from winning their first Stanley Cup since 1975 – an accomplishment they had come close to achieving on 5 different occasions before but failed each time.
With a team that came so close to ending the drought, you would have thought that by 2023, there might’ve been something sitting in the trophy case at the Wells Fargo Center or hanging in the rafters.
What followed was mismanagement at its finest from Paul Holmgren, Ron Hextall, and Chuck Fletcher that put the Flyers through a tumultuous, useless, and time-wasting decade and a half that has brought about a lot of disdain around the core of those teams in Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek.
In a recent interview in the Czech Republic on the podcast Bomby k tyči, Jakub Voracek opened up about his time in Philadelphia and had a few pointed words to the front office that heading the team at the time.
“We have never had a team that could win a Stanley Cup. Everyone can say what they want. But we never had the depth for it.”
Claude Giroux was officially given the keys to the team in January of 2013 when he was named the 19th captain in franchise history. The writing was all over the wall even before then, with the departures of Mike Richards and Jeff Carter in 2011 that were seen as moves to usher the Flyers into the Giroux and James van Riemsdyk era. Wayne Simmonds, Brayden Schenn, Sean Couturier, and Jakub Voracek were the pieces brought in return in an attempt to shake things up in what was deemed to have been a rocky locker room. They all played vital roles down the stretch, but Voracek and Giroux truly became a dynamic duo.
In 10 seasons with the Flyers, Voracek scored 177 goals and recorded 427 assists, for a total of 604 points in 727 games, which is good for 19th all-time in goals, 5th in assists, and 10th in points in Flyers history. His 604 points sit only behind Bobby Clarke, Claude Giroux, Bill Barber, Brian Propp, Rick MacLeish, Eric Lindros, Tim Kerr, John LeClair, and Mark Recchi – in other words, franchise icons. His 604 points also sit ahead of players like Rod Brind’Amour, Simon Gagne, and Reggie Leach.
In those same 10 years, Claude Giroux scored 223 goals and recorded 485 assists, for a total of 708 points in 735 games. Those numbers alone would have Giroux pegged at 11th all-time by a Flyer in goals, 2nd in assists, and 4th in points. Those 708 points are only behind Bobby Clarke, Bill Barber, and Brian Propp and ahead of guys like Rick MacLeish, Eric Lindros, and Tim Kerr.
Once again, in others words, Giroux and Voracek were two dynamic franchise players who had very little – almost microscopic – playoff success.
How was that possible? From 2012-13, the depth of the Flyers was severely lacking with the exception of 2017-18. It was a horrendous time with their in-between seasons of making and missing the playoffs, not securing any talent, and even though they drafted in abundance, it didn’t lead to very much.
2011-12
2011-12 was where it all started with a new era of Flyers hockey – so to speak. Giroux topped the team with 65 assists and 93 points in 77 games, followed by Scott Hartnell’s 37 goals and 67 points, and Jaromir Jagr’s 54 points in 73 games in his first season back in the NHL. Wayne Simmonds, Jakub Voracek, and Daniel Briere each had 49 points, Matt Read had 47 points, and Kimmo Timonen had 43 points.
In the playoffs. Giroux had 17 points in just 10 games and still finished top-5 in scoring for the entire playoffs, Briere followed suit with 13 points in 11 games, Voracek with 10, Schenn with 9, and Hartnell and Jagr with 8 apiece. The defense was run by Timonen, Matt Carle, Braydon Coburn, Andrej Meszaros, Andreas Lilja, Marc-Andre Bourdon, Nicklas Grossmann, and Erik Gustafsson. Chris Pronger had started the season and played in 13 games before his career-ending injury, nevertheless it was a pretty solid cast and that’s not including pieces like Sean Couturier, James van Riemsdyk, and Max Talbot.
2012-13
The lockout-shortened season of 2012-13 was Giroux’s first as captain and the Flyers’ first after former 2nd overall pick van Riemsdyk was booted out of Philadelphia in a lop-sided 1-for-1 deal.
The 19th captain in franchise history led the team with 48 points in 48 games, with Voracek right behind him with 22 goals and 46 points. It was a steep drop off after these two with Simmonds at 32 points, Timonen at 29 points, Schenn with 26 points, Read with 24 points, Briere with 16 points (34 games), Couturier with 15 points, and Hartnell with 11 points (32 games).
