The Rob Zepp Era in Philadelphia formally began on Sunday, as he was between the pipes for the Flyers' 4-3 comeback win over Winnipeg — his NHL debut.
Zepp was called up to the Flyers in time for their eight-game road trip, after a Steve Mason back injury suffered on Friday in practice. He joined the Flyers after 17 games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms this season — during which he posted an 8-5-1 record with a 2.70 GAA and a .918 SP.
At 33-years-old, Zepp became the oldest goalie to win his NHL debut since 1926-27. Hughie 'Old Eagle Eyes' Lehman of the Chicago Black Hawks previously held that distinction, as he won his debut at the age of 41. Additionally, Zepp supplants Neil Little as the team's oldest goalie to win his debut, as Little set the record on March 28, 2002 at 30-years-old.
Zepp turned away 25 of 28 Jets shots, 26 of which came over the first two periods. Arguably the biggest came in the dying seconds of the second period — a sprawling toe save over Mark Scheifele from the slot — that kept it a 3-1 game for the Jets. Two Vinny Lecavalier goals and a Jakub Voracek game-winner in overtime later, Zepp earned his first NHL win.
It took Zepp quite a while to suit up on NHL ice. He was a fourth-round draft pick twice — by Atlanta in 1999, and Carolina in 2001. From 2001-02 to 2004-05, he played in 115 games for the ECHL's Florida Everblades, while being called up to the AHL's Lowell Lock Monsters for several cups of coffee. After 2004-05, he crossed the pond and played for SaiPa in Finland's Liiga for two seasons. He signed a contract with the DEL's Eisbären Berlin in 2007, and played there until signing with the Orange and Black this past offseason. For what it's worth, he played alongside Claude Giroux and then-Flyer Daniel Briere when the two played for Berlin during the 2012-13 NHL lockout.
In another first, 'Zepper' became the first-ever player to wear the number 72 for the Orange and Black in a game. Sure it's no earth-shattering figure, but hey, it could be an interesting answer to a trivia question some day.
The biggest drawback for Zepp? If he wanted to write a book about this night, he can't legally use "The 33-Year-Old Rookie" as the title. I'm sure that's just small potatoes, though.
There's no doubting the sacrifices one must make in order to play in the NHL, and the dues that have to be paid in order to make "The Show." Each player on that ice, night after night, has paid those dues, all in pursuit of one common, shared dream. Rob Zepp is no different, and his dues have seen him cut his teeth across two continents. Even if his NHL tenure is short-lived, Zepp still accomplished that dream, and made history in the process.
Rob Riches is a contributor to Flyerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Riches61.
