As the Flyers search for a new head coach, we're looking at potential candidates to fill the vacancy.
"Communication and teaching are probably two things that will be at the forefront of our next coach," general manager Danny Briere said April 19 at his end-of-the-season press conference. "When you have a young team in place, I really think those two attributes are extremely important."
We've profiled Mike Sullivan (hired by the Rangers), Rick Tocchet, Pat Ferschweiler and Brad Shaw. Next up in our series is Jay Woodcroft, who coached the Oilers for parts of three seasons from 2021-22 to 2023-24.
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SIGN UP HERE Why Woodcroft would be a fit
The 48-year-old won three playoff series as Edmonton's head coach. In 2022-23, his only full season, he guided the Oilers to 50 wins and 109 points, a team that led the NHL with 3.96 goals per game.
Woodcroft had a .643 points percentage in his time with Edmonton, going 79-41-13. He was fired after a 3-9-1 start to 2023-24.
The Oilers had a ridiculously good power play in 2022-23 at a league-leading 32.4 percent. Was a lot of that because of talent? Sure (and we'll get into that below), but Woodcroft clearly did something right to maximize the talent. That kind of success rate could intrigue the Flyers, who are desperate for power play answers.
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Woodcroft has quality experience in more hands-on, development roles. He was an assistant with the Sharks from 2008-09 to 2014-15, a run in which San Jose made the playoffs six times over seven seasons. He also spent three seasons as an assistant coach for Edmonton and four as the head coach of the team's AHL affiliate Bakersfield.
Interestingly, last September, Woodcroft came to Flyers Training Center for a couple of days to watch John Tortorella's camp from the stands.
"It's a coach trying to get better," Tortorella said then. "A young man that has no job right now, trying to use his time correctly to try to be better, so I'm all in on that."
Why Woodcroft would not be a fit
Woodcroft had Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman on his Oilers roster. There are four MVPs, 15 seasons of 100 or more points and six seasons of 50 or more goals in that group.
Tons of talent.
Woodcroft undoubtedly benefited from that. He wouldn't have that kind of star power in Philadelphia, so that could give the Flyers some pause. Would he be able to adjust to coaching a different type of team?
With Edmonton, Woodcroft took over a club that had already made the playoffs the previous two seasons. The Flyers are in a rebuild and have missed the playoffs for five straight seasons, matching the franchise's longest drought. It's possible they'd want a coach with a richer track record of turning teams around or lifting them to the next step.