The likelihood of a change of scenery for Ducks forward Trevor Zegras during draft week is growing, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports Monday. Anaheim is in “significant discussions” with multiple teams on a trade for the 24-year-old, and it appears one of those talks will get across the finish line before or during the draft on Friday and Saturday.
Zegras’ name has popped up in trade rumors and speculation ever since semi-contentious contract negotiations upon reaching restricted free agency in 2023. He ended up settling for a three-year, $17.25MM contract off the back of two straight 60-point seasons, carrying what looked like a team-friendly cap hit of $5.75MM at the time while also giving the Ducks, who were lukewarm on Zegras’ ceiling as a first-line piece on a contending team, the flexibility of not making a long-term commitment.
Those talks resulted in Zegras missing a good portion of training camp, an important one with a new head coach in Greg Cronin. The ensuing 2023-24 campaign was nightmarish. He had just two points through his first 12 games before a lower-body injury took him out of the lineup for 20 games. He only returned for a few weeks before requiring ankle surgery. He was limited to a 6-9–15 scoring line in 31 appearances on the year, seeing his points per game decline from 0.80 to 0.48 while averaging 1:45 less per game than he did in 2022-23.
Injuries continued to plague Zegras this past season, limiting him to 57 games. He at least rebounded somewhat offensively, posting 12 goals and 32 points, but that still doesn’t sniff the 60-point ceiling he demonstrated earlier in his career. The 24-year-old still averaged around 17 minutes per game, was deployed almost exclusively on the wing after starting his career as a center, but was notably trusted by Cronin in some tougher defensive matchups without a meaningful hit to his possession impacts. That was a promising sign for the Ducks moving forward, but after making a coaching change and looking to make a significant splash in free agency this summer, Zegras’ future in a top-six role in Anaheim remains cloudy.
The Ducks weren’t realistically going to trade Zegras last summer, when he had two years left on his deal and his trade value was at a low point. His value has now rebounded somewhat after his improved two-way showing in 2024-25, and there are likely teams out there that still view him as having everyday second-line upside, whether at center or on the wing. If it’s the former, he’ll at least need to be paired with a winger who’s competent in the faceoff circle. Zegras has won only 40.1% of draws over his five-year NHL career and won a career-low 36.6% of them in 2024-25.
Anaheim, which drafted Zegras ninth overall in 2019, will presumably look for at least a first-round pick or equivalent asset in return. Considering the dearth of impact center pickups in free agency or on the trade market aside from names like Mikael Granlund, Marco Rossi, and John Tavares, they should be able to get it.
The Canadiens nearly landed Zegras at the 2024 draft and, since they’re still looking for a long-term solution as their No. 2 center behind Nick Suzuki, should be expected to pursue him again here. Teams like the Blackhawks, Canucks, Flyers, Kraken, Penguins, and Sabres who have shown interest in acquiring Rossi from the Wild are also likely keeping tabs on Zegras as a fallback option.