The Philadelphia Flyers made Trevor Zegras the highest-paid player in franchise history, at least in terms of average annual value, with the four-year, $36.5 million contract extension announced on Wednesday night.

Zegras played on the final year of a three-year, $17.25 million contract in his first season in Philadelphia, putting up career highs in goals (26) and points (67) while also getting six points (two goals, four assists) in the first 10 playoff games of his career.

The swing that Danny Briere took on June 23, 2025, paid off, and that ultimately resulted in the contract extension that Zegras signed earlier this week.

We’ve already looked at what the Zegras extension means for the Flyers’ salary cap situation in the here and now, and we’ll get into how this contract may age for the 25-year-old forward.

Note that the above reads a 25-year-old forward. Not center. Not winger. Nobody really knows for sure what the future holds for Zegras, although he’s shown the potential to be the first-line center that this Flyers team needs.

No, he’s not going to be the franchise-changing center that people envision when they say the Flyers need a 1C. He’s not going to be a Connor McDavid or Nathan MacKinnon. He’s not going to be a perennial Hart Trophy candidate, or likely even receive more than a few down-ballot votes in his career.

However, there are 32 teams in the NHL, so there are technically 32 first-line centers in the league. Or that should at least be around the number of centers that you can describe in that fashion.

And Zegras is among them.

Trevor Zegras can be Flyers’ first-line center

Last season, Zegras’ 26 goals were the 34th-most among NHL centers, and his 67 points tied him with a few familiar names in Dylan Larkin and Leo Carlsson among pivots. Mind you, Zegras was only a center for the latter portion of the season after being eased into things during his first year in Orange and Black, so you can put an asterisk on his “center” rankings if you so choose.

If you want to make that argument or factor that in, even among all forwards, Zegras tied for 65th in goals and 52nd in points.

Zegras’ production will only increase if he is used as a true center, though.

The forward started last season in a hybrid role, skating in a three-legged race with Christian Dvorak for the large majority of his shifts. All in all, Zegras played 609:33 (50.05% xGF) with Dvorak at 5-on-5 on the season, and 564:45 without him (57.76% xGF), per Natural Stat Trick.

Rick Tocchet and the Flyers weren’t quite sure what to make of Zegras’ two-way game and how he would acclimate to the new system, so it made sense to stick the youngster with one of the coach’s most-trusted players. And it certainly didn’t hurt Zegras, as the newcomer came out of the gate with 12 points in 10 October games and 26 points (10 goals, 16 assists) in as many games through December 3.

That was right around the time that Tyson Foerster, one of the team’s few left wingers, went down with an injury. Zegras was fitting in just fine as a winger with Dvorak, so, once again, it made sense to keep the duo together.

The Flyers didn’t need to try to change things up at that point. Dvorak, Sean Couturier, Noah Cates, and Rodrigo Abols were holding down the fort in the middle of the ice. And Zegras kept producing at wing, putting up a total of 41 points (17 goals, 24 assists) in 41 games, capped off with a two-goal performance against his former team.

But then the team took a turn for the worse, as did Zegras. He was then held without a point for three games for the first time in his Flyers career, recording eight points (three goals) in the 15 games before the Olympic break.

Zegras takes advantage of switch to center

He came out of the break playing as a winger again, but quickly got shifted back to center. If the Flyers were going to just be playing out the rest of the season after the deadline, it made sense to get a look at Zegras at center.

Of course, that wasn’t the case, as shifting Zegras to center — along with the return of Foerster and the addition of Porter Martone — helped spark things for the Flyers.

From March 7 until the end of the season, Zegras put up 17 points in 20 games, helping the Flyers go 14-5-1 during their improbable playoff run.

It’s funny, Zegras was put back at center during the final game of a short absence for Travis Konecny, further testing the Flyers’ winger depth. Zegras had Owen Tippett riding shotgun, and that was a duo that worked out well offensively for the Flyers, but the Flyers hid either Carl Grundstrom or Nikita Grebenkin beside those two for several games.

Say what you will about Dvorak’s offensive ceiling, he at least has the chops to keep up with Zegras. The same can’t be said for Grundstrom or Grebenkin, both of whom are solid bottom-six contributors.

After Grebenkin’s unfortunate injury, the diminutive Denver Barkey slotted in alongside Zegras and Tippett. That was a better-looking trio, and then Foerster replaced him upon returning a few games later.

Who could play on Zegras’ wings?

That Foerster – Zegras – Tippett line is really what we should be looking forward to this coming season and quite possibly for years to come.

They only played together for 70:07 minutes at 5-on-5 last season, but they had an expected goals share of 59.42% (3.19-2.18). For reference, the Zegras – Dvorak – Tippett line had a 49.29% expected goals share in 212:27 together at 5-on-5.

And the duo of Zegras and Tippett, without Dvorak or Foerster alongside them, had a 60.80% xGF in 250:46 of ice time.

WithWithoutTOIxGF%OZFO%Dvorak609:3350.03%55.73%Dvorak564:4557.76%62.44%Foerster + Tippett70:0759.42%51.61%TippettDvorak or Foerster250:4660.80%62.39%

It’s important to remember that all of these are small sample sizes in the grand scheme of things. Even one season of data is tough to make any real conclusions from.

But Zegras was able to hold his own down the middle, showing an improved two-way game and trust from his coaching staff in what were essentially playoff games down the stretch.

Then, in the playoffs, Zegras was one of three full-time Flyers to have a positive expected goals share at 5-on-5. Tippett did lead the way at 56.05%, but that only came against the Penguins, before the Flyers got caved in by the Hurricanes. Dvorak (51.52%), Zegras (51.37%), and Konecny (50.70%) were the only three players above 50% through all 10 games.

How important are Zegras’ faceoff issues?

One of the things holding Zegras back from being able to be fully trusted as a first-line center is his work in the faceoff dot. He has only won 38.9% of the faceoffs in his career, including a career-low 34.1% last season.

Faceoffs aren’t the end-all be-all in hockey, as some of the best centers in the league, points-wise, are regularly below 50%, but being below 40% could be an issue. However, if Zegras is with someone like Foerster, whose board battles and defensive play can help win the puck back, and an offensive dynamo like Tippett, who can combine with his linemates on some nifty goals, the center’s low faceoff percentage can be overlooked.

The faceoff circle is also one area that can be blown out of proportion at times. While it’s important to win key draws at certain times of the game, it doesn’t take away from a player’s overall value and impact, especially if you can gameplan to minimize those situations.

And going back to Zegras, it doesn’t have to be Foerster or Tippett as his linemates. The Flyers have an abundance of wingers that could fit with the nifty playmaker. Konecny, Martone, and Matvei Michkov could all mix and match to find the optimal combinations.

All in all, though, Zegras has shown that he is capable of being a first-line center. He was able to put up 67 points while playing with linemates who didn’t exactly maximize his offensive abilities, and it was touch-and-go at times with a young player on a new team. Now, the 25-year-old has a newly-signed contract, a vote of confidence from his coach, and a full offseason of knowing what to expect when training camp and the season arrive in September.

Zegras has the tools and the talent to take his game to the next level, and the Flyers have the roster depth to support that. They don’t need to be a top-heavy team that fizzles out in the playoffs. They’re built for the long haul, and Zegras can drive the bus.