Trevor Zegras is finally breaking out for the Flyers. After coming over in a blockbuster trade with Anaheim over the summer, looking to build up his game after a challenging couple of seasons with a struggling organization, Zegras has been nicely able to hit the ground running right from the jump, bringing some immediate pop in the preseason and working well to build up his game from there. All the same, though, while the Flyers have gotten some good work from him in the early goings, there was still the lingering feeling of waiting on a true statement game to be put together from him.
Yesterday afternoon, though, things changed for him. While the Flyers began this game looking a bit disconnected and a bit frustrated in turn against the Islanders, as they tried to find a way to get their offense going but struggled against the speed with which the Islanders were getting sticks on them and breaking up their chances. And as they settled into the season period, down two goals, they desperately needed something to break for them, and Zegras stepped up in a big way to facilitate that — with a huge effort to find Christian Dvorak crashing towards the net with a long pass, setting up their first goal of the night, the Flyers were able to find a bit of a jolt and get themselves back into the game. Zegras wasn’t done there either, and he was able to build on that effort in the third period, scoring early in the frame to tie things up for the Flyers, and then again on the power play on a nice — if chaotic — jam play to tie things up again after the Islanders’ response goal, and finally tallying one in the shootout to help secure the win.
“He’s been working at his game since training camp,” head coach Rick Tocchet said postgame. “You know like I said, spending time in the video room, grabbing a coach here and there, watching the games, asking questions. And yeah, he delivered tonight, there’s some high-end… you know there’s moments in the game where, we have to get used to it, it’s going to be tight, and to have a guy like him who can, you know, make those big plays for us, which he did.”
“He’s having fun”
The Flyers have been a bit short on game breakers in their lineup of late, and as the league seems to be getting tighter and tighter, that they’ve found someone who can step up into this role for them in Zegras is sure to be a big boost as the season goes on. It’s been a noticeable shift in Zegras, too, for those who knew him going back to his time in Anaheim, as he’s embracing the opportunity for a reset that this change of scenery has afforded him.
“You can tell he’s having fun,” Jamie Drysdale said after the game, “just has a smile, a lot of charisma, so he fits in great, he’s buzzing, he’s funny, he’s playing some great hockey all over the ice, so I know our team and myself are really happy to see that.
“I think he was overdue,” he added. “He’s been playing some great hockey, getting his looks, he’s been setting up and creating a lot for other people, so it was nice to see him get on the board tonight, [he] deserving, and he’s been great so far.”
Saturday saw him deliver a truly impressive singular effort, finally the extra bit of pop we’d been hoping to see from him eventually, and it’s a game that, all in all, has felt like it’s been a long time coming. There’s a lot that Zegras has been doing well in his game up to this point — he had an assist in five of their last six games, and came into this one as one of the team’s better play drivers, with a 52.27 CF% and 60.70 xGF% (top-five on the team in both metrics) at 5-on-5 — but that first goal of the season just proved a little extra elusive to him. That he finally got it in such a meaningful game — a big bounce back effort at home against a divisional rival — feels a nice reward for some work well done, and a positive moment overall for a player who’s so immediately endeared himself to his new teammates.
“He fit right in right away,” said Noah Cates, “so it’s awesome to see him, you know, happy, mix right in. You know, he was friends with some guys before but now he’s buddies with everyone, he’s messing with everyone, even with the coaches, he jokes around with them, so it’s a good presence, and awesome for him to have a huge game and get his confidence back, because he’s such a special player.”
Zegras spotlighting team over his individual performance
Ever the team player, though, when asked for his thoughts on his individual performance, Zegras instead shifted the focus to the collective strength of the win, from his teammates up and down the lineup.
“It was nicer to get the win,” he said postgame. “I thought [Ersson] played great, [Hathaway] had a great fight to get us going, and then that whole line sitting in the box for us was pretty cool too. It was a big win for us back at home, and we want to be a tough team to play here so I was more fired up about that.”
Saturday saw Zegras bringing, in a number of areas, the very best of his game. Flexing a dynamic level of passing with an equally high-end and hard-working finishing skill along with a responsible game away from the puck, it’s clear that Zegras is both buying well into his new team’s new system, and getting comfortable enough to at last begin to take off running. There’s a lot to like in his game when he’s going on all cylinders, and as impressive as his effort was against the Islanders, in some ways, it feels like it’s him just scratching the surface.
“I would say [it was] vintage Z,” Drysdale went on, “but he’s always got tricks up his sleeve, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you see more and more throughout the year.”
All stats via Natural Stat Trick.
