Flyers founder and chairman Ed Snider, who turned 80 on Jan.6, has received some rare criticism from media and fans after his team failed to make the playoffs this season. He spoke with Flyers beat writer Randy Miller about hot issues with the team, his role and a lot more.

Q: What's your take on the 2012-13 season? There was no training camp due to the lockout, then the Flyers got off to a slow start, never really recovered and ended up missing the playoffs for the first time in six seasons.

A: Truthfully, I think we would have been in the playoffs if we had played an 82-game schedule, but I don't know what would have happened as far our defensemen recovering from their injuries. It's hard to lose five or six guys late in the year. We did. But I don't really want to make excuses. Everybody has issues and it was just one of those years where a lot of players had down years. But I think they'll bounce back stronger than ever, quite frankly.

Q: You have been a big supporter of goalie Ilya Bryzgalov, who always seems to find his way into some kind of controversy, even though it's sometimes no fault of his own. Fans argue on social media about whether the Flyers should keep "Bryz" or buy out his contract. Do you think he's been treated unfairly by the media and fans?

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A: Welcome to Philadelphia! I think people are frustrated with our goaltending history and they really want to see someone come in and be Martin Brodeur. It's not the easiest thing in the world. Look at what happened to (Pittsburgh's Marc-Andre) Fleury, a quality goaltender, who last year fell apart in the first round against us and now this year fell apart against the Islanders. And he may have been one of the key guys responsible for Pittsburgh winning that Cup (in 2009). I think goaltender is the toughest position in sports and we see all kinds of things. Steve Mason, who we now have, lost his job in Columbus to Sergei Bobrovsky, then Mason himself said that our goaltending coach, Jeff Reese, adjusted something and helped him tremendously. Let's wait and see. The guy's got all the tools.

Q: True or not, the fan base believes that you are most responsible for the Flyers trading for Bryzgalov two summers ago and then signing him to a nine-year, $51-million contract. A lot of people also believe if Bryzgalov's contract isn't bought out that you'll be the reason.

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A: First of all, I didn't pick Bryz. That's not my job. Our staff picked Bryz of the available goaltenders and (general manager) Paul Holmgren basically decided that was the guy he wanted. My role in the whole thing was to say, 'We've got to get a quality goaltender. We can't go through what we went through that year with the goaltending in the (2010) playoffs.' I think we would have won that Cup (instead of losing in the Final to Chicago) if we had been a little more solid at the time in goal and not switching around so often. The point is that I don't get involved. I don't ever say, 'I'm signing this player.' I don't know enough about the players. We have scouts. We have Paul Holmgren. We have all the people that work for Paul that make these decisions.

Q: How about Holmgren's decision to go forward with Peter Laviolette as head coach? I take it you approved?

A: I think it was a very good move. Laviolette's got a great track record and he's a great guy. It's easy to point a finger at the coach when you don't have success, but none of us in the organization believed that he was the reason.

Q: Do you envision big roster changes this summer?

A: No, I don't see big changes coming.

Q: Getting back to Bryz: Looking at what he's done on the ice and everything else, do you think he should be back next season?

A: Talk to Paul Holmgren. We haven't had our end of the year meetings yet, so at this point, it's even premature to discuss that.

Q: You said, 'Welcome to Philadelphia' earlier. You haven't been criticized much through the years, but have been of late. Does it bother you?

A: It comes with the territory. We live in a fishbowl and I love the fact that the fans are so passionate and they all have an opinion. Every guy at the bar knows a hell of a lot more than I know, so what the hell difference does it make? I'm not going to beat myself up about it because I think they have every right to criticize. And sometimes we learn from it. We listen to them.

Q: You're 80 now, but seem to be sharp as a tack. Do you ever see yourself retiring?

A: Who the hell knows? Right now I'm still passionate, still involved. I still know a little bit about the game and I'm enjoying every minute of it. I realize there was a (Philadelphia Daily News) writer that compared me to (late Oakland Raiders owner) Al Davis. I don't think I compare to him because never in the history of the team have I made the decisions about players. I leave that up to my staff, the general manager and all his people. It's not my operating philosophy.

Q: Al Davis feuded with the NFL commissioner and made about 20 years worth of bad draft picks.

A: He sued the league, made all the decisions. He coached the team, was the GM of the team. I said to one of my friends, 'Can you name a general manager that ever worked for Al Davis?' Nobody could come up with a name. Al Davis made all the decisions and to be compared to him, quite frankly, is insulting.

Q: On a happier topic, tell me the latest about the Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation. I heard that you now have 3,000 kids participating in the four inner-city Philadelphia ice rinks that were remodeled.

A: No one had invested money in those neighborhoods in I don't know how many years, and the neighbors and the kids and everybody takes great pride in them. We're thrilled. We're saving lives. Kids that had no chance in life are now graduating school. We have a 98-percent graduate rate as opposed to about 50 percent in the general population there, and it's just a very exciting project that has gone beyond my wildest imagination.

Q: You tied the knot on Valentine's Day. What's it like to be 80 and married to a 45-year-old woman? Is she keeping you young?

A: I gotta keep up, right? Things are fantastic.

Q: You guys planning a summer vacation?

A: We'll spend a lot of time in Southern California. I have a home in Montecito, near Santa Barbara.

Q: You brought the NHL to Philadelphia and have done a lot of good for the city. Years down the road, how would you like people to remember you?

A: It's hard for me to comment on that. I think it's up to other people as to how I'm remembered.

Q: Sunday is the 39th anniversary of the Flyers beating Boston at the Spectrum to win the Stanley Cup for the first time. Tell me your memories of May 19, 1974.

A: It was incredible. I've never experienced anything like it before or since. It was an afternoon game, a 1-0 game. You're biting your lip and going nuts for the entire 60 minutes.

Q: The franchise was just in its seventh season. Did you think that you could win a Cup so quickly?

A: No I didn't, but then when I did, I thought I was going to win a hell of a lot more than we've won.

Q: The Flyers won two in a row, then none since. You were spoiled, huh?

A: Yeah. I thought it would be easier.

Q: If you win again, would it mean more now because it's been so long?

A: I don't think anything can be better than the first one, but it sure would rival it. It's been a long, long time. The fans are starved for a Cup. I'm starved for a Cup. It's a lot harder now because we have 30 teams.

Q: How optimistic are you that the Flyers will be back in the playoffs and have a shot to win the Cup next season?

A: I'm not only optimistic, I'm confident we'll be back in the hunt.
