There is nothing I like more than watching a franchise take a calculated risk. And it's what the Philadelphia Flyers did today when they brought in Trevor Zegras in a trade with the Anaheim Ducks. We all know what Zegras can do, as he looked like a future center piece for the Ducks following a pair of very successful seasons in SoCal.
But, his career hit turbulence in 2023-24 and 2024-25, when he put up just 47 points and 18 goals in 88 games. Yeah, that's a downfall from the 61-point, 23-goal season he had back in 2021-22, before following it up with another 23-goal campaign for 65 points in 2022-23. He had the future star label attached to him for a Ducks team that needed one.
Those two most recent campaigns may cause a contingent of Flyers fans to hold their breath here, or even outright criticize the deal. But still, Zegras has more potential to help take this team further than Ryan Poehling ever did. Plus, Zegras is a proven player when healthy; someone who can link up on the top six with the likes of Matvei Michkov and Travis Konecny, to name a couple of players.
Yeah, this is a risk worth taking and Flyers fans should celebrate
Hey, I get it. During a rebuild, sometimes it's tough to take a risk or two, as one wrong move can set the team back. That would be the case, and this move would be ripe for criticism had the Flyers dished out a first-round pick for a player who never panned out - not that I'm implying they would. But they know Zegras can play.
He proved it two seasons ago, he proved it three seasons ago, and there's a good chance he'd have kept proving it if injuries didn't get in the way. Unfortunately for Zegras, it wasn't meant to be, and he turned into an afterthought in Anaheim when their own core started brewing.
But, that might just mean the Ducks loss is the Flyers gain, right? Zegras already proved he could play when he's not dealing with numerous ailments, and he had franchise player potential.
What if Zegras tanks with the Flyers?
I'm going to go ahead and give you the straightforward answer - then he tanks with the Flyers. I mean, Ryan Poehling never gave the Flyers more than 31 points in a season, and the Flyers gave up a second and fourth-round pick.
What are the odds Poehling becomes capable of putting up 60-plus points per season, or that the No. 45 pick the Flyers gave up will pan out in the NHL? How many second-round picks are capable of 60-70-point campaigns?
All of the above are enough reasons to justify why this is all worth a risk. So, the Flyers just got a high-potential, former first-round pick who can play. And it didn't even cost them a first. Not this year. Not next year. And for that, he helped speed up this rebuild.
More from Broad Street Buzz