Travis Konecny Helping to Fill the Void Left by Wayne Simmonds
We all saw the Wayne Simmonds trade coming but the sting of losing a long-time fan favorite will take time to get over. One thing that could help ease the pain is the recent play of Travis Konecny.
In his third season with the Flyers, Konecny has taken the ice in all 66 games and is on pace to easily surpass his numbers from last season (24 goals, 23 assists) with 21 goals and 21 assists and 16 games to play. The soon-to-be 22-year-old winger has been able to shake a fairly slow start to the season and has been on a point-per-game pace over the last 18 games (10 goals, 8 assists).
While his numbers have been a positive for the Flyers recent playoff push, the overall ‘feistiness’ to his game brings a much-needed element to the Flyers lineup sans Wayne Simmonds.
Obviously, the 5’10”, 175 lbs Konecny isn’t going to overmatch anyone with his size or ability to throw hands like Simmonds, but his willingness to jump in to defend his teammates is admirable for someone of his size. Most notably, when Nolan Patrick took a hit from behind by Devils’ Kurtis Gabriel and Konecny immediately jumped in to defend one of his good friends.
After the game, Konency let it be known that when it comes to Patrick, “I’m gonna stick up for him every time.”
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He followed that up days later when he stood up for himself after a high hit and dropped the gloves with Jordan Eberle.
This has been nothing new for Konecny who has played with an edge since entering the league in 2016-17 but has been pushed to the forefront without Wayne Simmonds who was always the first guy to look at when the Flyers looked to get even.
The small-bodied yet extremely confident Konecny is going to quickly become a fan favorite, if not already, for the Flyers’ faithful.
From his widely-imitated ‘woo’ from last season that can be heard echoing through Wells Fargo Center to his evolving game on offense, Travis Konecny is helping to fill the hole left by Wayne Simmonds on both the ice and in the hearts of Flyers fans. It’s just going to take some time.
Also, if you haven’t seen it yet, he was wired up during the Stadium Series game against the Penguins. His chirps are next level. Here’s a snippet of some of his best:
Travis Konecny is a legend. pic.twitter.com/w92WJe1MaX
— Ryan Gilbert (@RGilbertSOP) March 6, 2019
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