Flyers name Scott Gordon as head coach of Lehigh Valley Phantoms

WHEN RON Hextall met with reporters during last week's prospect development camp, the Flyers general manager said the team wasn't all that close in naming a new Phantoms coach.

Turns out he was pretty close after all.

The Flyers announced Monday morning that Scott Gordon has been named the new head coach of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the Flyers' AHL affiliate. Gordon, 52, fills the void left by Terry Murray, who left the organization last month to assist new Buffalo Sabres coach Dan Bylsma.

Gordon said he spoke with Hextall on Thursday and said it all "came together pretty quickly."

Gordon is only the second coach in Phantoms history to come with no previous ties to the Flyers organization since the Flyers purchased control of the team in 1996. The other, Greg Gilbert, lasted only 13 games in the 2010-11 season.

"We are extremely pleased to add Scott to our organization as head coach of our top affiliate in the Lehigh Valley," Hextall said in a statement. "He brings a proven track record of success and knowledge as a coach at all levels, and we are confident he can help develop our prospects through our system, as well as lead the Phantoms back to the Calder Cup playoffs."

Gordon was the head coach of the New York Islanders from the start of the 2008 season until being fired in mid-November in 2010 after the team limped to a 4-10-3 start. His overall record on Long Island was 64-94-23, though he was tasked with guiding an Islanders team going through a rebuild.

In the summer of 2011, Gordon was hired by Toronto to be an assistant to Maple Leafs head coach Ron Wilson. Gordon was let go after the 2013-14 season while working under Randy Carlyle.

He has prior AHL coaching experience, as well, spending eight seasons in Providence, a little more than five of which as the team's head coach. While at Providence, Gordon compiled a record of 221-141-20, leading the Bruins to the Calder Cup playoffs in five seasons. In his final season before making the jump to the NHL, Gordon led Providence to a league-leading 117 points and won coach of the year.

Gordon also coached at the ECHL level and was an assistant coach for Team USA in the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, when the team took home a silver medal.

Gordon, a Brockton, Mass., native, played 23 games in the NHL as a goalie for the Quebec Nordiques. A Boston College grad, Gordon spent eight seasons as a pro, including parts of six in the AHL.
Despite coaching at the highest level, Gordon said he looks forward to getting back into the American Hockey League.

"I missed the teaching part of it that you get in the American League vs. the NHL," Gordon said. "The NHL does have some teaching, but there's a lot more preparation. You're playing almost every other day, and I missed the fact that in the AHL you're at it every single day trying to get the players better, and you spend more time as far as practice and preparation."

Gordon, who said his coaching style was predicated on speed and pressure, was asked about the Flyers' current stable of prospects, specifically on the blue line. He said he didn't know much about the current prospects or Phantoms roster before meeting with Hextall, but said his NHL experience could go a long way in developing the organization's prospects.

"Probably, I have a better point of reference, what it's like to be in the NHL, as far as what's needed to do to prepare to get there and to stay there," Gordon said.

"I think, by nature, they all think it's probably a little bit easier as far as getting [to the NHL] and the process isn't as involved as it is. I know from myself, I thought American League hockey was below college hockey when I was playing. I found out very quickly that wasn't the case. It's not an easy task to get to the NHL."

Hextall has been advocating that the team's development and future likely will come from within, through the draft and then developing talent through the system.

The ultimate goal, Hextall says, is trying to turn prospects into pros more quickly. Hiring Gordon, who has worked at multiple professional levels, lends to that theory.

"Hopefully, it will be a situation where — and I know Ron had mentioned this — ideally you'd like to get to the point where you're in a situation like Manchester [Los Angeles Kings affiliate], where they go primarily with prospects and win a Calder Cup," Gordon said.

Former Flyer Riley Cote, who Hextall indicated was a candidate for the Phantoms job earlier in the offseason, will remain in Lehigh Valley and assist Gordon. Gordon said he and Hextall had initial conversations about adding another assistant to the staff, but no final decision has been made.

On Twitter: @Jeff_Neiburg