Bobby Clarke Reveals Grim Details Of Hextall’s GM Term

Ron Hextall’s era as General Manager in Philadelphia was initially something that was hailed by many fans and pundits when he was hired, but when he was fired four years later, the departure happened. in a dark cloud. Hextall is currently General Manager of the Flyers’ Pittsburgh Penguins, and the Flyers are still trying to find their way back into being a consistent playoff contender.

Former Flyers and Hockey Hall of Fame General Manager Bobby Clarke was a guest on Podcasts of Cam and Strick this opened the door for Flyers’ Legend to put on file some scathing details about Ron Hextall’s tenure as Flyers’ GM:

“(Ron Hextall) alienated everyone at once; he closed the door, locked the door, he was the boss and no one else was a part of[the decision-making]. We got the second pick of the bunch. Draft (2017 NHL) and we ended up drafting Nolan Patrick; none of our scouts wanted Nolan Patrick, I don’t know where Patrick was supposed to go… he was a bridge pretty good player but (the scouts) wanted (Cale) Makar Of course he went through (in the draft), now he’s a superstar and Patrick hasn’t played (at that level) But Hextall made that choice on its own, and there were other picks made in our draft that we’re paying for; you know, we had two or three picks in the first round. will never compete and that’s why (Flyers) are struggling.”

The casting of Nolan Patrick was definitely a hugely flawed decision for Ron Hextall’s part and the Flyers would have been much better for Cale Makar. Makar won the 2019-20 Calder Trophy (NHL’s Rookie of the Year Award) and he picked up 125 points in 129 games against the Colorado Avalanche. Patrick’s inability to be a consistent contributor prompted the current Flyers General Manager to remove him from the Vegas Golden Knights.

Bobby Clarke’s depiction of Hextall as the tyrannical General Manager is both eye-opening and very informative about why certain things have happened in those four years. If Hextall unilaterally released the roster and draft decision, without consulting with team scouts, then this explains why their draft record for those four years is so conflicting. so.

Clarke also revealed some interesting details about the deal that brought Brayden Schenn to St. Louis Blues in exchange for a 2017 NHL Draft 1st round pick (turning into Morgan Frost) along with a conditional 2018 first round pick (turning into Joel Farabee) and Jori Lehtera (who played two seasons in Philadelphia) ). Clarke’s account of what happened paints an ugly situation:

“(The Schenn trade with the Blues) was just as bad, no one knew it, Hexy took it upon himself (the trade). The chance to get (Ryan) O’Reilly from Buffalo (and) them. I didn’t… It was another (decision) that the scouts were not consulted with.”

To be fair, scrapping the Schenn deal with Farabee and Frost is a solid return in that deal. But the reality is that Hextall refuses to work with the rest of the Flyers organization, the chance to get Ryan O’Reilly from Buffalo before the Blues land him, and the dark picture of Hexy’s grip on power. iron punch is a bad look for a guy. who was a very popular player during the years he was in the middle of the pipeline for the Flyers.

Ironically, O’Reilly and Schenn were major contributors to St. Louis Blues win the Stanley Cup 2019 with the Head Coach that Ron Hextall fired: Craig Berube. Many Flyes fans are still unhappy about Berube’s sacking and it seems that Hextall has done more to help the Blues win the title than he has helped the Flyers to achieve.