Patrick Sharp takes front office job with Philadelphia Flyers, continuing shakeup to Chicago Blackhawks’ TV booth

Patrick Sharp has left his role as Chicago Blackhawks TV color analyst after one season to take a personnel position with the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Flyers announced Tuesday that Sharp, a former forward with the Hawks and Flyers, has been named special adviser to hockey operations.

“In adding Patrick Sharp to our group, we are gaining an individual who has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to building an environment of winning at all levels,” Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones said on the team’s website. “Patrick knows what it takes to win, he understands how to convey that to our players and is a relationship maker. He will be a vital component as we continue to build the foundation of the Philadelphia Flyers.”

General manager Daniel Brière, who the Flyers hired along with Jones a month ago, added, “Patrick is a well-established veteran on-and-off the ice and his incomparable hockey knowledge will be a valuable asset to our organization and young prospects.”

According to the team, the 41-year-old Sharp will focus on prospect development and report to Brière.

“Patrick Sharp is loved by our fans and we will all miss him on our broadcasts and around the team,” Hawks president of business operations Jamie Faulkner said in a statement. “Our fans loved his quick wit and insight into the games.”

Last season, the Hawks hired Sharp, a three-time Stanley Cup champion (2010, 2013 and 2015) and alternate captain, to replace longtime broadcaster Eddie Olczyk after contract talks with Olcyzk unraveled and he joined the Seattle Kraken’s broadcast team.

Sharp split TV duties with Troy Murray as play-by-play man Chris Vosters’ on-air partner for the Hawks. Vosters was one of several candidates to audition for the role during Pat Foley’s farewell season in 2021-22.

Sharp was a Flyers’ 2001 third-round draft pick and spent his first three NHL seasons in Philadelphia (though he only played three games in his first season in 2002-03). The Flyers traded him to the Blackhawks on Dec. 5, 2005, where he played until the trade to the Dallas Stars after the 2014-15 season. He came back to Hawks for one more season in 2017-18, then retired.

The Hawks hired former St. Louis Blues analyst Darren Pang last week, signaling changes to the broadcast team were in the works. Pang will partner with Vosters in the TV booth.

Pang, a former Hawks goalie, said in a statement via the Hawks, “It’s an honor to return to Chicago and join the broadcast booth at such an exciting time for this franchise. Coming back to where my NHL playing and broadcasting career started means a lot to me and my family.

“Chris Vosters is one of the best young broadcasters in the game, (and) I look forward to working with him and telling the story of Blackhawks hockey to the great fans of this organization.”

In addition to those moves, the Hawks and now-former between-the-benches interviewer Colby Cohen came to a mutual decision to part ways last week too.

Cohen is returning to the Philadelphiaarea, though he said he’s not joining the Flyers broadcast team.