We can end the speculation and reports: The Philadelphia Flyers officially named Daniel Brière the Special Assistant to the General Manager on Tuesday.
Brière was reportedly among the final candidates for the Montreal Canadiens’ general manager search and has been spotted spending more time with the Flyers’ front office staff in recent weeks.
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The Flyers wanted to officially bring him into the fold full-time and now Chuck Fletcher has quite the Special Assistant.
“I’m very happy to add Danny to our hockey operations team in a full-time role,” Fletcher said. “His insight and experience from 25 years in professional hockey, as well as first-hand knowledge of the Philadelphia Flyers, is a valuable asset for our organization and I look forward to working closely with him on a day-to-day basis.”
“I’m excited for this new opportunity to join the Flyers hockey operations department,” said Brière. “Philadelphia is a place that I’ve called home for a long time and have had some of the most memorable moments in my career. I want to thank Chuck Fletcher and Dave Scott for their confidence and support over the last several years, and I look forward to helping them continue to build a successful team on and off the ice.”
“On and off the ice, Danny has been an incredible representative of the Philadelphia Flyers for more than a decade, and I’m thrilled to have him join our hockey operations department full time in this new role,” said Flyers Governor Dave Scott.
The 44-year-old was drafted 24th overall in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft by the Phoenix Coyotes. Brière spent 17 years in the NHL, scoring 307 goals and 389 assists for 696 points in 973 games with the Phoenix Coyotes (1997-98 to 2002-03), Buffalo Sabres (2002-03 to 2006-07), Flyers (2007-08 to 2012-13), Montreal Canadiens (2013-14) and Colorado Avalanche (2014-15).
Brière spent six seasons as a member of the Flyers after he signed an eight-year contract as a free agent on July 1, 2007. He recorded 124 goals and 159 assists for 283 points in 364 regular-season games.
He is also known as one of the Flyers’ all-time best playoff performers with over a point-per-game pace with 72 points (37g-35a) in 68 playoff games. His 1.06 playoff points per-game are third in Flyers history among players who have played 10 or more games, and he ranks second in franchise history for the most game-winning goals in the playoffs (9), one behind Rick MacLeish (10).
We all remember Playoff Danny B taking over in 2010.
In 2009-10, Brière led the Flyers during their run to the Stanley Cup Final. He led all players in the postseason with 30 points (12g-18a) in 23 games, which also set a new franchise record for most points in a single postseason.
Brière is a two-time NHL All-Star (2007 and 2011) and was named MVP of the All-Star Game in Dallas in 2007.
According to a press release, Brière will be involved in all aspects of the club’s hockey operations including scouting and player development. He previously spent parts of five years with the Maine Mariners of the ECHL, most recently as the President and Governor of the team.
In addition to his duties with Maine, Brière has worked in the Flyers player development department for the last two seasons in a part-time role working with the club’s prospects, as well as current players, both on and off the ice. He also spent two seasons in the Flyers front office business operations prior to joining the Mariners.
With Fletcher on the hot seat after two straight disappointing seasons, it’s safe to wonder if this is the first step toward Brière becoming the GM. If Fletcher can’t turn things around soon it may be Brière steering the ship for the next era of Flyers hockey.
Brière will meet with the media on Wednesday morning at 10:30 a.m. at the Wells Fargo Center.
