The Flyers hope his return to the franchise will push them out of an extended rebuild and into playoff contention.

Shaw, 61, was a finalist for the Flyers' head coaching job after serving as interim coach after John Tortorella was fired on March 27.

Shaw had an uphill battle at landing the Flyers’ full-time job. This was a huge decision for general manager Danny Briere and president of hockey operations Keith Jones. It was their first head coaching hire, one that could define their rebuild, so it felt likely that they would ultimately bring in their handpicked guy.