Last week, Philadelphia Flyers head coach John Tortorella decided that he would move up to the press box in the hopes of gleaning a different look at his club with a bird’s eye view.
In his self-imposed absence, Flyers assistant coach Rocky Thompson, as well as associate coach Brad Shaw, have taken the reins, working the bench and acting as the pseudo-head coach.
That also involved taking questions from the media post-game, as was the case following Philadelphia’s 4-2 drubbing at the hands of the lowly St. Louis Blues on Tuesday. Thompson, who steered the ship as the Flyers dropped their fourth straight, was quite blunt in his assessment of the roster’s current state and compete level.
“Quite frankly, it looks like some guys in here don’t even care,” Thompson told reporters. “They’re just not trying.”
The Blues’ 285 goals against this season is tied for fifth-worst in the league, yet the Flyers’ meagre offence, mustering just two goals against Jordan Binnington and his .892 save percentage, looked milquetoast against one of hockey’s weakest defensive outfits.
“I’m not going to call out anybody individually, but your teammates know, and you know,” Thompson added ominously. “I’ll give everybody another chance, and if you’re going to (try), then I’ll keep playing you.”
