Jamie Drysdale is ‘trending in the right direction’ as Rick Tocchet compares him to Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar

RALEIGH, N.C. — The Flyers skated around the ice at the Lenovo Center on Friday for another long practice.

As they did drills — what coach Rick Tocchet calls “pressure reps,” as they develop muscle memory about what to do in situations — you could hear players yelling and calling for the puck. And while he is one of the more soft-spoken players on the team, Jamie Drysdale was using his voice.

“I think for me, personally, communication is the biggest thing,” he said after practice. “It’s a really fast game. A lot of good players on the ice, so the more you can help each other out, the more you call for the puck, the more vocal you are, the easier it is on everybody.”

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Much like he did this preseason, on Thursday in the Flyers’ lid-lifter against the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, the 23-year-old defenseman used his feet. He had two shot attempts that went wide, one blocked shot, one hit, and an even plus-minus while skating with Adam Ginning.

But what stood out was how he flew around the ice and, according to NHL Edge, he skated more than 3.18 miles across 22 minutes, 54 seconds of ice time. It was second for defensemen, with Travis Sanheim leading the way with 4.30 miles in 27:15.

“Just Game 1. There’s some good, there’s some not-so-good. All in all, felt pretty good,” he said. “Obviously, things we can work on, things that I can work on, but just going to try and push the pace and make a few more plays out there and contribute offensively. Just take steps forward.”

For the first time in quite a while, Drysdale entered a season with a full offseason of training underneath him. Last summer, his first with the Flyers after being acquired from the Anaheim Ducks in January 2024, he underwent hernia surgery. This summer, he was healthy.

“Just excitement, to be honest,” Dyrsdale said when asked how having a normal offseason changed his mindset. “Fresh head. Mental space is clear. Just excited to come into the season and see what I can do, see what this team can do. That’s kind of the main thing for me.”

Tocchet has taken notice of the blueliner who was selected sixth overall in 2020 by Anaheim.

“I think he should watch videos of Quinn Hughes and the [Cale] Makars of the world, the [Zach] Werenskis. I think those are good benchmarks for him to look at what they’re doing, how they control the game, because I think he has it in him,” said Tocchet, who says Drysdale seems very motivated to turn his game up a notch.

“I see him trying to close in on people and trying to stop cycles. He’s not waiting around. I like that. So there’s the aggressiveness there. So, yeah, he’s trending in the right direction for me.”

Drysdale’s offseason included spending some time in Connecticut with Trevor Zegras. The two ex-Ducks teammates are now reunited on the Flyers after the latter was acquired in a deal in June.

And in between golf and likely a few steak dinners — the source of protein is Drysdale’s usual go-to the night before a game — he participated in the Shoulder Check Showcase, the third annual premier event for the HT40 Foundation, which advocates for “the science of social connection.”

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Created in January 2023, the foundation rose from tragedy after Hayden Thorsen, who wore No. 40 and was a goalie for the Junior Rangers in the Mid-Fairfield Youth Hockey Association, died by suicide at the age of 16. Zegras also grew up playing for Mid Fairfield, and his father, Gary Zegras, is secretary for the HT40 Foundation.

The Shoulder Check initiative was created to raise mental health awareness and encourage people to reach out to and check in with one another. Everyone at Terry Conners Rink in Stamford, Conn., pledged to “Reach Out. Check In. Make Contact.”

The message has carried over to the Flyers’ room.

“I think everyone within this room, since I’ve been here, has been really good at that, to be honest with you,” said Drysdale on Friday, which was also World Mental Health Day.

“Even though there’s been a lot of interchangeable pieces throughout the years, myself being one, it’s kind of continued on. It’s a great locker room, everyone’s real tight. Definitely, definitely doing that for sure.”

Tocchet made a few switches with the top-six, flipping Travis Konecny and Christian Dvorak. It reunited Konecny with Matvei Michkov and Sean Couturier, a line that played 222:24 last year and outscored the opposition 16-12. Dvorak is now on the wing with Owen Tippett and Zegras. ... Based on lines on Friday, it looks like Nikita Grebenkin will make his Flyers debut alongside Jett Luchanko and Garnet Hathaway.