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Flyers’ Jamie Drysdale can use Trevor Zegras arrival to explode offensively

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In the 2019 NHL Draft, the Anaheim Ducks selected Trevor Zegras ninth overall. The following year, Anaheim took defenseman Jamie Drysdale with the sixth overall pick. Both scored their first NHL goals in the same game within a few minutes of each other. Drysdale first and then Drysdale assisting on Zegras’s tally.

Both showed promise at times in California. But within a span of 18 months both players found themselves on the outs on the West Coast, and then members of the Philadelphia Flyers. As is well known, Drysdale was the key piece of a trade that shipped out Cutter Gauthier to Anaheim after his kerfuffle with the Flyers, ignoring both Flyers general manager Danny Briere and president of hockey operations Keith Jones. Drysdale had his ups and downs to begin his stint in Philadelphia but in 2024-25 had a milestone season: his first nearly fully healthy year since the 2021-22 season while playing 70 games. And last year saw him score against Anaheim in a 6-0 pasting in Gauthier’s return to Philadelphia. Revenge is sweet sometimes.

Now, with Trevor Zegras hoping to provide the Flyers with a great season that is essentially a make-or-break year for him with Philadelphia, Drysdale could find himself being the truly huge benefactor of Zegras’ arrival. It’s doubtful he’ll see the same chemistry Zegras might find with Matvei Michkov, Travis Konecny or some other Flyers winger. Yet there is nobody currently on the Flyers roster who has played more games or minutes with Zegras than Drysdale. Nobody knows his moves, what he’s thinking, or what he’s capable of on the ice (or on the power play) more than the blueliner.

So, with Drysdale and Zegras both playing out the final year of their respective contracts, could it be a case of a great Zegras year translating into a career season for Drysdale? Or possibly Drysdale, being used as the high defenseman on a power play unit with Zegras, being the catalyst for the center finding his game again? There’s a very strong case that Zegras could bring out the best in Drysdale, which would certainly make the Gauthier trade look a lot better than some skeptics think it currently does. Either way, there’s proof the two have played together. And on the power play.

That’s not to say the duo haven’t played tons together. Not by a long shot. But a lot of that was circumstances, namely injuries to Drysdale. In 2020-21, Zegras and Drysdale both played a total of 24 games over the course of the season. Yet in those 24 games, Zegras played with Drysdale a total of 21:24 on the power play. That ranked sixth overall on the team (including goaltenders) and second only to Kevin Shattenkirk in terms of defensemen. Shattenkirk led all blueliners in time played with Zegras on the power play with 33:32. But again, not a huge sample size because both Zegras and Drysdale combined played a mere 48 games.

The biggest sample size (and possibly the most amount of proof the two have some synergy) came in 2021-22. Zegras that season played 75 games while Drysdale played a career high 81 contests. So neither player was hampered by injuries. That season, Drysdale led all Anaheim players (including the goaltenders and the forwards) with 132:40 time on ice with Zegras on the power play. It ended up being 5:52 more than goaltender John Gibson and 7:39 more than forward Ryan Getzlaf. It was also the year that Zegras and Drysdale found themselves earning points on the same power play goal eight times. So eight of the 32 points Drysdale earned in 2021-22 came on goals, primary assists, or secondary assists that Zegras also either scored or assisted on with the man advantage. That’s a quarter of Drysdale’s production all season! If you break down that a bit more, that’s a tad over 10 per cent of Drysdale’s offensive production in his career as he has 70 points in 217 games.

The first of these eight instances came on Nov. 24, 2021 basically during garbage time against the Colorado Avalanche. Down 5-1, Zegras set up along the boards with Drysdale at the point and being one of the safer, high percentage options. A few passes between the two resulted in a shot from the point which Sonny Milano deflected in. And although it was a small amount of time, it looked as if the power play was being run through Zegras, much in the same vein as Claude Giroux once did with the Flyers. The second goal featuring both earning power play points was on Dec. 3, 2021 against the Flames. Here the goal was set up on some nice feeds, with Drysdale passing across his body to Zegras. With a lot of Flames paying attention to Zegras, he found the seam and fed a lovely cross ice pass to Vinni Lettieri for a one-timer.

