It was only a matter of time.

The cleansing of the Philadelphia Flyers continued Monday with the announcement that Dave Scott, CEO of Comcast-Spectacor and Chairman of the Flyers, will retire April 1.

Scott will be replaced by Dan Hilferty, who joined the company last month as a co-CEO of Comcast-Spectacor with Scott, although Scott remained in charge of the Flyers.

This was not a surprise, as sources told Crossing Broad that Scott would be allowed to leave at season’s end when Chuck Fletcher was fired 17 days ago.

While this is somewhat of a golden parachute for Scott, who spent 30 years with Comcast, the last nine overseeing the Flyers -a tenure that will be a scar on the franchise’s history, it’s just the next step in a complete home makeover for the franchise:

”Working for both Comcast and Comcast Spectacor have been the opportunity of a lifetime, and I’m very proud of all that we’ve accomplished over the last 30 years,” Scott said in a statement. “It has been an incredible honor to work for such a terrific company and I’m very thankful to [Comcast Chairman and CEO] Brian (Roberts) for his trust in me. I’ve also been fortunate to work with so many fantastic colleagues and look forward to watching this company continue to grow under Dan’s leadership.”

Parachute or not, the fact that the change is happening is really good for the Flyers.

And make no mistake about it, more changes are coming – and Hilferty already has his fingerprints all over that process.

”I’ve enjoyed partnering with Dave since I joined Comcast Spectacor last month and I’m energized about the opportunity to further advance the company,” Hilferty said in a statement. “Our number one goal for the Flyers will be to consistently compete for the Stanley Cup. It is going to be a process that will take time to get on that path, but I’m confident we are headed in the right direction with Danny Briere as interim GM, Coach (John) Tortorella, and our hiring of a President of Hockey Operations soon. Our leadership team will be fully focused to deliver on this for our fans while also continuing to make the sports complex the best location for sports and entertainment in the nation.”

A self-described “tenacious” Flyers fan who grew up in Ocean City, N.J. and a graduate of St. Joseph’s University, Hilferty served as president and CEO of Independence Blue Cross for 10 years until 2020. He also recently led Philadelphia’s bid to become one of the 16 North American cities set to host the 2026 men’s World Cup.

Now he has the task of overseeing the rebuild from the ashes of a once-proud hockey franchise, and he’s going to give his people the opportunity to do it, unencumbered by long-time Flyers power players.

The senior advisors, especially Bill Barber, Bob Clarke and Paul Holmgren, will no longer serve in those specific roles with Briere and whomever the new President of Hockey Operations turns out to be. Nor will Hilferty rely on them as much as Scott did.

Instead, their roles, if they choose to keep them, will transition more toward emeritus status. Never turning them away and always honoring their commitment and dedication to the organization, but also not giving them the pull that they’ve always had.

This will allow the new front office to shape things as they see fit, bring in their own people, and effort to rebuild the franchise in a way not seen before with the Flyers.

And there might be some recognizable names that end up being part of this – and maybe even some that have past Flyers ties, but they will not be individuals that are part of the “Network” as it has existed for 56 years in Philadelphia.

Scott’s retirement all but brings to an end La Nostra Cosa Aranciana.

Instead, they will be a new breed of hockey executives and do things differently than you’ve ever seen before, and right now, with the exceptions of Hilferty, Briere and, Tortorella, nobody’s job should be considered safe.

Welcome to the Philadelphia Flyers 2.0. The next four months are going to be fascinating.

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