MANALAPAN, Fla. — It would have been understandable for Daniel Briere to feel like his head was underwater this week in his first appearance as Flyers general manager at the NHL GM meetings — for him to be overwhelmed by adding this event on top of the thousands of tasks facing him in his first days on the job.
Advertisement
And he admitted Tuesday that he was a bit uneasy back in the role of a rookie nearly 24 years after making his NHL debut on March 19, 1998. But the player who was known as a stud playoff performer put on the same brave game face he wore in games for 17 years, soaking it all in over the first two days of the meetings, which will wrap up Wednesday.
“It’s funny, I was a little nervous coming in,” Briere said. “I didn’t know what the process was and how everything works. But at the same time, I was not intimidated.”
That’s impressive considering just a few days ago he had no idea he was about to be thrust into the Flyers’ GM chair, let alone that he would have to abruptly book a flight to South Florida to join his new brethren as one of 32 keepers of the game.
In hindsight, even though Briere’s life has been turned inside out — he’s a husband and father of four kids, including a one-year-old — the timing of the meetings turned out to be perfect. They’re a chance for him to begin building relationships and getting to know the other 31 GMs better.
“I get to see them face-to-face instead of trying to get on the phone with all the guys one-by-one,” Briere said. “So it was, in the end, kind of good timing.”
While Danny Briere might not be the GM of the future, just the fact he’s not Chuck Fletcher could appease Flyers’ fans for now, writes @DownGoesBrown. “It’s progress, at least, for a team that hasn’t seen much of it in years.”https://t.co/YrBjW4GagI pic.twitter.com/BT5orKN0Fz — The Athletic NHL (@TheAthleticNHL) March 13, 2023
Like he always does, Colin Campbell, the NHL’s senior executive vice president, opened the meetings by welcoming “the new guy.” The GMs then split up for breakout sessions, where Briere discussed trends in the game and potential changes with his new cohorts.
Advertisement
After the first day of the meetings Monday, Briere politely asked reporters if they’d mind if he spoke Tuesday because he was still trying to get his bearings and had a series of afternoon phone calls.
Plus, he had a pickleball match lined up with Lightning GM Julien BriseBois, Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen and NHL senior vice president of player safety George Parros, Briere’s former Canadiens linemate.
Kekalainen is the star of the pickleball court, the “No. 1 seed,” BriseBois quipped. “He was very impressive,” Briere confirmed. “He moves well on the court. A good group of guys. Good players that hopefully I can catch up to at some point.”
On Tuesday, Briere got to listen to presentations on a whole host of topics, from the potential expansion of coach’s challenges to friendly fire high-sticks and pucks over the glass resulting in delay-of-game penalties. GMs discussed eventually grandfathering in mandatory cut-resistance protection and whether fighting after a clean hit is becoming problematic.
Briere technically holds an “interim” label as Chuck Fletcher’s replacement. But the common belief is that at some point in the not-too-distant future, he’ll shed the label. And until then, he’s operating as if he’s going to be the full-time guy.
“That’s what I’m going with,” Briere said. “I have a feeling that they trust me. … There’s the word ‘interim’ there. But there’s also the word ‘GM,’ and I’ve got to move forward and deal with my staff and make sure there’s some guidance there and what needs to be done next.”
Briere has been so inundated, his phone actually crashed, losing a number of texts. And he’s already getting a wealth of advice from his new colleagues, many of whom he knows from his many years in the game.
He played with the Rangers’ Chris Drury and the Sharks’ Mike Grier, who’s wrapping up his rookie year as San Jose’s GM. He played against the Kings’ Rob Blake and the Wild’s Bill Guerin, among others. So there’s already more of a comfort level than if the 45-year-old walked blindly into a ballroom full of exec lifers.
Advertisement
“There’s some comfort in there, trying to do deals or things with people you know and have a comfort level with,” said Grier, Briere’s teammate with the Sabres from 2003 to ’06. “Danny is a nice guy, but we called him Sneaky B when we played. So I’m sure he’ll do what’s necessary and what’s right for his franchise. It’s not always a bad thing, but you want to treat everyone in the room (well). It’s kind of a special inner circle in there.”
Things have changed a bit since the old days, when things weren’t as friendly for the newbies.
