The Philadelphia Flyers on Monday named Alain Vigneault as the 21st head coach in franchise history. After Joel Quenneville turned down an opportunity to go to Philadelphia, the Flyers coaching search under GM Chuck Fletcher centered on Vigneault and pretty much no one else over the last week. Dan Bylsma was never a consideration from Fletcher, league sources say, and the financial commitment to Vigneault is significant, 5 years – $25 million.  The hiring of Vigneault is a clear signal from Fletcher and the Flyers brass that the Ron Hextall days of being in the player development business are over. Vigneault, a Jack Adams Award winner who has won the Presidents Trophy twice in stints with VAN and NYR, has had great success in coaching veteran teams with Stanley Cup potential, but one of the major knocks of Vigneault in New York is he had little interest in developing younger players.  It’s a reason the Rangers paid him $4 million not to coach last season.

The Flyers with one of the deeper prospect systems in the NHL are closer right now to being a rebuilding team than a legitimate contender. Fletcher has tremendous pressure above him to make Flyers like splashy trades/signings this summer and he will try, but the development of their young players is going to be critical to a quick turnaround.