Couturier has gotten what he wanted, and is producing at a higher rate than he ever has in the NHL. Centering a line with left wing Claude Giroux and right wing Jakub Voracek, Couturier leads the Flyers with nine goals and is tied with Voracek for the team lead with 18 points entering their game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Wells Fargo Center on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; TVA Sports, NBCSP, NBCSCH, NHL.TV).
After 15 games, he's more than halfway to surpassing his NHL best of 15 goals (in 2014-15), and with an average of 1.2 points per game, he could surpass his high of 39 points in 2013-14 and 2015-16 before Christmas.
He also leads the Flyers with a plus-11 rating in 20:29 of ice time per game, first among Flyers forwards.
"All these years, a lot of people just thought I was a defensive guy," Couturier said. "I always knew I could do more, be more of an offensive threat. I was patient, waited for my time, and my chance. … Finally got it this year and I've been enjoying it and trying to take advantage of it."
That patience was tested by three coaches (Peter Laviolette, Craig Berube, Hakstol) during his first six seasons. All at various times said they wanted Couturier to have more offensive opportunities, but invariably he would return to his role of playing against the other team's top line and thinking offense second. In that time he started 41.20 percent of his 5-on-5 shifts in the offensive zone, the sixth-lowest percentage among forwards to play at least 400 games between 2011-12 and 2016-17.
"I'm 24, turning 25 soon,' said Couturier, whose birthday is Dec. 7. "It's really the year where if I wanted to be known as more than just a defensive guy I had to step up and put pressure on the coaches, the organization, to put me in this situation."