Sportsnet reporter Elliotte Friedman shared some intriguing Flyers information in the latest Robin Lehner themed episode of his 32 Thoughts podcast.
Vegas Golden Knights goalie Robin Lehner walked back some of his comments Saturday night regarding Flyers head coach Alain Vigneault. The veteran goaltender maintained that he was never accusing Vigneault of distributing benzodiazepine and ambien pills to Flyers players, but said that he’s treating people in an “unacceptable” way.
Before Lehner’s viral Twitter thread on Saturday, he went on The Spittin’ Chiclets podcast last Wednesday and complained about Alain Vigneault’s treatment of Flyers goalie Carter Hart during the 2021 season.
Robin Lehner: “You see what happened with Carter Hart last season, you know…such a talented goalie man, I’m such a big fan of Carter Hart…being called out left and right by their coach and stuff like that...”
“What happens if there’s a tough year this year you know…most goalies, I think the statistics is they break into a number one role around 26/27. I could be wrong, maybe it changed since last time I knew those statistics, but it takes time and today’s NHL is about younger early. When I came into the league it was the opposite, right. You had to go through certain things, I think I was rushed a little bit.”
Carter Hart’s 2021 season went into a tailspin after a solid start during the shortened COVID year. Hart appeared in 27 games with a .877 SV% and 3.67 GAA, some of the worst numbers in the NHL.
On March 29, at the end of the Flyers’ most horrific month, Alain Vigneault said Carter Hart needed to work harder and questioned his practice habits.
Current Arizona defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere, who found himself in AV’s doghouse last season, defended Hart’s work ethic.
Shayne Gostisbehere (March 29, 2021): “I just know his personality and his attitude toward playing the game, and his preparation is second to none. I’m pretty sure no one in this organization is too worried about the Carter Hart we’re going to see next.”
On the 32 Thoughts podcast, Elliotte Friedman shared what has been hinted/reported at for the past half year: there was a rift between Alain Vigneault and the players on the roster.
Elliotte Friedman on 32 Thoughts: The Podcast (October 4, 2021)
“Vigneault was a guy who was pretty popular in Vancouver and pretty popular with the Rangers, but as we’ve talked about, last year was an absolute nightmare year in Philadelphia and there were a lot of problems between the players and the coaching staff there and I know that one of the things the Flyers have discussed in the offseason this year is ‘we can not allow what happened between the players and the coaching staff to happen again’ and some of that was, they made some changes to their roster, obviously Ellis, Ristolainen, Atkinson, but I do think that some of the players’ concerns were heard as well.“
“But also I think the Flyers have asked their coaching staff that they have to better with the players and I’m curious to see where that’s going to be. I think that coaches have to walk a line between being demanding and being hard and being fair and I know the players last year in Philadelphia felt that the Flyers coaches did not adequately walk that line and I know that they asked and made it very clear in some of their exit meetings that they thought some things had to change. So, we’ll see where that goes. Like I said, last year was a nightmare year in Philadelphia and I don’t have any doubt that at the end of last season, cause I heard it first hand, that some of the Flyers players felt the coaching staff did not get as much blame for last year as the players did.”
A toxic locker room and poor player/coach relationships could have been factors in the sweeping changes Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher made to the roster. Outspoken personnel such as Shayne Gostisbehere and Jake Voracek and distractions like Nolan Patrick have all been shipped out of Philadelphia. Almost everyone the Flyers added in the offseason have been assistant captains in the league (Atkinson, Brassard, Ellis, Ristolainen, Yandle). Keith Yandle is already best friends with Kevin Hayes. Cam Atkinson was beloved in Columbus for his play and actions in the community. Fletcher is banking on a better mix of players and a more receptive coaching staff in 2021-2022.
You can listen to the whole podcast episode here.
H/T Dan Silver (@DSilver88)
