The Flyers’ power play has been a hot topic for a while now—and for good reason.
What’s the problem? Bad coaching? The wrong players? A flawed strategy? Whatever the case, the numbers don’t lie. Last season, the Flyers had the worst power play in the NHL at just 12.2 percent. This year, it’s only slightly better at 14.7 percent—still near the bottom of the league.
Assistant coach Rocky Thompson has been in charge of the power play for three seasons now, but the struggles started before he got here. In 2021-22, the Flyers had the league’s worst power play at 12.6 percent. Still, with the team ranking dead last on the man advantage under his watch, Thompson has been taking some heat.
But head coach John Tortorella isn’t having it.
“I can’t stand when people rip my coaching staff,” Tortorella said in an interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Ashlyn Sullivan. “If people could actually see how Rocky prepares, how he coaches, how intelligent he is, they’d think twice before making those comments.”
To try and fix things, the Flyers have been leaning on input from special advisors Patrick Sharp and John LeClair, along with pro scout Dany Heatley. If the team is going to rebuild successfully, they’ll need to figure out this power play sooner rather than later.
No Backing Down: Tortorella Defends Thompson Amid Flyers’ Power Play Struggles
