Rob Zepp has no idea what’s next.
He doesn’t know whether he’ll stay in Philadelphia for the duration of the All-Star break, because he doesn’t know whether his services will be needed once the Flyers return to practice next Monday.
He has no idea whether he’ll start in another NHL game this season — or ever.
As he said after Tuesday’s 3-2 overtime win against the Pittsburgh Penguins, where he goes from here is “totally up in the air.”
“It’s a bit of a waiting game at the moment,” Zepp said. “But we’ll see what’s going on, and then make plans accordingly.”
The Flyers’ 33-year-old first-year goaltender (he’s too old to technically be classified as a rookie) has now appeared in six games for the team. He lays claim to a 3-1-0 record with a 2.92 goals-against average and .889 save percentage.
And while his most recent stretch of games played in Steve Mason’s absence hasn’t been perfect, Zepp has exceeded almost everyone’s expectations.
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Now that he’s had a taste of the NHL — and a small taste of success — it should come as no surprise that he hopes to remain with the Flyers, even when Mason returns from his absence.
“Of course,” Zepp said. “Why not? But it is what it is. Like I’ve been saying all along, I’m just trying to take advantage of whatever opportunity comes my way.”
The past 10 days, especially, were full of opportunity for Zepp. He faced some of the NHL’s elite clubs in starts against Tampa Bay, Washington and the New York Islanders. He replaced Ray Emery as the top backup to the injured Mason, taking on more work against stiffer competition. Of course, general manager Ron Hextall suggested Wednesday that Emery is still the Flyers' top backup.
Zepp was pulled after allowing four goals in less than two periods against the Islanders Monday, but notched the win against the Lightning and allowed only one goal in the loss to the Capitals. With Mason sidelined, the Flyers went 3-3-0 heading into the All-Star break.
“I think things went pretty well,” Zepp said. “We got a couple wins, obviously we lost a couple games. But overall, fairly well. It can always be better, it can always be worse, but it’s a building block for me especially. It’s been a great experience and I hope to keep building off that here in the future.”
The question now is what comes next. Mason, who was injured Jan. 10 against the Boston Bruins, was expected to miss two weeks. If things go as expected, he should be ready to return for the Flyers' first game after the break, Jan. 27 against the Arizona Coyotes. Add to that the fact that Emery reminded critics during the Penguins game that he can still put together a strong performance, and there might not be a reason for Zepp to remain in Philadelphia. At least for now.
But still, Zepp is holding out hope that he'll get to stick around.
"That’s why I signed here," he said. "That was the motivation behind it. It’s been a good start, but I want to keep building off of it and continue to improve and try to take advantage of opportunities that come my way."