The other shoe, it would appear, has just dropped.
The Flyers made what might well have been the worst-kept secret in the hockey world official yesterday, as they announced that they’ve hired Rick Tocchet as the team’s new head coach, putting to rest weeks worth of speculation. But the hiring of the head coach wasn’t going to be the end of the story here, and there remained several loose ends in need of tying up, as far as filling out the rest of the coaching staff goes. And while there are still some lingering questions which we’ll surely see the team work through over the coming weeks, one thing now seems to be for certain — whatever the mix is for the next coaching staff, Brad Shaw will not be in it.
As reported this evening by PHLY’s Charlie O’Connor, Shaw has made the decision (and it was his decision, we must reiterate) to not return to the Flyers as an assistant under Tocchet for the upcoming season, after finishing the season as the interim head coach and being in the mix for the job on a full-time basis, but falling short in the interview process.
It’s a move that, in truth, does make sense for Shaw — after all, now that he’s had a taste of head coaching at the NHL level, it would be understandable why he might be reluctant to return to an assistant role, particularly under the guy who beat him out for the promotion, if that’s indeed where his headspace is. But it leaves the Flyers in something of a difficult position, as they’re left to find a replacement who can live up to the standard of success that Shaw laid in working with the defense group over his tenure with the team. He seemed to tap into something special, and while certainly not irreplaceable, it will be a challenge to find someone who can rise to that same level. Now it’s up to Tocchet to begin his search for his assistants from scratch, and it will be interesting to see the direction he goes in that search.
