Tuesday night’s game provided an opportunity for Flyers GM Danny Briere to give plenty of assessment. The Flyers reached the halfway point on the season, one day after signing Christian Dvorak to a contract extension and essentially sending the message that the team would not be sellers at the trade deadline.

Briere met with media prior to the Flyers’ 5-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks, the focus still fresh on Dvorak’s new deal.

“What I like about Christian is he bet on himself going into the season. Took a one-year deal. We wanted to get to know him a little better,” Briere said. “Since he arrived, total pro, what he’s done on the ice. He’s a good example for our players and for all our young guys that are coming up. I’m excited about what he’s bringing to the rest of the team and eventually all our good young prospects.”

Briere didn’t see the extension as much of a message to the locker room. The GM said Dvorak earned the contract and has been a good player that makes the team better, that they wanted to keep around. The five-year term on Dvorak’s extension was certainly of interest. Briere feels confident that Dvorak can still be an effective player down the line.

“He’s 29 years old. There’s guys that play until their 40s. He’s going to be 34 at the end of his contract,” Briere said. “I have no doubt that, if he takes care of himself, the way he showed up in shape this year at training camp, absolutely no worries about that.”

As for the rest of the team at the halfway point, Briere’s expectations were always to be competitive. But the Flyers are right in the mix for the division lead, something that surely wasn’t expected at the start of the season.

“Maybe a little better than I expected to be honest with you. But I expected us to be competitive,” Briere said. “The funny part is we can win two games and be in first place or lose three and be in last place in our division. There’s no guarantee. It can change really quickly. 

“I love that at the halfway point, we’re right in the mix. That to me is exciting, for a lot of our young players to get that experience. We got it two years ago, we saw how it went in the second half. I’m hoping that this year, a lot of the guys that were there will be better prepared to face the music when it matters most.”

With Dvorak’s deal completed, much of the attention will shift to pending restricted free agent Trevor Zegras. Briere spoke on Tuesday prior to the game, where Zegras scored two more goals against his former team, reaching 17 on the season. That puts Zegras just six goals shy of matching his career high.

There’s no extension immediately on the horizon for Zegras, but the interest is there and mutual. Zegras has raved about his experience since joining the Flyers, and Briere echoed that interest.

“I certainly hope so. Trevor’s another reason why we’ve taken a step,” Briere said. “We’ll see. We haven’t started discussing anything with Trevor, but he’s restricted, so we have a little more power on that front. But we want to keep him here. It’s been working out and hopefully he keeps playing the way he has.”

So with the Flyers firmly in the playoff race at the halfway point, does it change anything about their approach to the trade deadline and potentially adding. Briere pumped the brakes on that idea, saying the long-term vision is still the focus.

“It’s exciting to see what’s going on. We’re going to try to help the team if we can, but it’s something that’s going to make sense. It doesn’t change the vision,” Briere said. “It doesn’t change what we’re trying to do. It’s still about the future. If we do make a move, it’s going to be something that’s going to help us for the future as well, not just in the moment. Don’t bank on any rental and to give up assets. We’re not at that stage yet.”

Kevin Durso is Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN. Follow him on social media @Kevin_Durso.

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