"That is definitely the type of play that we need out of him. I thought he was outstanding tonight," head coach Jared Bednar said of Zadorov. "Not just that hit, but he had three or four big hits and [was] defensively sound, making good decisions. That is what we're hoping to see out of that player. I know he's not going to get four, five big hits every night, but he can certainly play physical like that."
The off-ice officials had Zadorov down for three hits in the game, but there were plenty of other instances where the Russian rear guard used his 6-foot-5, 230-pound frame to create havoc on the ice.
"Z was a dominant force back there with moving the puck up and the big hits," said Jarome Iginla. "[The opposing players] always have to look around when he's out there. It's a big boost for the bench.
"He was feeling it today. It was fun to watch for the fans. That brings a lot of energy to our group, those big hits."
Zadorov finished with a season-high 25:18 of ice time, which included playing 1:12 on the power play and 2:35 on the penalty kill.
However, his hits were the story of the game.
The biggest one came when Mark Scheifele was moving the puck through his neutral zone with his head down and Zadorov delivered a punishing shoulder blow at 9:42 of the third period. Zadorov's presence throughout the outing clearly frustrated the Jets as Jacob Trouba jumped him from behind immediately after the collision and a scrum ensued.