Danny Briere has tasted the Flyers-Devils rivalry, one that sprouted back in the mid-90s.
His last playoff game in a Flyers jersey came against New Jersey during the second round of 2012. The Flyers lost the series in five games despite Briere's three goals and two assists. The Devils went all the way to Stanley Cup Final and fell to the Kings.
Since then, both organizations haven't experienced much postseason success. The Flyers have only one series victory and have missed the playoffs seven times over the last 11 seasons. New Jersey also owns just one series victory and has missed the playoffs nine times.
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The Devils clinched that one series win earlier this month. They're seeing a long process of stockpiling young talent start to pay off. New Jersey blossomed this season, finishing with the NHL's third-most points (112) and advancing to the second round of the playoffs, where it lost to the Hurricanes.
Because of their youth, the Devils look poised for multiple postseason runs.
Shoving the rivalry aside, Briere had no problem offering kudos to the counterpart.
"You can even look to a team like New Jersey, who was kind of spinning their wheels but they were rebuilding and doing it the right way. Then, boom, this year they pop and they're one of the best teams in the NHL," the Flyers' general manager said earlier this month after an introductory press conference. "I give them credit, they were patient, they didn't let the noise affect them. That's going to be the biggest — probably toughest — thing for us, is going to be stay patient and keep with the process that we believe in."
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Briere was named the Flyers' full-time GM two weeks ago. Along with president of hockey operations Keith Jones, Briere will be tasked with attempting to rebuild the franchise into a contender. The Flyers have lost 108 games over the last two seasons (56-84-24) and are now marketing a new era under new leadership. They're stressing the importance of turning things around the right way.
This season, the Devils' top four goal scorers — Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, Nico Hischier and Dawson Mercer — were all 24 years old or younger and drafted by the organization.
Briere has noted how the Flyers "might need a little bit of patience from the fans" in developing a young foundation.
"If I can put a Stanley Cup contender on the ice in October 2023, I would do it. Obviously it's not realistic," Briere said. "It depends on how things fall into place, it depends how players develop. There are so many things at play. I think it's too premature at this point to put a number on it; so many things have to fall in place before we have a better idea of kind of where we're going."
A fascinating aspect to the Flyers' direction will be the dynamic in hockey ops. Jones, Briere and head coach John Tortorella, along with others, will collaborate on decisions. How will everything work with different voices and opinions? Jones is in his first front office role, Briere is a first-time GM and Tortorella has over 20 years of head coaching experience.
Briere emphasized the value of teamwork, citing his playing days.
"I wanted the best wingers to be on my side to come to something special," Briere said. "I'll give you an example, playing with Ville Leino and Scott Hartnell. I think we were better as a line than we were probably individually. That's kind of the same thing with me. I'll have my opinion, but it doesn't mean that I'm always right. I want the opinion of others around me to come to the best answer. I'm believer of that — teamwork is important and that's how I'm going to lead.
"Today, you saw on the hockey side, you saw Keith and you saw Torts, but there's more than that. Our staff, everybody's going to have their say and at the end of the day, we're going to discuss and the three of us are going to find a way to get to the best answer or the best solution when it comes down to it. I couldn't feel better about it. I'm really ecstatic."
The Flyers found a way to split their four-game regular-season series with New Jersey. One of the Flyers' two losses was a 7-0 blowout at a rowdy Prudential Center in late February. After the loss, Tortorella mentioned the Devils' rebuild.
"We're not there with that team. I don't know how else to say it," the head coach said. "It's not a criticism of our team, but we're not anywhere near there right now. This was probably them a few years ago, Jersey, when they were going through their process."
Briere viewed this season as a step in the right direction for the Flyers from an identity standpoint. In Year 1 under Tortorella, the Flyers felt they were harder to play against and more structured.
"Just talking to other executives from different teams, that was the thing that kept coming back," Briere said. "Coming here facing the Flyers was tough because Torts has started implementing his system."
In Year 2, the Devils will continue to be a huge test for the Flyers — and maybe a reminder of their process.