Philadelphia Flyers forward Noah Cates may have had his season interrupted by a broken foot in November (he made his return in January), but being able to come back from such a serious injury and still find his feet under him was a testament to his mentality and dedication to putting in the work for this Flyers team.
Philadelphia Flyers forward Noah Cates may have had his season interrupted by a broken foot in November (he made his return in January), but being able to come back from such a serious injury and still find his feet under him was a testament to his mentality and dedication to putting in the work for this Flyers team.
Philadelphia Flyers forward Noah Cates may have had his season interrupted by a broken foot in November (he made his return in January), but being able to come back from such a serious injury and still find his feet under him was a testament to his mentality and dedication to putting in the work for this Flyers team.
Getting straight back into the NHL groove, especially during a part of the season that proved to be a major turning point for the Flyers, wasn't easy, but one thing in particular helped Cates get back to where he wanted to be.
"Just confidence," he said. "At the end of the day, it comes from the little things that my game is built on. Whether it's being physical or [having] a good stick, getting in on the forecheck, just those little things that help you find your game and then one goes in and you feel like you can't miss. But at the end of the day, you've got to get back to your game and your things that get you going. At the end of the day, for me, that's playing hard and being hard to play against, good stick detail, and just kind of be all over ice and forechecking."
He admitted to having a "bit of an identity crisis" when it came to how he wanted to play, recognizing that both the offensive and defensive aspects of his game would need to be in top shape once the Flyers started taking off.
"[I wanted] to be offensive and build off a good year last year and build off of it even more defensively than offensively, so I think it was a great learning experience this year for me and for the team, where we're at," he said. "You can't stray too far from who you are, and I want to build off of myself offensively. At the end of the day, defense is offense and for me personally, that's especially true. So just kind of an identity crisis, some confidence stuff, some injuries, so it's a year I'll look back on and it'll help propel me to higher levels because of what I went through."
It didn't help that he didn't stay in one position all season, finding himself going between center and winger duties on the ice. However, Cates knows that at this level, very few things stay in place for long, and adjusting is part and parcel of being an NHL player.
"The needs and lineups and everything changes so much in this league...I think it's good that I can play either [center or winger]," he said. "[I] feel comfortable in either spot, so I think it's good that I feel comfortable and play anywhere. I wouldn't pick or choose either one, so I'll work this summer on a little bit of both and go from there and see where we're at."
No matter where he is on the ice, though, he has full faith in his teammates, specifically linemates Garnet Hathaway and Ryan Poehling, to provide support wherever it's needed—and that goes for off the ice as well.
"[They're] really special people," he said of Hathaway and Poehling. "We took a lot of strides in the locker room because of guys like them, so kudos to them for stepping in off the ice more than anything, honestly. Playing with them was amazing. Defense first kind of got us going offensively, just puck support, talking hockey, and getting chemistry was really important for me. I think that's what got my game going again was playing with those guys, so I owe these guys a lot. It was really, really fun playing with them. More importantly, having them off the ice and in the locker room was huge. I thought we were super good just staying close and connected in the offensive zone, protecting pucks, and just supporting each other all over the nice."
As for the group as a whole—and stop me if you've heard this one before—Cates is another Flyers player that's grateful for, albeit frustrated by, how the season ended and will be looking back on it as a lesson for future campaigns.
"The experience—being in [a playoff spot] as long as we were, and the race towards the end was definitely good experience for us to have and know what it takes and how hard it is," he said. "To have two weeks like we did and kind of fall out of it and have a couple more good efforts, obviously a lot to process but definitely a good experience for this group. [We want] to get back there now that we know what it takes and have that hunger to finish it out and get in [the playoffs] in the future."
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