NY Rangers Bold Trade Proposal Would Land Ducks' Trevor Zegras on Broadway

Trevor Zegras has been on the rumor mill for well over a year now, after an injury-riddled couple of years, plus a lack of production leaving him far from the exciting rookie and sophomore performances he provided for the Anaheim Ducks.

Would the New York Rangers be willing to take a chance on revitalizing Zegras's elite offensive skillset? Insider Larry Brooks of the New York Post has made a bold proposal that Blueshirts' GM Chris Drury should "seriously" look into a swap of one disappointing 23-year-old for another.

New York Rangers Receive:

Trevor Zegras
Defense prospect (Drew Helleson or Tyson Hinds?)

Anaheim Ducks Receive:

Alexis Lafreniere

It's true that Lafreniere (the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft) was just signed by Drury to a seven-year, $7.45M AAV extension earlier this season that doesn't even kick in until the fall, but Brooks thinks that both players need a fresh start.

Five years into Lafrenière’s career, and (five) years into that of Zegras, which has been interrupted by a pair of serious injuries, wouldn’t you agree that each player has a greater chance to reach his ceiling by moving to a new zip code?

Lafreniere seemed to have turned the corner last season, with 28 goals and 57 points in 82 games. He started the current campaign on fire, with 16 points through the first 19 games. But after the ink on his big extension went dry, he has gone in the wrong direction, with just 16 points in the last 36 games.

Zegras, on the other hand, has been stagnant for two years now, largely due to injuries, stuck on six goals and 15 points in 32 games, pretty much identical to what he did last season. He had knee surgery in December and ankle surgery last year. Whatever the true reasons behind it, he is a shell of the explosive rookie he was three years ago.

But that doesn't stop Brooks from envisioning Zegras as a Ranger.

I am fascinated by Zegras’ upside. Folks like to think the Rangers are an upper-echelon skills team but I don’t. They have had trouble for years with fast, skilled teams. I think Zegras, if not compromised by physical issues, would dramatically raise the Blueshirts’ top-six talent quotient.

How Zegras has recovered from his surgeries would be something that needs more investigation, posits Brooks, and "I am not certain I would do Lafrenière for Zegras. I would need more information. But I am certain that if I were the Rangers, I would look into this very, very seriously."