- Zegras says center is his preferred spot and he wants the No. 1 job in Philadelphia
- He set career highs with 26 goals and 67 points in his first season with the Flyers
- Read below for what Zegras and Briere said about his face-offs and new contract
Trevor Zegras knows exactly where he wants to line up next season.
The Flyers forward met with the media Tuesday for the first time since signing his four-year, $36.5 million extension, and he made no secret of the goal. Zegras was asked about bouncing between wing and center last season, and he pointed straight to the middle.
“I feel pretty comfortable in both spots, whether it’s in the middle or on the wing, so wherever they need me to play, I’m more than comfortable in both spots. I thought playing center in the playoffs was definitely something that gave me a lot of confidence. So I think wherever they need me, I’m good to go.”
Here’s Zegras with the media on Tuesday:
The numbers back up the confidence. Zegras set career highs with 26 goals and 67 points in 81 games, his first year in Philadelphia after coming over from Anaheim.
He was even better once the Flyers slid him to the middle full time. Zegras put up 18 points in 25 games as the top-line center after the Olympic break, and Philadelphia went 17-7-1 down the stretch to clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2020.
Then he backed it up in the postseason. Zegras led the Flyers with six points in 10 games as they knocked off the Penguins in the first round before losing to the eventual champion Hurricanes.
The one thing standing between him and the full-time No. 1 center job is the face-off dot. He won just 34.1 percent of his draws in the regular season, dead last among the 154 players who took at least 300. That number climbed to 44 percent in the playoffs, but Rick Tocchet still leaned on Sean Couturier and Christian Dvorak for the big draws late in games.
Zegras talked about how he plans to fix that:
“I think some of it starts in the gym and just getting bigger and stronger. But I think a lot of it was reps and repetition and taking a ton of face-offs, even against your own guys in practice or after practice, and just picking up on little things that maybe guys against you do.”
General manager Daniel Briere came away impressed with how his young forward handled being pushed by Tocchet. Briere was asked about that reaction to the coaching:
“I was really excited to see the way Trevor reacted to that because not everybody takes it the same way. He really took it the right way.”
The four-year deal carries a $9.125 million average annual value and makes Zegras one of the highest-paid Flyers. He pushed to get it wrapped up before his arbitration hearing because he wanted to stay put.
Zegras made it clear he loves it in Philadelphia, right down to the group around him. He and Jamie Drysdale both signed four-year extensions within days of each other, locking up two of the team’s young building blocks.
Flyers fans get four more years of this duo:
Win more draws, and the Flyers may have their No. 1 center settled for the next four years.
