Photo Credit: Our very own Rob Windfelder
Owen Tippett came to Philadelphia with some unknowns. One thing that has remained constant is his talent. Sometimes it takes prospects longer to bloom, and this was the case for a former first round pick. In some cases it’s tough getting selected in the first round, players are supposed to produce and produce right away in some cases, as opposed to a second round pick, etc., etc. where prospects are giving more leniency to succeed.
“Seeing how great of a city Philadelphia is, sports city, fans are awesome, all the history with the organization. Obviously, going into those contract talks was pretty special,” Tippett said at exit interview day. “Being able to do it for eight years is something that I was really looking forward to and it was an easy decision to go long term.”
This was the case for Tippett. He came to Philadelphia after so-so years in Florida, where he was seen as a reclamation project in the Claude Giroux deal. He hasn’t looked back since, rather Flyers Head Coach John Tortorella has unlocked some of his talent. For his efforts, he will be here for the next eight years, as he signed for $6.2 million AAV, “To be a part of the group here. It’s pretty special to be here in Philly,” Tippett said
“With the fanbase we have you can see how exciting it is what we have going. There’s a lot of moving parts to it, but coming down to it this is where I want to be. This is home now.” – Owen Tippett
Good for Tippett for bringing size, speed, and a nasty wrist shot into the fold. Tippett’s confidence is finally paying dividends for the orange and black, now it’s time for the Ginger to reap some of the benefits after sending the Tampa Bay Lightning game into overtime, to eventually winning it in a shootout.
Tippett’s game has grown the most from a new change of scenery, and under Flyers’ Head Coach John Tortorella. Even so much so, he netted a career high in points and goals with 53 points and 28 goals last season. One can sense he is infused with confidence, after scoring in back to back games.
“It’s awesome. Happy he got the win. Nice having him around,” Owen Tippett said after Ivan Fedotov notched his first career NHL victory.
It appears he has been Reborn in Philadelphia. The definition of “Reborn” is “Brought back to life or activity,” according to the Oxford Dictionary. In this case, he has a new lease on life after excelling here in Philadelphia, after his rocky start to his NHL career with the Florida Panthers.
It’s great to see Tippett finding his groove in the NHL. He’s always had the talent, now he has the tools. Tippett proved it with netting 20+ goals for the second time in his career.
Torts is trying to unlock Tippett’s skill
The one part of Tippett’s game that has grown the most are his defensive skills. Maybe this is due to confidence, or it might be the John Tortorella effect, regardless it’s great to see him taking that next step in his game. Tortorella wants to see Tippett grow, so he is utilizing him in every situation, to include the Penalty Kill.
He just needed confidence, and the Flyers are trusting him. That goes a long way when building confidence, for a player that needed a fresh change of scenery.
Flyers’ Head Coach John Tortorella has said over and over that Tippett doesn’t realize just how good he can be. The moment Tippett finds that out the flood gates will open.
Tippett falls into the category of having drive. He finally looks like the player the Florida Panthers drafted in the first round of the 2017 NHL Draft. The talent has always been there, but his confidence at times lacked.
If Tippett continues to improve his game like Tortorella wants him to. He becomes that much more of a dangerous player, and a player that you build around during the rebuild like the Flyers are in. He needs to hit the net more, as stated above. In addition, Tippett needs to take the puck to the net more often. He has a good release, so Tippett tends to feed off his wrist shot, but he could score maybe five to 10 more goals if he took the puck to the net more.
Tortorella has said over and over that the team is in need of goal scoring, so enter Tippett. The young 25-year-old in Tippett stands at 6’1 and weighs 207 pounds. He likes to throw his weight around at times, has excellent speed, and really possesses an excellent wrist/snap shot. Now it’s time for him to go out there and prove it.
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