Trevor Zegras is three goals shy of 100 for his NHL career as the Flyers head to Calgary on Sunday to face the Flames.
He sits at 97 after 367 games, and it's one of the few feel-good storylines on a team that has lost its way. Philadelphia is 4-10-4 and 30th in the NHL, and the trip West is a chance to stop the slide.
Thursday night's 2-3 loss at the Rangers left the Flyers with two straight defeats. Zegras and the club went into that game with the milestone already on the radar, and we tracked Trevor Zegras chasing 100 career goals before the puck dropped in New York.
Zegras has 4 goals and 10 assists for 14 points in 18 games this season. One of those goals came on the power play and one was a game-winner.
The plus-minus tells the other half. He's a -6, and that fits a team that has scored 39 goals and allowed 61, a differential of -22.
Over his career he has 97 goals and 170 assists for 267 points. Getting to 100 would be a nice round number for a player the Flyers are counting on to drive offense.
Why the Flyers need more than one scorer
Matvei Michkov leads the team with 10 goals, five of them on the power play. Zegras has been the playmaker, with six power-play assists of his own.
That's a two-man operation, and it's showing. We already wrote that the Flyers need more than Zegras and Michkov, and the standings back it up.
The road is the biggest problem. Philadelphia is 1-6-1 away from home, and Rick Tocchet's group hasn't found a way to win consistently in someone else's building.
Calgary isn't a gift, but the Flames are 7-9-1 and lost 3-5 to Anaheim on Friday. They've dropped two straight as well, and they're 2-5-1 at home... wait, that's their road mark. At home they are 5-4-0.
Nobody can say when Zegras gets the three he needs, and the Flyers shouldn't make the trip about him. A win in Calgary would matter more than any number on his résumé.
The Flyers play in Calgary on Sunday, November 8, and the milestone watch starts there.
Quick hits
WINNIPEG JETSKyle Connor and the Jets host the Lightning on Sunday, looking for a third straight win after a 6-2 romp over Vancouver. Winnipeg is rolling.
ST-LOUIS BLUESThe Blues bring a 3-5-1 road record into Nashville tonight, and Logan Mailloux has just joined them there. Road games have not been kind.
NASHVILLE PREDATORSThe Predators put a three-game winning streak on the line tonight against the Blues. Filip Forsberg and Steven Stamkos are driving it.
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFSJohn Tavares looks set to return tonight against the Canadiens, according to practice lines from Mark Masters. That's a big boost up front.
COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETSKent Johnson tied the game in Buffalo last night, but the Blue Jackets still lost 5-2 to the Sabres. A good night wasted.
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