Although he’s been playing the past two seasons at left wing, new Flyer forward Trevor Zegras is on board with a move back to his natural position at center.
Zegras, acquired from Anaheim on Monday in exchange for Ryan Poehling and draft picks, could help the Flyers build some depth in the pivot.
During a media Zoom call on Tuesday, Zegras said he’s open to all possibilities. After all, his two best seasons (23 goals each) happened when he played in the middle.
“I kind of played center my whole career up until two seasons ago,” Zegras said. “I’ve always felt more comfortable there. I think there are areas to work on other than faceoffs, like (play) in front of the net.
“I think it was good to learn the wing, different responsibilities. Kind of see where this goes with a new coach (Rick Tocchet) and a new team. But it will definitely be exciting to be back in the middle for sure.”
Whenever an NHL player gets traded, his first thoughts go to what friendly faces he knows on his new team.
In Zegras’ case, he’s excited about being reunited with defenseman Jamie Drysdale. They will be back together when the Flyers’ season opens in October.
Drysdale arrived here midway through last season after forward Cutter Gauthier was shipped out west. Zegras has only been a Flyer a day or so but already sounds comfortable with his surroundings.
“I guess my initial reaction was I was real excited to go to this team,” he said. “When I heard it was Philadelphia it was really cool because I had played with Jamie for two years.”
Another attraction point for Zegras might be the possibility of centering a line with up and coming star Matvei Michkov on one of the wings. Michkov led all NHL rookies in goals last season with 26.
“From all the (video) clips and highlights I’ve seen, he’s a really smart, skilled forward,” Zegras said. “A lot of creativity, a really good nose for the net.”
The Bedford, N.Y. said he was aware of trade rumors involving him which have been floating around the NHL for the past year or so. They might have been a bit of a distraction but at least now he can focus on games and not speculation reports.
“I think there’s ups and downs with that stuff,” he said. “Probably the first time in my career those started coming up. It’s definitely not an excuse (for below average production). Now it’s behind me and I can move on. Looking forward to a new start in Philadelphia.”
Zegras had the chance to speak with Tocchet briefly.
“I talked to him on the phone yesterday,” Zegras said. “It was a good conversation, he’s an awesome guy. Someone I’m very excited to play for. I have a couple friends (who played for Tocchet) and they had really good things to say about the kind of guy he is and the relationships he has with his players. That’s something I’m very excited for.”
On a lighter note, Zegras indicated he’s looking forward to getting back on the tennis court with his old pal Drysdale.
“He stinks at tennis,” Zegras said with a smile. “I don’t think he’s ever beaten me at tennis. But he’s a good golfer. Got to get more emotion out of him. I don’t know if you saw it but he had a hole in one the other day. He didn’t even seem like he was excited. Hopefully we can get the juices going.”
Injury issues have slowed Zegras the past two seasons. He’s hoping to stay healthy this season and get things back on track. He’s on the final year of a three-year, $17.5-million contract and would like to get things going again for the next big financial commitment.
“I guess from a production standpoint, it’s not what I expect out of myself,” he said. “I felt like I was doing all the right things, did everything I was asked to do. I think I learned a lot over the last two years, about myself and what I’m capable of.
“I learned a lot about myself and hopefully I take that to Philadelphia with me and show the best version of myself.”
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