The definition of a leader as defined by the Merriam Webster Dictionary is, “Something that leads.” Jakub Voracek continues to be that guy, while playing well Defensively. Much has been made about Voracek about not being the leader in the locker room, or off the ice However, Voracek took his game to another level last season, and he has answered the bell to Alain Vigneault’s calling.
Talk about taking his game to another level, Jake was a +14 last season, as he continued to play the game the right way. Voracek produced 12g,44a, lead by example, and was en route to his fourth straight consecutive season of 60 points or more until the season was halted to the Coronavirus (13 games remained). When Voracek speaks the media and fans alike listen. He is one of the best players to interview as he is always honest, and yesterday the gloves came off right away, “F***ing nothing,” Jake said laughing when a reporter asked him what he did in the offseason, “Everything was pretty much closed. It opened up a little bit for about a week and then it got shut down again. Just tried to train as much as I could. Spent some time with the family because they didn’t travel with me this year. They are going to be here in two months. They are going to come here, so I won’t see them for a while. Not much. It’s some weird times we’re living in right now, I’ll be honest.”
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Jake is a great interview. In this World it’s hard to find athletes to be as honest as him, and very rare nowadays with social media the way it is. However, it’s Jake’s personality to be an easy going guy, “It’s really hard to say right now,” Jake said when a reporter asked him how prepared he feels, “Usually the first three days are really high tempo. You try to kind of settle in everything and kind of work on refreshing the systems we did last year. It would be a better question for after Sunday. After Sunday’s game, we will see what we need to work on. It’s a good thing that we can get that one in. Like I said, it’s really hard after the first three days to recognize what you need to work on and how the lines are going to be mixed up. I think it was a good push. We spent a lot of time on the ice, working hard. It’s pretty exciting that it’s a week away.”
The 30-year-old in Voracek continues, “You got to look at it this way. We definitely showed some progress from the years before, but unfortunately we couldn’t close the deal in the playoffs. Obviously when you get a healthy Oskar and a healthy Nolan and with Phil Myers, Travis Sanheim, TK, Provy, they’re in their primes right now. Obviously that’s going to be helpful for us. I am pretty excited to see them go to work.”
Jake has skated well since returning to camp, as he continues to back check on most plays. This is nothing new, as some can take a look back at the Pittsburgh Penguins game right before the holiday break in December. Voracek picked off at least four passes, and it lead to the first goal of the night for the Flyers. Practices help, Voracek loves to scrimmage, “We play a lot of scrimmages in the summer so that’s helping,” Voracek said, “Kind of get the timing a little earlier than in training camp. Yeah, it’s better. I was kind of pissed I missed the scrimmage yesterday because the more scrimmages you can get in, it’s better. It is what it is. There’s nothing I could do about it.”
Voracek has become a leader this young Flyers team has craved for the past few seasons. He is leading by example right now, as Voracek is committed to playing a two-way game, “Practices look pretty good, but then you go into the game and it’s a completely different rodeo,” Voracek said, “It’s going to be depending on how well prepared are the other teams are. In practice, when we do the scrimmage or when we do the drills, I think it’s a high paced practice that the passes look sharp. Obviously it’s going to be a completely different ballgame when you step on the ice for a game. I’m actually glad we get to play four games before the first playoff game so we can kind of work out some things and see where we’re at. It’s a little hard for me to comment on, but the practices, it’s looking pretty good and the boys are looking sharp. It’s actually surprising for me how good we look. I thought it was going to be more sluggish than we are showing.”
Lastly, Jake says Nolan Patrick is okay from his big hit yesterday, “Was sitting right beside him. He looked fine. We said some good chat about it. He’s ready. You can tell he’s ready. It’s a good sign to see him out there. I wasn’t concerned after I saw him practice the last few days. The concern wasn’t pretty big. I’m glad he’s okay.”
