Flyers Defenseman Benched After Struggles, Agent's Criticism Of Team

Just two games into the season, Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Egor Zamula has already been benched for his continued struggles.

On Monday, ahead of the team's home opener against the Florida Panthers, the Flyers confirmed that Zamula, 25, was exiting the lineup.

Taking his place will be fellow defenseman Emil Andrae, who didn't make the Flyers out of training camp but had a mostly impressive 2024-25 season in addition to a strong start with the AHL Lehigh Valley Phantoms over the last few days.

The Flyers were wary of including him in the mix due to his 5-foot-9 size, and there's even been some rumors that the team would consider trading Andrae for the right offer, even though they aren't actively looking to do so.

As for Zamula, his benching was, to be blunt, a long time coming.

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Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet already expressed disappointment in the defenseman's game during the NHL preseason, and there has not been much improvement in that regard in the first two games of 2025-26.

This also comes on the heels of some rather inflammatory quotes from Zamula's agent, Shumi Babaev, which indicated that the formerly undrafted Russian hasn't been able to reach his full potential with the Flyers due to a lack of opportunity.

Such opportunities had been afforded by the Flyers in the past during John Tortorella's tenure with the team, especially when it comes to the power play, but those chances paid off only sometimes.

With Adam Ginning and now Andrae overtaking him, it's fair to wonder how much longer the 25-year-old Zamula will remain in Philadelphia with the Flyers, especially considering he's in the last year of a two-year, $3.4 million ($1.7 million AAV) contract that will see him become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights at the end of this season.