The Flyers have been under the radar since the 2012 playoff series against the Penguins. After Peter Laviolette was fired in 2013 after a 0-3 start, the organization has not been the same. Since then, they have gone through gone through 3 coaches, one of which, Craig Berube, just won a Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues. This result has made Flyers fans second guess the hiring of Vigneault as many wanted Berube to come back as the head man.
Compared to Berube, Vigneault is a much more experienced coach. He has coached in two Stanley Cups and has made the playoffs 11 out of the 16 seasons. Berube has been an interim coach for both teams he has been with and only has coached in 224 games compared to Vigneault who has 1,216 games coached.
The Flyers needed someone with experience in the regular season and who has some success in the playoffs. It’s a similar hire to Laviolette in 2009 and which is why Flyers fans will eventually warm up to Vigneault as he will try to get the team out of the first round since 2012.
The Flyers have good young players to look forward to like Nolan Patrick, Carter Hart, Travis Konecny, and Ivan Provorov, but need more depth because players like Claude Giroux, Jake Voráček, and James van Riemsdyk are starting to peak.
Signing Kevin Hayes, the 27-year-old centerman, was a step in the right direction but the Flyers may need to make a few trades throughout the season to gather more talent in order to have enough for a playoff push.
If anyone can bring the Flyers out of their mediocre state, Vigneualt would be the man for the job. He has the experience, the knowledge, and the temperament for dealing with praise and criticism. For the organization and the fans, hopefully this move will pay off.
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