In recent seasons, the Philadelphia Flyers have struck gold by bringing in players whose NHL reputation was rapidly deteriorating. Steve Mason and Michael Del Zotto were both players who found great success early in their NHL careers, but saw their stock plummet after some tough seasons. The Flyers will now try to repeat this process one more time, this year with Sam Gagner.
Like Mason and Del Zotto, Gagner is a player of obvious talent. Like Mason and Del Zotto, Gagner is a player who appears to have lost his way in recent seasons. And like Mason and Del Zotto, Gagner is young enough that his game is still maturing, and he can be reasonably expected to take further steps in his development.
Comparing Gagner to Voracek
The career of Jake Voracek is a useful baseline for analyzing Sam Gagner. Gagner and Voracek were selected with consecutive picks in the 2007 NHL draft, with Gagner going to the Oilers with #6 pick, and Voracek to the Blue Jackets at #7. Furthermore, the players’ early career progress mirrored one another. See the chart below.
The chart also shows the path of the two players beginning to diverge during the strike-shortened season. In that year, Voracek had a real breakout season, scoring 46 points in 48 games. Gagner did fairly well himself, scoring 38 points in 48 games, and earning a shiny new contract. Unfortunately, things have gone downhill since then for Gagner.
Gagner’s 2013-2014 season got off to a horrific start, as Zack Kassian broke his jaw and knocked out some teeth with a high-stick in a pre-season game. Kassian was suspended 5 games for the play, and the injury forced Gagner to miss the first month of the season. Gagner even tweeted the gruesome aftermath:
Thank you all for the support. Excited to come back stronger and hopefully better looking than a few days ago. pic.twitter.com/jyU91TMSuu
— Sam Gagner (@89SGagner) September 24, 2013
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Gagner never quite got back on track from there. He would go on record a career-low 37 points in 2013-2014, which would be his last season in Edmonton. Edmonton traded him to Tampa Bay, who passed him on to Arizona. While Voracek put in a spectacular 2014-2015 season in Philadelphia, Gagner trudged through another mediocre season in the desert. Gagner registered only 41 points with the Coyotes, although that was good enough to be top scoring forward on the forward-poor Coyotes.
Moving to the Wing
Now with the Philadelphia Flyers, Gagner is slated to play on the wing. This plan is a reflection of both the Flyers’ team needs, and Gagner’s optimal career path.
This is not the first time Gagner has been looking at a move to the wing. Although he is a natural center, the Oilers began to flirt with him at right-wing in earnest in January, 2014. In Arizona, the Coyotes debated about whether to play him at center or wing. He began the season at his usual center spot, and he got off to a terrible start with 10 points in his first 29 games. By December, the Coyotes moved to him to right of center Martin Hanzal. This move paid dividends for Gagner, and he was selected the NHL’s third star of the week after scoring 6 points during Christmas week of 2014. He would finish the season scoring at a more respectable pace of 31 points in 52 games.
Gagner’s future as an NHL player appears to hinge on his ability to transition to the wing
It is noteworthy that upper management at both of Gagner’s former teams have publicly questioned his ability to be an NHL centermen. In 2014, Oilers assistant GM Rick Olczyk said he believed “he’s better served on the wing” instead of having to match guys physically down the middle for 200 feet. This summer, Coyotes GM Don Maloney commented that “e didn’t think he could play center at the level for us.” As such, Gagner’s future as an NHL player appears to hinge on his ability to transition to the wing.
This should all be okay with the Flyers. The Flyers are strong at center with fixtures such as Claude Giroux and Sean Couturier, Brayden Schenn’s best position possibly still lying at center ice, and young natural centers like Scott Laughton and Nick Cousins in the system. Personally, I believe the Flyers top area of need for this offseason was to pick up a skilled winger, so just maybe all the pieces are falling into place for Gagner and the Flyers.
Gagner should be coming to Philadelphia this season a motivated player. His NHL career is very much in flux, and he will be an unrestricted free agent after this season. If Gagner can adapt to the wing and score in the neighborhood of 50 points, I would call that a success and make the Flyers 3-for-3 on rehabilitating struggling young players.