It’s Jamie Drysdale time in Philadelphia

Photo Credit: The Philadelphia Flyers

Jamie Drysdale has had a whirlwind 24 hours. With less than 24 hours after learning he was dealt, Drysdale attended his first Flyers practice. The first learned of the trade when the team was in Nashville, Drysdale rhen got on a flight at 5:45 in the morning out of Nashville yesterday, with the hopes of making Flyers practice by noon in Voorhees NJ. He made it, and one can understand why his head was spinning, Flyers’ Head Coach John Tortorella said following the 4-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night.

Talk about a player that wants to play for the Flyers. Talk about a player that is committed to playing for this organization. Talk about a player that is committed to his new teammates. Talk about a player that loves the play in front of a raucous crowd, “I’m just looking forward to getting the game in at home in front of the crowd. I heard playing as the home team here is a lot of fun,” Drysdale said yesterday following his first Flyers practice.

Drysdale was partnered with Travis Sanheim at Flyers practice today. He will don the #9, which is Ivan Provorov’s old number. Drysdale was all smiles at the Flyers Training Center from all the videos I have seen of today’s practice. He is a good defenseman, and honestly a very good skating defenseman at that.

A young 21-year-old in Drysdale says he knows Cam York (Yorkie he referred to him as), Nic Deslauriers, and Morgan Frost. He was pretty happy to know some of the guys on the team. It’s time to shift focus on a player that wants to play for the Flyers.

For some that do not know, Drysdale hails from Toronto, Ontario and is just 21-years-old. He was selected by the Ducks in the first round, sixth overall, of the 2020 NHL Draft. Drysdale has five points (1g,4a) in 10 games played with Anaheim this season. The 5’11, 185 pound defenseman has 45 points (8g,37a) in 123 games in four seasons with the Ducks (2020-24). He missed majority of the 2022-23 season with a torn labrum in his left shoulder.

A young Defenseman in Drysdale is a very good skater. Actually, that’s his top asset to his game. He can transition out of the zone and up the ice with the best of them, mainly due to his speed. He hits the neutral zone with speed, and when that happens he’s hard to stop. Drysdale can rush the puck up the ice, while making plays. Drysdale uses his skating and puck handling skills, to become strong in transition. He has a good hockey IQ and sees the ice well, thus he’s able to make the right place and passes two is open teammates. That is what makes him elusive on the Power Play, he always seems to find the open man.

His bread and butter is the Power Play, as the Flyers will finally now have a quarterback on the top Power Play unit immediately. He’s an excellent skater, keeps pucks in at the blue line, and makes the right plays with the man advantage. If not for injuries he may have close to 100 points as a defenseman in the NHL for his career at this point.

“I got texts all night about the character of this kid. He’s going to fit in just right.” – John Tortorella said of Drysdale after practice

For now, Drysdale was all smiles yesterday at Flyers practice, as he looks forward to playing in his first Flyers game tonight, “”I got a call from Danny Briere, welcome to the team. I’m looking forward to playing on this team. All the guys seem great.”

How will Drysdale play in his first game as a Flyer as he makes his NHL Debut tonight is anyone’s guess. One thing for certain is it’s Jamie Drysdale time in Philadelphia.

Check out our Flyers Nitty Gritty Store

Cool Matvei Michkov merchandise