It’s only been a few games, but it’s becoming increasingly clear that the Philadelphia Flyers knocked the Trevor Zegras trade well out of the park.
GM Danny Briere wanted to add more talent and dynamism to a rebuilding and uninspiring Flyers team, and so he went out and did it.
For the cost of Ryan Poehling – a serviceable bottom-six center with rockets for skates – a 2025 second-round pick, and a 2026 fourth-round pick, Briere acquired Zegras.
Zegras, 24, is still young, obviously, comes with a former top-10 pick pedigree, and scored 60 points in his age-20 and age-21 seasons.
Effectively, the Flyers got younger and more talented at the price of two middling draft picks.
A rocky two seasons in Anaheim with the Ducks pushed Zegras out quicker than many fans out west would’ve hoped, but the wildly skilled forward has already found a new home in Philadelphia. That, more than anything, could be the most important part.
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Reunited with friends Cam York and Jamie Drysdale, as well as former teammate Nick Deslauriers, Zegras is off to a blazing start with the Flyers, rattling off assists in five straight games.
It’s a lot to ask, of course, but if Zegras keeps this up, he could very well be in for a career year that sees him exceed his previous career-high of 65 points, set back in the 2022-23 season.
The 24-year-old has featured for Rick Tocchet’s Flyers at center and wing, and while the flip-flopping has been a source of controversy amongst fans, it’s Zegras’s work ethic that will ultimately allow him to succeed.
Tocchet himself believes this.
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“He’s a smart kid. But what I like about him is that he knows there’s more. Like, he texted me [Monday night and said], ‘I want to watch some video with you.’ He wants it, you can tell,” Tocchet was quoted as saying of Zegras by PHLY’s Charlie O’Connor.
“Because he feels there’s plays out there that he can make even more.”
One of those plays that riled everyone up was Zegras’s highlight-reel assist on captain Sean Couturier’s goal in the dominant 5-2 win over the Florida Panthers, when he absorbed contact from Aaron Ekblad and Sam Bennett but still coolly flung the puck to the defense’s weak side for an easy finish.
Plus, Zegras has typically been one of the last players out on the ice at practice, at times joined by teammate Matvei Michkov.
The results on the ice are coming right now, and as long as Zegras continues to work hard as he has been, he’s only going to endear himself further to Flyers fans starving for a player with his talents.
Don’t be surprised if the Flyers move for a contract extension with Zegras sooner rather than later.
