The Philadelphia Flyers will have a new athletic trainer in 2026-27.
Multiple sources confirmed to PHLY that Tommy Alva, the team’s head athletic trainer since 2022-23, will no longer hold the position in the coming season. He will be replaced by Alex Ambrose, who has served as assistant athletic trainer with the club since 2023-24.
A team source noted that while the Flyers were happy with the job that Alva did during his four-season run as head trainer, they felt it was time to make a change and believed Ambrose was the best candidate.
Ambrose held the position of head athletic trainer for two AHL clubs — the Charlotte Checkers and Springfield Thunderbirds — prior to joining the Flyers’ organization in 2023 as assistant trainer. As for Alva — who leaves the organization in the shakeup — he had spent over a decade as an assistant trainer in the Florida Panthers organization before behind hired in 2022 by then-GM Chuck Fletcher in the wake of Jim McCrossin’s medical issues and subsequent lawsuit against the organization (along with then-assistant trainer Sal Raffa).
Now, Ambrose will take over Alva’s former position — his first time serving as head trainer of an NHL club.
8 Comments (3 conversations)
Warren Broudy
Do you think the new trainer will improve the pp charlie?
Daniel Repka
I like you Warren. You get it.
Warren Broudy
I try 😂amazing how zippo help for pp this summer .
Ira Smith
Wow, a Flyers article, one more than EJ Smith has written in Birds in last 12 days.
Derrick Stagliano
Yea I suppose this may be vacation time for a lot of the writers, but I am pretty ticked off with the lack of content lately. The Phillies still have not had a single article posted about the trade deadline and pickups. That is hot garbage and is singlehandedly making me question my subscription.
If it were not for Charlie, I would have already cancelled my membership.
Ira Smith
Don’t think an Eagles writer should be on vacation now, just sayin
ifollowcharlieo
The beat writers deserve some summer down time, too. But, no argument—a few guest writers should be chipping in for the other sports like Alex Appleyard does when Charlie gets some time off.
That said, I don’t care about the Phillies and the Eagles coverage is decent. Now I care about the Sixers, too. But, Charlie is the reason I pay. The other stuff is just a bonus—it doesn’t keep me here.
David LaVeck
Thanks for the report, I wonder if this is just the natural order of this position or something else prompted this change? Either way, hopefully Alex Ambrose can help keep these players healthy throughout the season.