The Philadelphia Flyers have announced they have made several additions and promotions to their hockey operations staff, not only for the Flyers but for their American Hockey League affiliate Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
Perhaps the most notable addition to the team is former captain Jason Smith joining the coaching staff of the Phantoms under new head coach and long-time Flyers assistant Ian Laperrière.
Smith made the most of his only season playing with the Flyers in 2007-08, helping lead the team back to the playoffs after their League-worst record the previous campaign and within three wins of a berth in the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals.
Prior to his arrival in the City of Brotherly Love in 2007, Smith had played with the Edmonton Oilers, also serving as team captain and helping lead them on their Cinderella-story run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals, losing in a heartbreaking seven game series against the Carolina Hurricanes. In over 1,000 regular season NHL games, Smith suited up for the New Jersey Devils (1993-97), Toronto Maple Leafs (1997-99), Edmonton Oilers (1999-2007), Philadelphia Flyers (2007-08) and Ottawa Senators (2008-09) before calling it a career.
While playing with the Flyers, Smith scored one goal with nine assists while also racking up 86 PIM.
He returns to the Flyers with coaching experience under his belt in the Western Hockey League, having served as associate coach of the Prince George Cougars from 2019-21 and was the head coach of the Kelowna Rockets for parts of three seasons from 2016-17 to the start of the 2018-19 season. He also served behind the bench as an assistant with the Ottawa Senators after his playing days.
The Flyers also announced that Mike O'Connell would be joining the Flyers as Senior Advisor to the General Manager/Player Development from the Los Angeles Kings where he was a Pro Scout, Player Development Consultant and Senior Advisor to the General Manager for the past 15 years (2006-21). Meanwhile, they also announced the addition of Pro Scout Nick Beverley, who joins the Flyers staff after having spent the past 16 years as a scout for the Nashville Predators, a role he had since July of 2005.
Additionally, Matt Bardsley joins the Flyers as an Amateur Scout after having spent the last 14 years in the Western Hockey League with the Portland Winterhawks (1999 to 2018) and Kamloops Blazers (2018-21).
