John Tortorella has a young Flyers team rolling. How? By changing his ways.

Flyers coach John Tortorella yells out instructions during the second period of their Stadium Series game against the New Jersey Devils at MetLife Stadium.

It seemed odd to put an angry old man at the head of a long-term rebuild that hinged on immediate production from a locker room full of kids, but so far John Tortorella is crushing it.

“The thing we’re probably most pleased with is how John has handled our younger players,” Danny Brière told me Tuesday. He was watching the second half of a spirited practice from a balcony at the team’s facility, coffee in his hand and smile on his face. “He’s been great.”

Playing a grudging brand of selfless hockey, the Flyers somehow sit sixth in the Eastern Conference with 67 points. They have 30 wins, one fewer than all of last season, with 25 games to play, and are primed for their first playoff berth in four years. Tortorella, twice elected the best at his craft, is again showing up on Coach of the Year short lists.

Flyers coach John Tortorella has his team outperforming preseason expectations.

How?

The return to health of Sean Couturier and Joel Farabee, the ascension of Travis Konecny to All-Star status, and the cohesion of their defense all helped. But the X-factor has been the kids.

From left to right: Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones, general manager Daniel Brière, and head coach John Tortorella.

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Entering the 82-game season Cam York, Egor Zamula, Tyson Foerster, Jamie Drysdale, and goalie Sam Ersson had not played in 100 NHL games. Morgan Frost had played in only 162. Their development has been the difference. Their development largely has been Tortorella’s doing.

A new leaf

The Flyers realized in the lost season of 2022-23 that they had to reset the club, so they replaced their general manager, their president, and their governor. They did not, however, change the man closest to the team — a fiery, 65-year-old taskmaster as famous for his scathing player reviews and combative interviews as for his 2004 Stanley Cup title with Tampa Bay and his 704 victories, which were 11th in NHL history.

Flyers head coach John Tortorella smiles during the team’s 3-2 victory the Seattle Kraken on Feb. 10 at the Wells Fargo Center.

The Flyers were horrible in Torts’ first season, which ended with far more questions than answers. The biggest question:

Could Torts, who’d made it to the top with the emotional intelligence of a wheelbarrow and the patience of a 6-year-old sugar fiend, nurture a group of talented, Gen Z twentysomethings?

He has. How?

“I have to coach differently now, especially with the younger guys, than back in the day,” Tortorella said Friday. “I think coaches need to respect that and not fight it. There are some things I struggle with, with the athletes. I really do. I’m dead against, sometimes, how they act. How they think. I’ve got to find a middle road as to how I coach then. How I treat them. How the conversations go.”

As recently as 2021 in Columbus, Tortorella entered heated, public disputes with young players. He used to be a bare-knuckles critic. Now, he wears kid gloves.

“It’s more empowering them than talking at them,” he said, and you could hear his teeth start to clench. “It’s more wanting some feedback … allow them to have some pushback, or be part of the conversation. I want them to be part of the conversation.”

They cannot, however, lead the conversation. You can feel him wrestling with the issue.

“There’s a fine line: How much empowerment do you give them?” he continued. “How much leeway do you give them?”

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Enough so they feel that they’re not victims; that they’re being heard; that they’re allowed to screw up a little bit.

“Much different in coaching the mistakes,” Tortorella said. “You need to allow them to make mistakes, and sort of pick and choose the important one as you try to mold them in your concept.”

None of that works unless longtime Flyers veterans buy in, and Couturier, his new captain; Konecny, an assistant; and the other assistant, Scott Laughton, have created a dressing room whose foundation is professionalism and respect.

“I credit the room for that,” Tortorella said. “We have a very transparent room. There’s a level of accountability that comes with it.”

Two-way street

The players appreciate the sea change in Tortorella’s manner.

“He understands how many young guys we have figuring out how hard of a schedule it is, how big of a grind it is,” Couturier said.

Frost knows the grind, but, at 24, he wasn’t always grinding the past two seasons, and he became a Tortorella target. After Tortorella scratched him for the 11th time in early January, Frost, who had 11 points in 27 games to that point, asked for a meeting. They cleared the air. Frost has 16 points in the 19 games since.

“We have a good understanding of each other now. I know what he expects from me,” said Frost, who grew a thicker skin. “I learned to take some of his criticism as motivation as opposed to letting it affect you. If you show you’re willing to do whatever on the ice, he’ll treat you right.”

Tortorella doesn’t coach only what happens on the ice. He’s watching in the weight room, in the cafeteria, on the plane, and in the hotel. York has grown grateful for that.

“It’s how you handle yourself away from the rink. Bring a pro every day. Your days in the gym. Carrying myself well. Being polite to people. Having the right attitude,” York said.

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York didn’t know what to make of Torts last year.

“As a kid, you grow up and see videos of him. It can be intimidating. Last year I feel I played intimidated by him,” York said. “This year, I know what he wants and expects. And he knows my game, too. This year I feel like he cares a lot more. So, I’m making sure I’m playing hard. Ready to play.”

That was Zamula’s biggest issue, too.

“Focusing before a game, during a game, after a game. Focusing when watching video,” he said. “Be ready for practice — focus. It’s only an hour, right? So go 100 percent. Be ready to play every game, every shift.”

Sounds simple. Can it last?

Home stretch

Tortorella has been disciplined for ripping refs, berating opposing players, and trying to break into an opponent’s locker room to crack a rival coach’s skull. He holds grudges against his peers, fosters feuds against the press ― he’s got a minor feud going on now ― and suffers no fools or frauds.

That said, he is a wonderful teacher of the game, he can be a charming speaker — he spoke for 42 seconds Tuesday but was expansive for 15 minutes Friday — and he is honest, often to a fault.

He admitted it’s been hard so far. But again: Can it last?

Of their next six opponents, only the Rangers on Saturday have more points than the Flyers. Still, they’ve played the last month without franchise goalie Carter Hart, who is facing charges of sexual assault in Canada.

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NHL games get tighter come March. The trade deadline looms March 8, which could strip the club of some veteran talent. There’s always the possibility of a late-season collapse, maybe a quick playoff exit, because they’re a pretty young team and they’ve never been there before and there’s nothing in sports as brutal and grueling as an NHL postseason.

Will Tortorella be this patient and understanding if everything crumbles and they’re a one-and-done playoff team?

Yeah. I think he will.

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