from Frank Seravalli of TSN,

When Philadelphia Flyers forward Jakub Voracek caught up with countryman Ondrej Pavelec in Winnipeg last Friday night, Voracek joked he tried to bribe Pavelec into allowing him to score when they faced each other on Saturday.

“Even that didn’t work,” Voracek said.

Kidding aside, the frustration is real for Voracek.

Three months after signing the richest contract of the summer, Voracek is without a goal through 14 games this season. No player has taken more shots (54) than Voracek without finding the back of the net. Even Toronto’s Nazem Kadri, who has six more shots, has scored once.

Voracek, 26, has just five assists after finishing fifth in the NHL scoring race last season with 81 points.

Voracek’s $66-million contract extension kicks in next season, which will tentatively make him the 10th highest-paid player in the league.

Among high-priced forwards, Voracek is not alone this season in lack of production. Ryan Getzlaf, Dustin Brown, Jason Pominville, Brian Gionta, Jonathan Huberdeau and Martin Hanzal have all been blanked so far; all seven players have registered at least 25 shots on net and earn more than $3 million this season.

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