October 29, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cI haven\u2019t talked to Trevor yet, but I bet that will come soon enough. But yeah, it\u2019s all water under the bridge,\u201d Acciari laughed. \u201cHe does what he needs to do on the ice to get under guys\u2019 skin. He does a good job, and he\u2019s effective at it.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was the first of many battles between the Flyers and Penguins last season. Of course, Zegras and Philadelphia got the last laugh as they eliminated Pittsburgh in Game 6 of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.<\/p>\n
That experience playing in Philadelphia against a young and hungry team like the Flyers made it easy for Acciari to switch sides of the rivalry.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir attention to detail was really good, made it difficult for us in Pittsburgh to get anything going. And they didn\u2019t give us much. That\u2019s a testament to them how dialed they were, just being stingy. The amount of blocked shots, you couldn\u2019t get many shots to the net, and when they did get to the net, it wasn\u2019t a great look.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were very good, and you could tell the excitement, how much fun they were having. It showed on the ice, and now being a part of it, I\u2019m excited to build off of that, and I think you can go even further.\u201d<\/p>\n
Acciari excited to be on other side of Flyers-Penguins rivalry<\/p>\n
Acciari plays a gritty style of hockey that will work well in any city, but especially so in a hardworking city like Philadelphia. <\/p>\n
\u201cJust being a part of that Pennsylvania rivalry. I got to experience on the other side, which was a lot of fun, and just seeing how passionate the fans are, which is unbelievable. And to be able to experience it with them cheering for you this time, which I\u2019m so excited for. I\u2019m glad to have them on my side now because they are very passionate, and they\u2019re all up in your face.\u201d<\/p>\n
The forward is in the latter years of his career at age 34, so he can provide some veteran leadership on a young Flyers team. He mentioned Zdeno Chara and Patrice Bergeron as two great leaders he learned from in Boston as a younger player, and even Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang in the last few years in Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I can speak up when things are down, making sure we don\u2019t get too down on ourselves because it\u2019s a long season,\u201d Acciari said. \u201cThere\u2019s going to be ups and downs, and you have to weather the storm\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cI think they saw it a little last year, and they were able to weather it, and the run they had at the end of the year and even in the playoffs was special. They have it in the locker room. It\u2019s just now putting it together, and they got a taste of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Acciari is expected to play a fourth-line role for Rick Tocchet in Philadelphia. He\u2019ll be replacing some of the veteran leadership that Garnet Hathaway brought, while also being a right-handed forward who can take faceoffs, much like Luke Glendening did in the final months of the season.<\/p>\n
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