Hockey agent Petr Svoboda is in New York City this week meeting with clients.
The former Flyers defenseman was debating whether to catch a train to Philly to talk to his No. 1 client — Jakub Voracek.
Instead, he called Voracek on the phone.
Svoboda wanted to offer encouragement to the Flyers’ right winger, who has three assists and no goals through eight games.
Voracek was among the NHL’s top five scoring leaders all last season, finishing with 81 points. This is the longest Voracek has gone without a goal to start a season. His previous high was six games in 2010-11 when he played for Columbus.
“I’ve talked to Jakub,” Svoboda said. “Things will happen and he will be fine. There are a lot of guys around the league right now going through it, not just him.”
What about that eight-year, $66 million contract extension?
“I don’t think it is the contract,” Svoboda replied. “He is not the kind of guy that thinks about that. He is playing well, but they’re not going in. I have confidence it will happen. He gets one and they’ll come pouring in.”
Voracek is neither motivated nor distracted by money.
“I don’t get under too much pressure because I signed a long-term contract or because I didn’t score,” he said. “I know what kind of player I am. Eventually, it’s going to go in and it will be same as always.”
Voracek replayed parts of the 4-3 overtime loss to Buffalo in his mind on the drive back to Center City on Tuesday.
“It’s my eighth year in the league,” Voracek said. “It’s not like I am going through this for the first time. We’re off to a good start as a team. We’ve had tough opponents in the first eight games and got 10 points out of it.
“You've got to look at it ... it’s a sign for me we are going to start scoring as a line and that things are going to get better.”
The Flyers' top line is hurting. Claude Giroux has three goals. Michael Raffl has none.
Told that a scout had suggested there is some hesitancy in Voracek’s game — whether to shoot, pass or decide how authoritative he is going to the net — Voracek admitted he’s second-guessing himself.
“When the puck does not go your way ... you make a decision you don’t usually make,” he said. “If you see the puck between the circles, you have a big scoring chance and you start thinking where to shoot, how to shoot, and what happens if I am not scoring.”
Worry about the crowd’s reaction, your teammates, and the little things add up.
“You've got to go with a clear head and shoot the puck,” Voracek said. “Sometimes it’s not just me, but every player, they go through something. Their goals drop and they start thinking too much. In my case, maybe I am thinking too much when I am shooting the puck, yeah. It’s been eight games and I have a lot of shots on the net. I know if I do my thing, I will be fine.”
His 34 shots lead the team.
Flyers coach Dave Hakstol isn’t panicking. He won’t switch up players, either.
“If you could pinpoint a reason why the puck is not going in for him, we’d all make a lot of money,” Hakstol said. “He’s playing hard. He’s getting opportunities ... [Tuesday] he had 11 shot opportunities. Some were good ones.
“We’ve talked a little bit. It’s not something you talk your way out of. There’s nothing groundbreaking that I am going to give to him.”
Gordie Howe would say if you’re slumping, shoot the puck more. Today’s players add it helps to find a new spot on the ice to shoot from.
Voracek was visibly upset at himself during some of the half-dozen chances he had against the Sabres and failed to convert.
“It pisses me off when it’s 3-3 going into overtime and we had so many chances during the game and we don’t score and then we lose in overtime,” he said. “You feel you left that one point hanging there because you didn’t score.”
The legit concern here should not be his current slump, but the fact Voracek has been tailing off since the second half of last season. He has just five goals over his last 47 games.
“Let’s be honest, I’ve never scored 35-40 goals,” he said. “At least last year when I was not scoring I was creating chances ... as a line the puck does not go in for us this time of year.
“But it’s a good thing we go through this [now] and not the rest of the year. With my game, I am not focused with just scoring goals. It’s my overall game I am focusing on.”
Defensively, the Flyers have a renewed focus this season throughout their lineup. And they need it because this team has scored only 17 goals, which is barely two a game. The league average is 2.75.
The good news? The Flyers are 4-2-2 with a chance to finish out a strong October at 6-2-2. They host the New Jersey Devils Thursday, then travel to Buffalo for Friday’s rematch against the Sabres before heading to Western Canada.
“We had a real tough schedule in the beginning of the season with good teams,” Voracek said. “If we end up 6-2-2 it will be a pretty good start. It’s only one month. We've got a big road trip coming up. We've got to make sure we bring some points out of there.”
And a few goals, as well.