Zajac's Continued Influence | BLOG

Even when Travis Zajac stepped away from playing the game of hockey, you just knew he wasn't going to step too far away.
Hockey and the New Jersey Devils have always been synonymous with Zajac, so it is no surprise to see him still around the arena, and occasionally lacing up his skates.
But instead of full gear, he dons a tracksuit and baseball cap and stands along the edges of the boards. Zajac now has the watchful eyes of a coach on some players he's been teammates with, others who he's working with for the first time.
In recent practices, Zajac has been a part of Lindy Ruff's coaching staff, participating and imparting wisdom on the current Devils roster.
"He's probably one of the better two-way players that has ever played here," Ruff said after practice. "He knows how to play the game, right. (He) was a real good face-off player. So he's been awesome. He's been sitting in our meetings, and he goes out there, and he works with young guys and talks to them, about a lot of different situations. And I think he's garnered a lot of respect, just for the fact that he just came off playing."

"Just just to be out there and be a positive influence more than anything," Zajac shared of sticking around the team. "I think they're a young team, they have a lot of energy that they have a lot of skill, they have a lot of talent, just making sure they're always in the right mindset (to know that) you're out there to get better, you're out there to grow as a player and, and have fun doing that."
Dawson Mercer never played with Zajac, but he certainly knows all about him. And is soaking it all up.
"He's just that two-way, complete forward and similar game to kind of what I play," the 20-year-old said Thursday after practice. "He was out there with us on the faceoffs, obviously, he was a good centerman, supports the puck real well."
Mercer developed a relationship with Zajac during training camp, where he was offered some tips and pointers from a playing built of a similar mold "and now it's kind of more just like, seeing them out there having a good time, and he's smiling."
Jesper Bratt, who played alongside and shared a locker room with Zajac for the first three years of his career, knows Zajac as a teammate, a friend, and now as a continued mentor.
"He was here as a player and was a player that you really, really looked up to," Bratt shared. "And I mean, seeing him now after his retirement still being at the rink with us is awesome. And he brings a lot of joy and excitement, he has a lot of routines to show guys the ropes, and he's a guy that I really want to listen to and can still learn a lot from him."
The learning and value work both ways. With the extra time that retired life has freed up for Zajac, he's been able to get involved with coaching his kids, and he too takes something out of the experience of being on the ice in a different capacity than he's been accustomed to for so many years.
"It honestly it's a great experience just for me, it's invaluable being around the coaches and learning from them you know, how they write up practice, how they go about meetings every day. Personally, I get involved with my kid's coaching, this is it for me, it's invaluable, it's a great experience to learn for them."