Jones 'thrilled' to lead Flyers as president of hockey operations

PHILADELPHIA -- Keith Jones being announced as the Philadelphia Flyers' new president of hockey operations was a surprise to many in the hockey world.

But there's one person Jones says wouldn't be.

"I don't think (Flyers founder Ed) Snider would be shocked that I'm standing here today," Jones said at his introductory press conference Friday. "I was a trusted confidant of his because I spoke honestly to him whenever he called. I think that's why I'm not shocked to be standing here. But I'm really happy to be standing here."

Snider died in 2016, but knew Jones, who played for the Flyers from 1998-2000 and has been their TV voice the past 20 years.

And while Snider may have known Jones had it in him to be a team president, the sight of the 53-year-old standing there in front of a banner that read "A New Era Of Orange" was unexpected by most others in the hockey world.

Jones is one of the most respected people in television -- and the present tense is correct, as Jones said his plan is to continue in his role as a national broadcaster with Turner Sports through the Stanley Cup Final, as long as his bosses approve.

But the opportunity to lead the new era of the Flyers was impossible to pass up.

"It was not an easy decision," he said. "But this is the only team that I would have ever thought about doing something like this. I would not have interviewed anywhere else. I have only done my job on television to do my job on television. I never campaigned to get in a position to take a job like this. I just wanted to do the best job I could in relaying the message to our fans here in Philadelphia of what our team was doing on the ice.

"When the opportunity arose I did think about it for about a minute, and that's stretching it; it might have been 10 seconds. The answer was yes."

The roots of Jones' loyalty to the Flyers runs deep. He played the final three seasons of his nine-season NHL career for them and has worked as the color analyst on Flyers TV broadcasts, in addition to his duties as a national broadcaster.

But more than that, he and his wife, Laura, and their daughter, Adrian, made a home in the area, and those roots run deep.

"I am thrilled to be able to give back to this city what it's given to me," Jones said. "When I arrived here in Philadelphia 25 years ago, I flew in from Colorado, a tremendous franchise. When I got the call and was informed it's the Philadelphia Flyers, I couldn't get here fast enough. When I landed here, I looked around at the city and I said 'I just can't believe I'm part of the Philadelphia Flyers.' We are going to get back to that."

Jones also felt a loyalty to his co-workers at Turner Sports, where he has worked the past two seasons.

"I was committed to not allowing anyone to know that I was doing it because I didn't want people to think that I was not doing my job properly," he said. "It was really important to me that the word did not get out and if I didn't get it, I didn't want people to think 'oh, he's one of these guys that's trying to get other people's jobs.' It was never the case. That's why there was so much secrecy behind the fact that I was interested.

"My best friends didn't know. My sisters texted me the day that it was announced, they were like 'Are you getting like a different job?'"

That different job will consist of being a public face of the Flyers' rebuilding effort and assuring that the hockey operations department and the business department all are working together for the betterment of the organization.

Jones sat on the dais Friday along with Daniel Briere, who had the interim tag removed from his title as general manager Thursday, and John Tortorella, who was named coach before this season.

They are the proclaimed leaders of the hockey side for the Flyers, but an unlikely trio tasked with helping Philadelphia return to glory: Tortorella, the gruff veteran of 21 seasons as a coach; Briere, who had been named interim GM on March 10 after spending two seasons as special assistant to the GM; and Jones, a front office rookie.

They have not been to the playoffs the past three seasons and have won just one series since 2013.

Tortorella never has shied away from expressing his opinion on any topic, especially his hockey team, and has a way of being the loudest voice in the room. Working with a first-time president could force Tortorella to go a few decibels higher, but the coach said he's looking forward to the experience.

"I think I can help them and they can help me," Tortorella said. "I think what the relationship is going to be is I think all three parties are willing to learn. I have strong convictions. I'm going to voice my opinion. I think they're the same way. They may do it a little bit differently than me, I'm sure. But I have to ... my listening skills are going to get better because I think I can learn from them. Do I think I can help them in certain situations? Absolutely. And I think they'll listen. And it's going to reciprocate."

And while Jones' default setting can be a smile, he said he won't be shy expressing his opinion as forcefully as needed.

"I can guarantee you my voice will be heard," Jones said. "I'm honest. I'm not going to be dishonest in any discussion I have. If I feel a certain way about something I will get that message across."

The message he had Friday was that the speed of the turnaround could be as surprising as the arrival of the person helping oversee it.

"I think I know what it takes to win a Stanley Cup because I've watched it up close every year," he said. "And I'm always so impressed by the team that wins it because it does take so many different things to make it happen. And we have some of those things in place. We have a long way to get the rest of those things in place, but there is enough here to work with.

"The timing is really good for me on a personal level. I'm really excited about helping us add the pieces necessary to get us back to be a contending team and a playoff team on a year-to-year basis.

"We have resources and we're going to build. ... And that's going to be a process. But we have the resources to do that. This is a great franchise to work for. We're very fortunate. And we're going to use those resources. We're going to push the envelope and we're going to be digging and we're going to find ways to get ourselves back quicker than it may appear."