Briere was five years old when Predators GM David Poile went to his first GM meetings after being named Capitals GM in 1982. Poile, who’s retiring on June 30, remembers those meetings like they were yesterday. Well, he actually doesn’t remember where they were held, but he does remember that “nobody talked to me.”
“It was very nerve-racking,” Poile said. “There were some guys — nameless — they wouldn’t even talk to me. Times have changed. That’s not the way it is these days. But some of those guys, they should be embarrassed (about) how they acted. Guess you had to earn your stripes.
“That won’t be that way for Danny. And part of my responsibility — manager or not — is to mentor. I think I’ve been doing that for a long time. Lots of people may not like that role, but I think it’s important.”
The Predators and Flyers have made GM changes. Who’s next? A look at other potential situations around the league. My latest: via @TheAthletic https://t.co/43bgg1K4HJ — Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) March 10, 2023
When BriseBois became Lightning GM, he got a call or text from every other GM within 48 hours. And he said Briere will learn how much he can lean on the other 31 GMs despite the competitive nature of each.
“The big part of what these meetings are is it gives us an opportunity to get to know each other in a more informal setting,” said BriseBois, who followed Monday’s pickleball foursome with a tennis match with Kekalainen on Tuesday. “Some guys went to golf. (Tuesday night) we’re doing something for David Poile. It’s informal and casual and relaxed and gives us a chance to get to know each other a little bit better, develop relationships and develop trust that makes all our jobs easier.
Advertisement
“Danny’s got a really good management group there (in Philly) that he can rely on. And he’s got a wealth of experience in that position.”
Briere, who scored 696 points in 973 regular-season games and 116 points in 124 playoff games, including a postseason-leading 30 points in 2010 while helping lead the Flyers to the Stanley Cup Final, retired from playing hockey in 2015 and began working for the Flyers as special assistant to the GM. He then spent five years running the ECHL Maine Mariners in Portland after Comcast Spectacor bought and relocated the franchise from Alaska. Briere was involved in everything from the business side to hockey ops, wanting to show everybody that he was willing to put in the time to learn a different side of the sport.
“It was completely new,” Briere said. “We didn’t have a name. We didn’t have a logo. We didn’t have colors. We didn’t have fans. We didn’t have players. So early on, the focus was on the business side to build the brand. It was interesting. It was great experience. I learned a lot.”
With the 2023 trade deadline past, Briere will spend most of the upcoming weeks evaluating his team, meeting with coach John Tortorella and the rest of his staff to discuss the direction he wants to take in the offseason. Player development, drafting and analytics are all facets of the job he values, but because of the juncture in the season, he said the coming weeks will probably be “quiet.”
Briere was not shy during his introductory press conference saying that he plans to rebuild the Flyers. While he doesn’t envision a fire sale and believes there is a strong core of young players to build around, he also doesn’t see a quick fix and believes fans will be patient because they want it done right.
Chuck Fletcher never was willing to utter the word “rebuild.” Danny Brière welcomed it in his very first media session. What we learned about Brière’s early vision, his chances of nabbing the full-time job, & how Brent Flahr & senior advisors fit in:https://t.co/r8Z7Yt8lX4 — Charlie O’Connor (@charlieo_conn) March 12, 2023
“I think mostly it’s getting to know the personnel a little better, getting in touch with everybody in the organization, creating relationships like these last couple days here,” Briere said. “That’s probably going to be the focus. I was around a lot. I got to know a lot of our personnel, a lot of our players. But diving a little deeper with the coaching staff, for example, on the players, getting to know them even better, getting their thoughts to, at some point, decide what we do when it gets right closer to the draft and free agency.”
And after meeting or reuniting with his new colleagues these past few days, he knows he has 31 people he can lean on.
Advertisement
“I do remember sitting around (at my first meetings) thinking, ‘These guys are really good. These guys are sharp. They know what they’re doing. I’ve got to bring my A game,’” BriseBois said, laughing. “But the guys are really welcoming. I think we all appreciate that there’s only 32 of us. These are really awesome jobs and opportunities and we don’t take it for granted.”
Staff Writer Sean Gentille contributed to this report.
(Top photo of Daniel Briere: Michael Russo / The Athletic)