Edited Jan. 13 at 9:10 p.m.
Anaheims not trading Zegras for a grab bag if lesser pieces. No Reinbacher or Slafkovaky in the deal, then no Zegras.
"bUt He'S a OnE dImEnSiOnAl PlAyEr!!!" Yeah, so are Patrick Kane, Artemi Panarin, and Alex Ovechkin, they still have value.
"bUt He'S pLaYiNg BaDlY tHiS SeAsOn, HiS vAlUe HaS nEvEr BeEn LoWeR!!!" Yeah, too bad he's signed for two more seasons after this, plenty of time for his value to recover.
"bUt DrYsDaLe WaS tRaDeD, vErBeEk Is ClEaRiNg HoUsE!!!" You clearly miss the nuance of the trade, Anaheim was overflowing with puck moving defensemen, yes, it hurt to loose Drysdale, but Mintyukov had emerged as a replacement on PP1 for him. Other than being right shot, he wasn't unique on our roster, and we always struggled to find him a D partner ever since we traded Lindholm.
And hurt is what it's going to take to acquire Zegras, if you heard the news tomorrow that Montreal had acquired Zegras, and it didn't immediately fill you with dread to hear the cost, then it's not enough payment.