The defensemen on this team included Luke Schenn (47 games), Kimmo Timonen (45 games), Bruno Gervais (37 games), Braydon Coburn (33 games), Nicklas Grossmann (30 games), Erik Gustafsson (27 games), Kurtis Foster (23 games), and Oliver Lauridsen (15 games).
Ilya Bryzgalov’s final season with the Flyers ended in a 19-17-3 campaign, .900 SV%, and a 2.79 GAA. He played in 40 games, while Steve Mason starred in 7 after being acquired at the trade deadline, and Brian Boucher and Michael Leighton each started 1 game apiece.
The Flyers fell short of the mark with a 23-22-3 season, 4th in the Atlantic Division, and finished 10th in the Eastern Conference.
2013-14
The Flyers returned to the postseason after Peter Laviolette was replaced 3 games into the season with Craig Berube. After a slow start, Giroux finished the season third in MVP voting with 86 points in 82 games with Voracek right behind him – again – with 62 of his own. Wayne Simmonds had a huge season with 29 goals and 60 points, and Scott Hartnell added 52 points in 78 games with defenseman Mark Streit adding 44 points of his own in 82 games.
Brayden Schenn had 41 points in 82 games, Matt Read had 40 in 75 games, and Sean Couturier had 39 in 82 games. Vincent Lecavalier, Michael Raffl, and Kimmo Timonen also added depth scoring which helped push the Flyers into the postseason, but the real story was Steve Mason. The 2009 Calder Trophy winner had a resurgent season in between the pipes with a 33-18-7 record, .917 SV%, and a 2.52 GAA.
Unfortunately, he was injured right before the playoffs and missed the first two games before relieving Ray Emery in Game 3, where they went 1-2. In any regard, the Flyers forced a 7th game but fell in a hard-fought 2-1 loss – on the backend of a back-to-back for whatever reason.
This team was decent-to-good with the production from the top-3 and the stout goaltending from Mason, but they still lacked firepower and legitimate threats for Giroux and Voracek to play with. The defense that season was Mark Streit (82 games), Braydon Coburn (82 games), Luke Schenn (79 games), Nicklas Grossmann (78 games), Kimmo Timonen (77 games), Andrej Meszaros (38 games), Erik Gustafsson (31 games), and Andrew MacDonald (19 games).
The scoring went dry in the playoffs as Giroux finished atop the team with 6 points in 7 games, Simmonds with 5 in 7 games – including a Game 6 hat-trick – and Voracek with 4 points. Top-line player Jason Akeson had 3 points with Matt Read, Mark Streit, Braydon Coburn, Scott Hartnell, and Brayden Schenn. Steve Mason was 2-2 with a .939 SV% and a 1.97 GAA, while Ray Emery was 1-2 with an .888 SV% and a 3.49 GAA.
2014-15
2014-15 was an extremely disappointing season to follow up their postseason appearance from the year before, as the Flyers slumped to a 33-31-18 record, finished 6th in the Metropolitan Division, and 11th in the Eastern Conference. Voracek led the team in points this time with 59 assists and 81 points in 82 games with Giroux right behind him with 25 goals and 73 points in 81 games.
Mark Streit and Wayne Simmonds each reached the 50-point plateau and Brayden Schenn finished with 47. After that it was a steep drop off with Couturier at 37 points, Michael Del Zotto with 32 points, Matt Read with 30 points, Michael Raffl with 28 points, and Vincent Lecavalier with 20 points.
That year’s defense comprised of Mark Streit (81 games), Nick Schultz (80 games), Nicklas Grossmann (68 games), Michael Del Zotto (64 games), Andrew MacDonald and Luke Schenn (58 games), Braydon Coburn (39 games), Carlo Colaiacovo (33 games), and Brandon Manning (11 games) along with one-off appearances by Mark Alt and Oliver Lauridsen.
Steve Mason posted an 18-18-11 record with a sparkling .928 SV% and a ridiculously low 2.25 GAA for an 11th-place conference team. Ray Emery started in 25 games and posted a 3.06 GAA and an .894 SV% with a 10-11-7 record.
2015-16
Back to the playoffs we go, with the Flyers and Dave Hakstol making a big leap in the first year of a “rebuild”. It wasn’t the most prolific season for anyone wearing the Orange and Black as Giroux led the team with 67 points, Simmonds scored 32 goals and 60 points, Schenn had 26 goals and 59 points, and Voracek rounded it out with 55 points in 73 games.
