Philadelphia Flyers interim general manager Daniel Briere acknowledged the team needs a multi-year rebuild as he campaigns to earn the job on a permanent basis.
Briere, 45, replaced GM Chuck Fletcher on Friday, who was fired after five seasons. Fletcher was also the team's president of hockey operations. Briere said he would be honored to fill either job opening but was focused on the general manager's position.
«I don't have a problem with the interim tag. I think [ownership is] going to take the proper time to evaluate who should be full-time in that position. I see myself staying here and being part of the future. I hope they believe in me as well. It feels that way,» he said.
Briere played with the Flyers for six seasons during his 17-year NHL career. He was hired as a special assistant to Fletcher last year and was involved in decisions like hiring coach John Tortorella.
Dave Scott, chairman of Comcast Spectacor and governor of the Flyers, has called the team's path back to Stanley Cup contention «a multi-year process.» Briere agreed with that timetable.
«There's no doubt in my mind that this isn't a quick fix. It's going to take a little while,» said Briere.
Fletcher famously said last season that the Flyers needed «an aggressive retool» rather than a rebuild. While Briere said he wasn't afraid to call the next phase of the team a «rebuild» but cautioned that doesn't mean Philadelphia will «have a complete new team» next season.
«We have to be careful. I want to make sure that 'rebuild' doesn't mean fire sale. There's a big difference between the two. So I want to make that clear. We're not going get rid of everybody. We have some good players here, some players that are in certain roles that we're going to keep as
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