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Flyers Officially Hire Red Wings Coach, NHL Veteran as Assistant Coaches
Flyers Officially Hire Red Wings Coach, NHL Veteran as Assistant Coaches

Yahoo

time3 days ago

  • Sport
  • Yahoo

Flyers Officially Hire Red Wings Coach, NHL Veteran as Assistant Coaches

Former Red Wings assistant Jay Varady is joining Rick Tocchet on the Flyers. (Photo: Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images) The Philadelphia Flyers have officially announced the additions of two new assistant coaches as Rick Tocchet's first iteration of his Orange and Black coaching staff takes shape. On Thursday, the Flyers officially announced the hiring of former Vancouver Canucks assistant coach and skills coach Yogi Svejkovsky, a former teammate of Tocchet's who once played for former Flyers interim head coach Brad Shaw. Advertisement During his playing days, Svejkovsky, 46, was teammates with Tocchet, former Flyers head coach Craig Berube, Flyers president Keith Jones, Nashville head coach Andrew Brunette, and New Jersey head coach Sheldon Keefe. Svejkovsky, a former first-round pick of Washington in 1996, is expected to work with Tocchet in coaching the Flyers' power play, among other responsibilities. Joining Tocchet and Svejkovsky in Philadelphia is former Detroit Red Wings assistant coach Jay Varady, who was one of Tocchet's assistant coaches in Arizona in the 2020-21 season. Flyers Trade Rumors: Big Golden Knights Defenseman Linked to Philadelphia Flyers Trade Rumors: Big Golden Knights Defenseman Linked to Philadelphia A Philadelphia Flyers trade my finally be on the horizon, with a new rumor suggesting a big Vegas Golden Knights defenseman could be on the move. Advertisement Prior to that, Varady, 47, was the head coach of the AHL Tucson Roadrunners, overseeing the development of players like Adin Hill, Calvin Pickard, Michael Bunting, Christian Dvorak, Ilya Lyubushkin, Barrett Hayton, Ivan Prosvetov, and Conor Garland. According to Bill Meltzer of the Flyers' official website, the Flyers would like to make one more coaching hire this offseason. The exact roles for Svejkovsky and Varady have not been officially assigned by Tocchet at this time.

Canucks: Trading Vasily Podkolzin wasn't bad. Not drafting Matt Boldy wasn't good
Canucks: Trading Vasily Podkolzin wasn't bad. Not drafting Matt Boldy wasn't good

Vancouver Sun

time01-06-2025

  • Sport
  • Vancouver Sun

Canucks: Trading Vasily Podkolzin wasn't bad. Not drafting Matt Boldy wasn't good

Vasily Podkolzin is in the Stanley Cup Final. It's a testament to second-chance tenacity for the affable winger, who initially teased of potential with the Vancouver Canucks , but struggled to find consistency in decision-making and finish. He beat himself up mentally and was demoted to Abbotsford of the AHL, where he rebuilt his game and confidence. Somebody obviously noticed. One school of thought is did the Canucks give up on the winger too fast by trading him to the Edmonton Oilers last August for a fourth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft? Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. The answer is no. They got what they could for Podkolzin, who had two assists in 19 games last season and 15 goals in 44 AHL outings, which seldom equates to NHL success. And Podkolzin wouldn't have been waiver-exempt this season on a club that added wingers. Third-line menace Kiefer Sherwood led the NHL in hits the season with 462 and had a career-high 19 goals on a bargain US$1.5 million salary cap hit. He is 30 but is everything the Canucks need in that lineup position to push, lead by example, and also be a key penalty-kill component. Podkolzin has become a serviceable third-liner for the Oilers, but that's not the career projection for any 10th overall pick. He did manage eight goals and 16 assists this season in 82 games, and has had effective playoff playmaking moments, but where does he project? 'He's hard on the forecheck, he's able to make a nice pass on the breakout and goes to the net when it's in the offensive zone,' said encouraged Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch. Podkolzin had three head coaches in Vancouver — Travis Green, Bruce Boudreau, Rick Tocchet — and systems varied as much as expectations. Green and Tocchet were tough, Boudreau was encouraging. Maybe it's why departed bench boss Tocchet called Podkolzin a bull and a moose. He wasn't quite sure what he had. 'If he plays predictable hockey, he'll be good,' said Tocchet. 'If he knows exactly where the puck is going, that's where the moose comes in. If he's waiting to go, he's standing around. And he'll be late everywhere. He needs to be aggressive and not read the play after it happens.' At 23, age is on Podkolzin's side, and so is understanding career ascension is seldom a straight line. He could have pouted when demoted by the Canucks last season but found needed perspective. 'The first two weeks were really hard,' Podkolzin told Postmedia. 'You start thinking too much. 'What should I do? What's happening?' I had two ways to go. Give up or work. It was good for me to get AHL games to remember who you are and start appreciating.' A more important and pressing query is what were the Canucks thinking at the Rogers Arena draft table in 2019? There must have a been debate. They passed on enticing options — especially with a bumper crop of U.S. National Development Team prospects accounting for three of the first nine picks and seven of the first 15 — but made the surprise selection of Podkolzin. It was somewhat stunning because highly-coveted USNTDP right-winger Matt Boldy was sitting there and taken two picks later by the Minnesota Wild. After his rookie season of 39 points (15-24) in 47 games, compared to 26 points (14-12) for Podkolzin in 79 games, Boldy took off. He had 31, 29 and 27 goals respectively the following three seasons and point totals of 63, 69 and 73. That's nearly a point-per-game pace of 244 in 285 games, the true measure of potency and consistency plus future promise. Boldy became a first-liner for the Wild, was on the U.S. roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off and could warrant Olympic team consideration. Team scouting efficiency is a pick piling up 200 career NHL games for its club. Podkolzin had 137 here and Boldy already has 285 with the Wild. The Canucks have had limited success with drafting forwards 10th overall. They got three successive 20-goal seasons from 1975 pick Rick Blight. They also traded rookie Cody Hodgson, a 2008 selection, after he amassed 16 goals in 63 games in 2011-12. The kicker in all this what-could-have-been hindsight is the current status of Canucks unrestricted right-winger Brock Boeser . He will test the market July 1 and could leave a considerable scoring void, unless he pivots back to the Canucks, which is hard to fathom. After a concussion, too much drama, odd management optics at the trade deadline, and still managing 25 goals, he may need a change of scenery. Boeser, 28, is looking for term and salary and there's a gap between a five-year offer and the seven he covets. The money isn't as big a stumbling block as term. AFP Analytics projects Boeser could get a six-year deal at $8.5 million annually in free agency. The Canucks offered $8 million so the gap isn't huge. If that's still too rich, free agent Nikolaj Ehlers could get six years at $8.1 million annually, if he doesn't re-sign with the Winnipeg Jets. bkuzma@

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