ANA would say "no."
ANA doesn't want to get rid of Zegras.
But, if ANA adds more players or drafts picks to make a package deal to CBJ, then ANA would do it.

Anaheim would have to add a good bit

I wouldn't move Jiricek unless it's a top-5 pick or a team's top prospect coming back. Zegras would be great, but I'm thinking it would have to be Zegras + 2024 1st (~2 or 3 OA) for Jiricek + 2024 2nd (36ishOA).

Regardless, Columbus isn't moving him.

fair! How about Montreal 1st (call it 5th-8th) + Owen Beck (Good C Prospect) - trade done with Montreal of course.

There’s no defensive prospect on jiriceks level in this draft so a pick this year won’t do it. Would be a 1 for 1 trade like gautheir

Why in the world would anyone consider the unproven Jiricek more valuable than Trevor Zegras?!?!?

Jiricek and Zegras were rated as the same level of can't-miss prospect when they were drafted and I hope that no one is going to contend that Jiricek was rated more highly than Zegras. Jiricek now has 40 games' NHL experience of no particular distinction. Having been drafted three years earlier, Zegras has 200 games at almost 3/4 of a point per game under his belt, including two 60+ point seasons. In short, Zegras is a proven top-line forward and Jiricek is a most-hoped-for prospect. Moreover, it's Jiricek who's the disgruntled youngster intimating he wants a trade, not Zegras, so the malcontent factor is on only one side.

Unsigned A prospect Cutter Gauthier got an actual NHL defenseman drafted 6th overall (like Jiricek) AND a high 2025 second-round draft pick. Anyone who thinks an NHL-proven top-6 forward is worth less than an A-prospect freshman defenseman plus a similar second-round draft pick is simply ignorant.

You wouldn't be getting Zegras AND a top 3 pick, it would be OR.

Do you believe the deal to be fair 1 for 1?

Defenseman take longer to develop. Zegras is probably more proven although really struggling this year. He is also on a larger contract and will only have one year of control before he expires.

That being said jackets already have Kent Johnson who is similar to zegras so they don’t really need him. They do however need RD. That’s what makes jiricek virtually untouchable

It's kinda weird. All of a sudden the last week or so it seems like Jiricek's perceived value has skyrocketed to generational levels for no clear reason? Don't get me wrong, it should be high. But Zegras+2 or 3 overall for Jiricek and a 2nd? That's approaching lunacy.

No.

What is it about the "proven-versus-unproven" concept that is so hard for the Jiricek backers to grasp? Betting that Jiricek will be the next Drew Doughty or Victor Hedman or Adam Fox is just as risky as betting that fifth overall selection Olli Juolevi would be the next great defender who would eventually win the Norris Trophy. If Jiricek goes down to the AHL for the rest of the season, he'll still be eligible for the Calder Trophy next season. It will be two more seasons before Jiricek starts realizing his sky-high potential, because it takes about 200 games for a defender to really know what he's doing. (Young Norris winners like Adam Fox and Cale Makar are the exception, not the rule, and it will take a lot more than Jiricek has shown this season to suggest that he's a generational talent like they are.)

Don't get me wrong -- I would take Jiricek or Reinbacher and their team's 2025 second in return for Zegras IF in fact Zegras is on the market, because I think that that's fair value based upon the Gauthier-Drysdale/2nd comparable.

Zegras struggled this year because he was injured for all but 5 games this season.

My understanding is that when Zegras' current contract expires two more seasons after this one, Anaheim can offer him an extended contract and if Zegras declines and selects arbitration, the Ducks can ask for a two-year term. But I could be wrong about that.

Your point about Jiricek filling a gaping hole at #1RhD is very well taken. That's exactly why we'd be interested in him. But you may have no choice if he turns out to be as surly as Patrik Laine (God help you).

Jiricek > Pick 2-3 this year > Zegras >> 36th (or whatever it would be), that's how I'm looking at it. Even if he requests a trade, we don't have to trade him. Which he won't if we play him.

Beck is good, but I'm just not sure that's the solution, even with Montreal's pick. I don't think there's a scenario where he beats out Fantilli for 1C, and we'd still have a huge hole at 1RD. Just based on need, I don't think there's a MTL trade that doesn't involve Reinbacher (although that would be very close to 1 for 1 IMO).

this draft is stacked with defensive talent.

That's an overvaluation of Jiricek. Yeah, he's got promise, but he's a long way off from being spoken about it the same sentence as Makar or Doughty. Zegras at least has seasons of games under his belt, there's a strong NHL sample to understand the promise he showed as a prospect is real. Jiricek has 20 odd games and was sent back to the AHL, he doesn't have the sample size to show he's worth your loftly demands.

The value he has to Columbus is huge factor. As for outside teams valuing him higher than he deserves, I'm not sure. But unless things DRASTICALLY deteriorate to the point that he flat out refuses to play for them (which I really doubt happens with a new FO + Coach hopefully coming in soon), there's no incentive for Columbus to move him. Top pair RD is something that really only he can fill with their current pipeline. It really can't be understated how important it is for CBJ's future that he works out. So, unless another RD that at least has some potential to do that is coming back in a trade, it's really tough to see them pulling the trigger, regardless of Jiricek's current (justified) frustration. It'd really have to be a big overpay for Columbus to make a deal that's for a C or picks or whatever imo. There's just simply not enough pressure from Jiricek as it stands for them to not ask a king's ransom if they even entertained anything.

Why would you evaluate Jiricek as automatically superior to picks 2 or 3 this June? That's rampant homerism. He isn't superior to any one of the four guys selected 2 through 5 in his own draft, and one of them is a RhD just like he is.

Because he's NHL ready now, still has just as high a ceiling as when he was drafted, and none of those guys would be ready for a few more years. Sure there's some homerism, but apparently "we don't have another 1RD prospect in the pipeline that could fill his shoes, he's not getting moved" isn't good enough for anyone here. I'd put him on par with Korchinski, and both on par with Nemec (who's playing on a much better team and much better system).

And he's definitely superior to Wright (4) at the moment, probably Gauthier (5), and arguably Slafkofsky (1).

He’s definitely ahead of wright and cutter in terms of value Probably ahead of slaf. Probably goes 3rd in a redraft behind Cooley and nemec.

Defenseman will be drafted high for sure but that mostly because of the lack of forward talent. Lots of good not great prospects this year

On a re-draft, based upon the record so far, Jiricek doesn't get selected ahead of Pavel Mintyukov.

Yeah I agree with that. Although jiricek is projected to have a higher ceiling

fowards are better than the year of jiricek too. its overall a much better draft.