In their Feb. 11, 2022 contest against Seattle, the pair almost scored 30 seconds prior to eventually getting their points. Getzlaf received a pass from Drysdale. He one-timed it but the save was made. The rebound went directly to Zegras who missed a golden chance. However the next rush up ice hit paydirt. Zegras, looking quite comfortable along the boards, made the Kraken defender cheat towards him. Zegras passed it to Drysdale who, with a lot more space and time, ripped a shot that Rickard Rakell got a piece of.

Less than a week later against the Oilers, Zegras got a pass from Drysdale in the Edmonton zone. Zegras had ample time to find a play and slid a gorgeous pass that Sonny Milano deflected. And two days later, against Vancouver, Zegras again held the puck quite a while before seeing one of the defenders move towards him. From there Drysdale found more space after Zegras passed him the puck, and got a clear shot to the net for a Rakell deflection.

The last three instances were all Zegras goals. The first of these was March 1, 2022 against Boston. Late in the game, with the scored tied 3-3, Drysdale again up near the blueline found Zegras to his left. Zegras had three defenders approaching him but managed to get a great shot off for the game-winning goal. On March 4, 2022 against Vegas, Zegras was the benefactor of a Drysdale slapshot from the point. The shot never got to the net but instead was shoveled over to Zegras who got his wrister over the goalie and under the crossbar.

Again, it wasn’t the most jaw-dropping, highlight-reel goal. But it demonstrated that there’s a chemistry or synergy Zegras has with Drysdale, and Drysdale has with Zegras. They are both able to either find an opening for the other. Or create enough space for themselves to generate a great scoring chance.

Finally, on April 9, 2022, Zegras scored again on the power play, this time against what is now his new team. Drysdale earned a secondary assist and former Flyer Gerald Mayhew was on the ice for Anaheim as Zegras scored. The goal made it 3-2 for the Ducks late in the middle frame. It was the last power play goal both Zegras and Drysdale were a part of together.

In 2022-23, Zegras was healthy and played 81 games while Drysdale was reduced to eight due to injuries. As a result, Zegras and Drysdale were on the ice for a total of 2:22 of power play time all season, and just 42:48 at even strength. In 2023-24, their final season (or part of a season) as teammates, Zegras played 31 games while Drysdale played 10 with Anaheim. Yet even in this short sample size, Drysdale was on the ice with Zegras with the man advantage for 20:28, which was second among Anaheim defensemen who were on the same power play unit with Zegras. In terms of even strength, the pair were on the ice together for 50:10 before Drysdale was traded to Philadelphia in January 2024.

It’s probably a safe bet that Zegras and Drysdale won’t be tied at the hip on the ice, although Drysdale jokingly hinted the pair were so close off the ice they “peed” together. That intangible is probably just as welcoming for Drysdale as it is for Zegras, knowing the other will be there through the ups and downs of a regular season. What is fairly evident is that the Flyers are hoping both Zegras and Drysdale can recapture some of that magic that made them look so promising. And that both remain healthy to make the case that they are at the very least two pieces of the Flyers future.

Of course that synergy also depends on how Rick Tocchet sees the Flyers power play. If he goes with Travis Sanheim or Cam York over Drysdale, then obviously Drysdale might have his work cut out for him. However if both have played together before, and had some effectiveness on the power play, why wouldn’t you try them out to start the season? It seems like a very low-risk, high-reward proposition.

If that happens, there’s a very good chance the power play will end up being improved (not counting the likes of Michkov or Konecny). And with that it’s conceivable both Drysdale and Zegras are extended for a few more seasons as the Flyers turn the corner not just towards the playoffs but contention for 16 post-season victories. Should both players get the best out of the other, and the sum being greater than the parts, then that’s the best-case scenario for the players, the general manager and the team.

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