The Sportsnet panel consisting of Elliott Friedman, Justin Bourne, and Nick Kypreos discussed the new contract extension for Trevor Zegras today. While they all agreed that the three-year deal with an average annual value of $5.75 million is fair value, the shorter term indicates that the team might not have as much faith in the player as we would expect given his pedigree.
New Ducks GM Pat Verbeek is well-known as an old-school hockey player. Zegras, on the other hand, is very much a new-school player eager to show off his skill and creativity whenever possible. This contract seems to suggest that the Ducks organization doesn't see Zegras as a franchise-defining player, at least not yet.
Kypreos noted that Verbeek wanted to see Zegras develop the small details of his game and that he is not actually a superstar yet, despite already appearing on an NHL game cover. Kypreos went on to say that if Zegras doesn't prove himself to be a star in the NHL then he will likely be traded before this contract expires. Notably, Zegras will be an RFA at the end of the deal.
Friedman added that if Zegras does prove himself to be the superstar, and the Ducks do want to sign him long-term, he will remember these contract negotiations and will likely use them as leverage to get more on his next deal.
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Regardless of what happens next, it seems as though the Ducks have created a problem for themselves out of nothing. If Zegras somehow regresses or fails to take another step in the scoring department, then it would make more sense for them to trade him in hindsight. If he does take another step and can score 75 or more points this year and continue to build on that, then he will be very expensive when this deal is over and his relationship with team management may be damaged, further jacking up his asking price. It seems reasonable that Zegras would be offended by the fact that he is making less than players like Alex Killorn. Regardless, it's not an ideal situation for the Ducks.
