Flyers' Tocchet: ‘We'd be idiots' not to try Michkov, Zegras on a line together

New York Times

4 days ago

It was probably the first thought that went through every Flyers fan's head the moment they learned Trevor Zegras was coming to Philadelphia.
Is this the center that can mesh with talented young winger Matvei Michkov, giving the Flyers a high-end top line that will frustrate opposing teams for, say, the next decade or so?
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Naturally, new coach Rick Tocchet has pondered that possibility, too.
'We'd be idiots not to explore it and talk about it, and try to manifest it where it can work,' Tocchet told The Athletic on Tuesday afternoon from Las Vegas, where he was wrapping up Olympic meetings with the Team Canada coaching staff. 'Can it work? I don't know.'
Tocchet, 61, has been around a little while. He personally knows a few of the game's all-time greats and what they preferred from linemates. So, when asked what has to happen for a Zegras-Michkov (and an unspecified left wing) line to have success, he drew from that base of knowledge.
'I always use (Wayne) Gretzky and (Mario) Lemieux as benchmark guys — they never liked playing on a line with guys that went east-west all the time. They felt it was really hard for them. Just as long as the chemistry with (Zegras and Michkov), if it does happen … you want them to be creative, but there's also certain things you have to do to become a good line — retrievals, driving the middle (of the ice), net-front — all that stuff. Creativity is great, but if you're just on the outside spinning your wheels, I don't think that's effective.
'You look at Florida, they play straight-line hockey. Is there a hybrid of doing both? Absolutely. We've just got to make sure we find that sweet spot.'
The suggestion is perhaps Michkov and Zegras are a little too similar in their approaches. It has merit; both like to hang onto the puck and make plays, and both could probably use a little more north-south in their games, too.
Regardless, Tocchet echoed what general manager Daniel Briere said on Monday — he is going to give Zegras an opportunity to return to playing center, where he posted back-to-back 60-point seasons early in his career. Tocchet and Zegras spoke 'at length' on Monday after the trade, said the coach, who was encouraged by Zegras's self-assessment and enthusiasm for the chance the Flyers are primed to give him.
'I definitely think it's our obligation to see if he can play center,' Tocchet said. 'He really wants to give it a shot. … He's talented making a play off his forehand or backhand, and those guys are hard to find.
'He shared a couple things with me that he was pretty honest about, where he had struggles in boxing out guys down low, and things that he wanted to work on. I thought that was really mature from him. So there's some things that I can really help him (with) in being a center. We'll see how it goes. But, yeah, I'd like to definitely give him a shot up the middle.'
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And Zegras, too, voiced his delight to returning to what he called the position he played his entire career before former Ducks coach Greg Cronin shifted him to the left wing at the start of the 2023-24 season.
'I've always felt more comfortable (at center),' Zegras said in a fairly abbreviated video conference call on Tuesday. 'I think there are definitely areas I need to work on, whether it's in the faceoff circle or below the goal line, or in front of the net in the D zone. I think it was good to play the wing and learn that position and responsibilities. (We'll) see, I guess, where it goes with the new coach and the new team, but definitely will be exciting to be back in the middle for sure.'
Tocchet, of course, will have other options with Zegras if he doesn't see a fit with Michkov. Perhaps Zegras will end up better suited to a line with someone like Owen Tippett, who never really seemed to find chemistry with any of the Flyers' centers last season. Or maybe Zegras helps Travis Konecny take his game to a new level, with Konecny serving as the wrecking ball on that line and providing Zegras more time and space to do what he does best.
What is undeniable is that Tocchet has more options to fuel his offense than he did a couple days ago.
'I talked to Danny about (Zegras) for a week or two, if there was a possibility with a player like him. I told him I'd be excited if this happened,' he said. 'I coached against him all those years with Arizona and Vancouver so I kind of know his game. There's a lot of upside with Trevor. I love that he's got a good personality. I think guys like that are great in the room. But there are some things that he knows that he has to do to get back to the player he wants to be. Myself and my coaching staff, we really want to help him achieve those things.'
(Photo of Trevor Zegras: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)