Flyers GM Clarke Resigns, Coach Hitchcock Fired
Posted October 22, 2006 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The Philadelphia Flyers lost their captain and co-pilot mere weeks into the NHL season.
General Manager Bob Clarke and head coach Ken Hitchcock were both out of a job Sunday, after the former resigned and the latter was dismissed just a month after signing an extension.
The shakeup is an attempt to breathe some life into the last place club, off to their worst start in 17 years.
“I no longer wanted to make the decisions general managers have to make,” said Clarke. “I felt it was time to step back.”
Assistant John Stevens was appointed head coach and former Flyers coach Paul Holmgren was promoted from assistant general manager to interim general manager. Whether this makeshift duo will have any luck in ending a 31-year Stanley Cup drought will now be seen.
Stevens, a former Flyer who coached the team’s AHL affiliate, will have his first voyage behind the bench when the Flyers play at home Thursday against Atlanta.
“We’re very confident we can turn this thing around,” Stevens said.
The Clarke-Hitchcock era was ultimately a disappointment. Despite both men boasting Stanley Cups on their resumes, neither produced results. Flyers chairman Ed Snider said he decided to fire Hitchcock after a 9-1 loss to Buffalo last week, one of the worst in the franchise’s 40-year history.
“We don’t expect miracles, but we’re hoping for a lot better results,” Snider said.
Clarke spent parts of 19 seasons in Philly, while Hitchcock had four years under his belt with the organization.
“It’s disappointing personally I wasn’t given the opportunity to turn it around because I felt in my heart it was turning around,” said Hitchcock.
Clarke said the Flyers’ record played no role in his resignation.
“I felt strongly from the end of last season on, I don’t know if the right word is burnt out or tired, but the decisions that had to be made, I was not willing to make them,” Clarke said. “I was letting other people make them. I know I didn’t do the right job for this organization.”