Shayne Gostisbehere had a great rookie season with 46 points in 64 games, Couturier made inroads with 39 points in 63 games, and Raffl provided depth scoring with 31 points. It was another steep drop off after that with players like Read, Streit, Scott Laughton, Ryan White, Sam Gagner, and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare scoring less than 26 points.
The team goaltending was sublime for a change as they posted a combined .920 SV% and a 2.42 GAA. Mason was 23-19-10 with a .918 SV% and 2.51 GAA. while Michal Neuvirth was 18-8-4 as a backup with a .924 SV% and 2.27 GAA.
The defense that year wasn’t the greatest either, which solidifies how great the goaltending was. Nick Schultz (81 games), Radko Gudas (76 games), Shayne Gostisbehere (64 games), Mark Streit (62 games), Brandon Manning (56 games), Michael Del Zotto (52 games), Evgeny Medvedev (45 games), Luke Schenn (29 games), and Andrew MacDonald (28 games) would play for the Flyers that season.
The Flyers scored just 6 goals in 6 games against the Washington Capitals in the first round and weren’t swept due to the heroics in goal from Neuvirth. Gostisbehere, Gagner, Schenn, and Simmonds each led the way with 2 points, while Voracek and Giroux only had 1 apiece as they were effectively shut down by the Capitals’ defense.
2016-17
39-33-10 isn’t a terrible record, but the Flyers missed the playoffs by 7 points with a collapse near the end of the season. The offense was nearly identical from the previous season but the goaltending didn’t hold up – as expected with the defense in front of them.
Voracek led the team with 61 points, Giroux was second with 58, Schenn had 55, and Simmonds finished with 54. Gostisbehere was 5th on the team with 39 points, Couturier had 34, and rookies Ivan Provorov and Travis Konecny had 30 and 28 points each, respectively.
The defense that season comprised of Provorov (82 games), Gostisbehere (76 games), MacDonald (73 games), Gudas (67 games), Manning (65 games), Del Zotto (51 games), Streit (49 games), Schultz (28 games). Mason finished the year 26-21-8 with a 2.66 GAA and .908 SV%, while Neuvirth regressed to 11-11-1, a 2.82 GAA, and an .891 SV%.
2017-18
2017-18 might’ve been the best season offensively for the Flyers, even with Brayden Schenn out of the picture. The Flyers got a big season from Sean Couturier as he scored 31 goals and 76 points, sitting behind only Voracek (85 points) and Giroux (102 points). Gostisbehere was fantastic as well with 65 points, Konecny took a leap in his sophomore season with 47 points, Simmonds regressed a little to 46, and Provorov had 41.
Goaltending and defense was not a strong forte for the Flyers with a .907 SV% and a 2.76 GAA. Brian Elliott was 23-11-7 with a .909 SV% and 2.66 GAA, Neuvirth posted a 9-7-3 record with a .915 SV% and a 2.60 GAA, and Petr Mrazek was a disappointing 6-6-3 with an .891 SV% and a 3.22 GAA.
Ivan Provorov played in all 82 games once again, Gostisbehere in 78 games, Gudas and Robert Hagg in 70 apiece, MacDonald in 66 games, Manning in 65 games, and Travis Sanheim in his rookie season appeared in 49 games. The depth pieces offensively that season included Valtteri Filppula, Nolan Patrick, Jordan Weal, Scott Laughton, Michael Raffl, and Jori Lehtera, who each scored less than 30 points with the exceptions of Filppula (33) and Patrick (30).
Once more they qualified for the postseason and faced off against the Pittsburgh Penguins and were once again outplayed, outmanned, and outscored. Things could’ve been different if the Flyers could have hung on in Game 6 after taking a 4-2 lead but the turning point was the opening draw in the third period after Provorov’s shoulder went dead for the remainder of play and he couldn’t handle the puck, which allowed the Penguins to take the lead and never look back.
2018-19
And finally, the debacle that was 2018-19 and the 8-goaltender-carousel. In James van Riemsdyk’s first season after signing back as a free agent, the Flyers were expecting big things offensively to match the previous year’s output. Giroux (85), Couturier (76), and Voracek (66) paced the team once more in points with the depth scoring failing to help out.
Travis Konecny and van Riemsdyk were the best secondary options as they combined for 51 goals and 97 points, but no one else even cracked 40 points. Gositsbehere had a down season with 37 points, Sanheim had a decent sophomore season with 35, Oskar Lindblom chipped in with 33, Laughton with 32, Patrick with 31, and Simmonds with 27. Provorov also slumped that season with 26 points after a 41-point explosion the year before; not nearly enough help for the trio leading at the top, who were not able to match their career seasons with the exception of Couturier.
