Zegras traded to Flyers by Ducks for Poehling, draft picks

Trevor Zegras was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers by the Anaheim Ducks on Monday for Ryan Poehling, a second-round pick (No. 45) in the 2025 NHL Draft and a fourth-round selection in the 2026 NHL Draft.

The 24-year-old forward had 32 points (12 goals, 20 assists) in 57 games this season, missing nearly seven weeks after having surgery for a torn meniscus in his right knee Dec. 12. Zegras has one season left on a three-year contract he signed with the Ducks on Oct. 2, 2023, before he can become a restricted free agent.

"The bridge deal allowed us to catch a longer look at the player and that's why we did a three-year deal," Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said. "You have to intimately get to know these players and their game."

Zegras' desire to play center, and the acquisition of left wing Chris Kreider in a trade with the New York Rangers on June 12, played a big part in sending Zegras to Philadelphia.

"You start imagining lines and how you want certain players to complement each other, and we started looking at the scenario and ultimately we made the decision to move Trevor because of that," Verbeek said. "I made the trade and I got what I thought we wanted. We're going to continue to look at everything we can to make the [Stanley Cup Playoffs].

"Cap space. We have lots of that, so we can look at that to improve the team."

The Ducks traded forward prospect Carey Terrance and a third-round selection in the 2025 NHL Draft to the Rangers for Kreider and a fourth-round pick in 2025. They went 35-37-10 to finish sixth in the Pacific Division and have not made the playoffs since 2018, when they were swept by the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference First Round.

"Trevor has been wanting to play center," Verbeek said. "I think he'll be given that opportunity in Philadelphia. There's Leo (Carlsson) and there's Mason (McTavish). They're two pretty good centermen, so Trevor gets pushed to the wing and that doesn't suit his best attributes."

When asked if Zegras would play center for the Flyers, general manager Daniel Briere said, "Well, that'll be more a question for (coach) Rick Tocchet."

"We hope he can help in the center position, because that's obviously an area that we could improve," Briere added. "But at the same time, if Rick decides that he's better suited on the wing and there's other guys that play better in the middle, he's going to decide. But we certainly hope that he can help fill the void in the middle."

Anaheim's first-round pick (No. 9) in the 2019 NHL Draft, Zegras has 186 points (67 goals, 119 assists) in 268 games. He was a finalist for the Calder Trophy, which is awarded to the NHL's rookie of the year, in 2022, when he had 61 points (23 goals, 38 assists) in 75 games.

"Top-six talents are very rarely available around the NHL," Briere said. "We felt that was a risk worth taking for us. We've seen him in the past. He had those really good seasons at 20 and 21 years old. Now I'm not sure, injuries were a factor last couple of years. Other than that, it's tough for us to tell on the outside. We're not in the room, we're not with the coaching staff, with the other players. Sometimes it could be chemistry as well, so I'm not too sure. We feel good about it because of what he's shown in the past, and we hope he can find that magic again and take it to another level."

Verbeek said new coach Joel Quenneville, who was hired to replace Greg Cronin on May 8, did not have input on the trade, but the two sides spoke after the deal was done.

"Joel doesn't know the player like I know the player," Verbeek said. "He understands we're getting a good player back that's going to fill a role that we needed to fill."

Poehling, a 26-year-old forward, had 31 points (12 goals, 19 assists) in 68 games for Philadelphia this season. A first-round pick (No. 25) by the Montreal Canadiens at the 2017 NHL Draft, he has 95 points (43 goals, 52 assists) in 283 games for the Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins and Flyers. Poehling can become an unrestricted free agent after next season.

"They're mature players," Verbeek said about Poehling and Kreider. "This is part of the different chemistry and different makeup I'm looking to get accomplished. Where they will fit is ultimately up to Joel. He wants to play fast and they have that ability to play fast and forecheck."

The Flyers now have six picks in the first two rounds of the 2025 Upper Deck NHL Draft, which will be held at L.A. Live's Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The first round will be held June 27 (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS), with rounds 2-7 on June 28 (Noon ET; NHLN, ESPN+, SN, SN1).

"Obviously, the first-round picks (Nos. 6, 22 and 31) for us were a no-go from the start," Briere said. "We spent a lot of time and a lot of frustration acquiring those first round picks. So, we're trying to be extra careful with that."

NHL.com deputy managing editor Adam Kimelman and independent correspondent Dan Arritt contributed to this report