PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 09: Robert Hagg #48 of the Philadelphia Flyers making his NHL debut skates back on defense against the Carolina Hurricanes on April 9, 2017 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images)
Incoming, “You got mail.” How many people would have thought that Robert Hagg of all players on this young Flyers team would be an asset in the early going. Hagg has been good, against what some may believe. He has done a little bit of everything well this season, but gets minimal credit from most people.
Hagg is not a flashy high-octane, offensively touted defencemen, so people often forget about him. He has been a steady stay at home defencemen this season, and Hagg has really come into his own. Hagg can lay a big hit, or just lay hits in general, as well as, block shots. Simply put, Hagg has been good this year, and his critics continue to criticize him.
This young 24-year-old defenceman is the new whipping boy of Flyers twitter, facebook, and well the Flyers in general. Andrew MacDonald is no longer here, so unfortunately someone had to take MacDonald’s place. For the season, Hagg has one apple, a Corsi (Ev) of 54.0% (9.3% above his career total of 44.7%), 15:53 ATOI, has registered 16 hits, 15 blocks, and finally has 0 takeaways with 4 Giveaways. Hagg has done it all in a good way.
The Flyers were unsure what player they would receive this year in Hagg. He had a bit of a down year last season, but Hagg was good at times, as well. Hagg was under much trade speculation throughout the offseason, as the Flyers had 8 defencemen at one point. Philippe Myers, was once a shoe in to make the big club out of camp, and of course Samuel Morin figured to be the seventh defenseman to the start of the season (With Myers making the club). This left Hagg out of the picture, and he was already waived or traded before the pre-season even began.
Hagg played his way onto the roster, while beating out his competition in Myers and Morin. He earned this spot in the Flyers lineup, and he’s making the most out of this opportunity. Hagg has rarely been out of position, takes the bodies on his opponents, and has done well along the boards. Overall, Hagg has been a solid stay at home defencemen. There is absolutely no reason to take this asset out of the lineup, as Hagg has this defense rocking in the early going.
At one time, I wrote off Hagg, so I am no saint, but I must admit he has been good this season. It’s great to see him excelling in a year he had to produce to remain with the orange and black. Hagg was once wrote off, but it appears we were wrong on this one.
Flyers Goal Leaders:
Konecny- 3
Lindblom- 3
Voracek- 2
Couturier- 2
Provorov- 1
Niskanen- 1
Hayes- 1
Raffl- 1
Twarynski- 1
Photo Credit: Getty Images