Team goaltending combined for a .900 SV% and a 3.24 GAA, which included Brian Elliott, Anthony Stolarz, Calvin Pickard, Michal Neuvirth, Alex Lyon, Cam Talbot, and Mike McKenna. Carter Hart stole the show in the second half in his rookie season with a 16-13-1 record and a rather high .917 SV%.
Defense was a pill again with the same cast and crew as before, with the addition of Phil Myers and his 21 games. They were either too young and inexperienced, or the veterans were just not cutting it. Provorov, Sanheim, and Hagg each played 82 games, Gostisbehere played 78 games, Gudas played in 77 games, MacDonald in 47 games, and Myers in 21.
Voracek’s comments this week were not wrong in the slightest, and it reflected the front office’s inability to set course for one specific target. Paul Holmgren had lost his marbles after losing in 2010 and threw the kitchen sink at old, overpaid, overvalued players either through trades, free agency, or even in contract negotiations. Ron Hextall never went through a full rebuild and even though they made the postseason twice, it only amounted to 2 very lopsided defeats.
Hextall drafted a lot of players, his core picks are still with the team, but haven’t played to their potential or have lost a few steps over the years. Maybe committing to trading Giroux and Voracek would’ve been better than extending them to 8-year deals, or maybe if you were going to commit long-term, you’d give them good players to win with. Their defense was always dodgy, their goaltending was relying on injured veterans, and their offense outside of Giroux and Voracek was inconsistent at best.
Chuck Fletcher didn’t help in the slightest either as he took a wait and see approach to the morgue after half a season. He then went all-in and tried securing the best available talent on the open market to his core players.
It worked for a few months before COVID interrupted everything. Once the playoffs started, the Flyers looked wobbly at best and were barely able to finish off Montreal. After a couple more seasons, Fletcher decided to trade Voracek alongside a few other core members in an attempted shake-up. A few more seasons after that and the Flyers continued drop to the basement of the NHL has continued – which is where we are now.
Years have been wasted and the Flyers’ best chances were drained down the tube because of an inability to focus on one strategy. One foot in the door, while the other foot was out. You either trade the two players, like Holmgren did with Richards and Carter, or you try to build around them; and when you notice that things aren’t working or things are taking too long, you act quickly before letting players regress before your eyes, instead of sticking players like Filppula, Lehtera, Weise, White, VandeVelde, Lyubimov, Gordon, Manning, Gudas, Del Zotto, Schultz, Medvedev, Colaiacovo into the mix for “depth”.
Giroux and Voracek were never supposed to be world-beaters, but they had to play that role to perfection and if they missed or took one wrong step, the whole season was up in flames. Simmonds and Schenn were great special teams players but hardly drove play while at even-strength, it took Couturier years to get the opportunity to play top-line minutes, and the depth scoring from Matt Read – among others – disappeared in a flash but were kept around because the front office still believed or were too preoccupied elsewhere to notice.
2011-12 to 2018-19 was a waste of 8 seasons. Voracek and Giroux played their hearts out and they did the best they could with what they were given, but they were lambasted for not being “elite” or “game-changing”.
Giroux was a top-decade scorer in the 2010s when no one touted him as being elite or game-changing. He didn’t have the same teams that Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane, or Alex Ovechkin had, yet he and Voracek were blamed time and time again for the utter failures that the front office just never seemed to fix, year-in and year-out. The wait-and-see approach in the meaty years of his and Voracek’s tenures was the real problem because had the Flyers decided on one singular path, we would not be dealing with the pains and torturous scenes of 2022-23 as it has played out.
It’s two sides to the same coin with these general managers because they were bad in totality, but for different reasons. Hextall got the Flyers out of Holmgren’s mess but failed to act accordingly when he had a chance to help his star players until it was too late and he doled out big money to van Riemsdyk. Fletcher brought them back into salary cap hell by making ultra-aggressive moves that seemed good on paper but never worked to fruition for a variety of reasons. He was also similar to Hextall where his draft picks and draft strategies seemed good in theory, but barely turned out.
When the Flyers were too aggressive, they flew way too close to the sun, and when they were trying to be patient, they either won too many games or they didn’t draft well.
There was no winning in the 2010s, and it was not lost on the players as to why.
