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Sean Couturier and Rick Tocchet are Passive-Aggressively Arguing in the Media About Whether the Flyers are Soft, Which Can’t Be Good

By Matt Schultz

Published: Oct 30th, 2026 · 4:39 PM EDT

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Are the Flyers soft? Yeah, probably. Is it good that the team captain and head coach have been subtly arguing about it in the media over the last couple days? Probably not. Feels like a conversation that should’ve stayed in the locker room. But in this increasingly nightmarish Flyers season, we all probably should’ve expected that the normal, simple method of conflict resolution wouldn’t be in the cards.

If you haven’t heard, Sean Couturier got the Flyers Are Soft Conversation going on Wednesday after a 5-2 loss to the Capitals, Philadelphia’s 12th L in 15 games, which is truly, remarkably bad:

"At times this year, we're soft, I would say."

Sean Couturier was honest about the Flyers' weaknesses after they dropped their 12th of the last 15 games. | @Ford pic.twitter.com/gsXt63H5x5

— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) October 29, 2026

“You know, at times this year, we’re, you know, soft, I would say. Not hard on battles and, um, you know, lose battles easily. You know, it’s one thing to make mistakes and, you know, not win a battle, but if you’re in there trying ard and stuff it’s different. But, um, yeah, we definitely to, to pick up our physicality and our — I mean, it goes into competing as well I think.”

Coots apologists online were quick to point out that this is the exact sort of thing a captain is supposed to do: call out a problem when you see one, use your voice, try to light a fire under some guys’ asses, etc., etc. And in a vacuum, I agree. I don’t have a huge problem with a captain saying this stuff, especially on a team skidding as hard as the Flyers are. Someone’s gotta do something, and this is Coots doing something.

On the other hand, the anti-Coots contingent of the fanbase — who seem to make up the majority, from what I’m seeing — highlighted how lame it was for Couturier of all people to talk to the media about softness. They called out the irony of Coots pointing the finger, a guy who has just one goal in 19 games, and conveniently waited until he scored his first one of the season on Wednesday to start throwing teammates under the bus:

Well look no further than the old ass captain that has only been part of a losing organization and is extremely overpaid for the very little 4th line contribution he brings. Coots is a fuckin bum, and always has been.

— Heywood Jablomey (@MikeRowdik157) October 29, 2026

He should talk, a guy that has been stealing money for years. 8 million a year. 1 lousy goal. Retire

— joseph r mooney (@irishmoon617) October 30, 2026

Says the guy who gets off talking shit on his players in the media. Holy shit I cannot stand this asshole

— SnipGagné (@SnipGagne) October 30, 2026

The softness discourse only got louder from there, when Rick Tocchet addressed Coots’ comments on Friday:

QUESTION: “When Sean Coutierer uses the word ‘soft,’ when Nick Seeler says too many guys are thinking ‘me, me, me,’ you know, I know culture has been stressed here basically since the start of this rebuild — are you worried that’s going sideways here a little bit? How do you view that?”

TOCCHET: “I don’t view a soft team. I think Coots was a little out of context, and I talked to him — he said sometimes. And you know, you guys see it, sometimes we look like we’re a little bit shy going into certain situations. And that’s stuff that we’ll have to deal with, adversity, expectations, you know, and like I said, we have a young team… Those are the learning things we’re preaching every day, and they’re getting it… I think overall, you know, we gotta deal with adversity and expectations a little bit better.”

QUESTION: “So you’re not worried about the culture in the room?

TOCCHET: “No, it’s the same — I mean, a lot of the chunks is the same team as last year that had a lot of character. You don’t just lose character in three weeks. But, and if you do have something to say to the media, like, make sure it’s in the room. Like if you say some of us are playing soft, then tell your teammate when you’re having dinner. ‘Hey man, you gotta — we need more from you.’ That’s okay. But I think you just gotta be careful when you, you know — I don’t think we’re a soft team.”

So Tocchet just fully disagreed with what Coots was saying here, right? That’s what I’m hearing. Coots says the Flyers have a problem with effort and how hard they’re competing. Tocchet responds by saying he’s not worried about the culture in the locker room and is adamant that they’re not a soft team. That’s opposite stuff. These guys are arguing here. And they’re throwing digs at each other in the press while doing it.

Ultimately, whether or not the Flyers are indeed soft, I think we can all agree that this team is a mess. The culture, the vibe, the product on the ice — everything is bad. Maybe we should’ve seen this coming:

1) Rick Tocchet is hired.
2) Team over performs
3) Locker room falls apart the next season. pic.twitter.com/vHaHsVpSRE

— JumanjiTruther (@JumanjiTruther) October 29, 2026