Late Wednesday night, the Philadelphia Flyers announced a deal securing one of their two remaining arbitration-eligible players, with center/winger Trevor Zegras signed to a 4-year pact worth an average annual value of $9.125 million.
Zegras, whose contract status was up in the air as GM Danny Briere began to sift through the rubble of some unrestricted free agents and other RFAs to shape next year's roster, was set to have a hearing next Wednesday, July 22, if no deal could be finalized.
"We're thrilled to have Trevor committed to our organization for the next 4 years," Briere said in a team-issued statement which accompanied the extension.
"The growth he showed this past season, proving that he is the skilled player he entered the league as, reinforced our belief that he will be an impact player for the Flyers for the years to come. He's the type of player who can help take our team to the next level and we're excited to continue building alongside him."
For Zegras -- now the highest paid player per AAV on the club, eclipsing Konecny's $8.75M AAV -- this new deal is set to expire in July 2030 when he will become a UFA, when he will be 29 years old. Coincidentally, termination of the extension occurs at the same time as long-time center and team captain Sean Couturier's $7.75M deal as well as defenseman Cam York's $5.15M AAV contract.
"When we negotiated with Trevor ... we looked at everything from 1 to 8 years, going back and forth. Four seemed to be the sweet spot. There was some give and take on both sides," Briere noted about the progression of contract discussions during a Thursday morning video press conference. "There's a lot of details that goes into a negotiation. That's where we ended up with 4 (years) with more traction in this case."
No additional terms of the contract were made publicly available, but multiple reports suggest it carries a 10-team no-trade clause in the 3rd year, with an additional 6-team NTC in the final year of the deal.
Although suffering through some rough patches in terms of production at the beginning of his first season here as well as a pre-Olympic slump, the 25-year-old put together career highs of 26 goals and 67 points over 81 regular-season games, including team highs of 23 points (10G, 13A) on an eternally struggling power play.
His point total, second only to Travis Konecny's team-high 68, arrived despite periods when head coach Rick Tocchet would slot him in as both center and wing, sometimes both in the span of a single game when necessary.
This, along with stretches of team-wide goal droughts and injuries which stretched the forward lines thin during the winter, affected his game-to-game output with respect to shot totals; although Tocchet favors "low event games" which solidified Zegras' two-way play, that purposeful lack of offensive force was another factor in Zegras' relatively low shot totals and shooting percentage.
While hampered by injury like many of his teammates in brutal series against the Penguins and Hurricanes, Zegras added 6 points (2G, 4A) and 26 penalty minutes while participating in all 10 postseason outings.
In the wake of the Ducks matching Briere's offer sheet to RFA Leo Carlsson late last week, as well as the known unknowns of the remainder of the summer, it is unclear whether Briere will try to find another top center. It also remains to be seen whether Tocchet would install Zegras or Christian Dvorak as a permanent 1C if no further impactful roster moves are made.
"That's not up to me to decide," Briere admitted in the video presser, while also later revealing, "The Leo Carlsson offer sheet and Trevor Zegras contract had nothing to do with each other."
On Tocchet's challenge to Zegras to de-emphasize the highlight reel and become a more complete player, Briere said: "He wanted to prove to 'Tocc' that he's more about winning. Even in this negotiation, he took charge. He said he wanted to be in Philly. Trevor was really involved. I have to give him a lot of credit for how he carried himself last year."
Heading into his 7th NHL season, the native of Westchester County, New York and one-season wonder at Boston University has totaled 253 points (93G, 160A) over 349 regular-season appearances, which includes 37 PPGs and 15 game-winning tallies for Anaheim and Philadelphia.
Briere has one more loose end remaining, that of the pending arbitration hearing of defenseman Jamie Drysdale, scheduled for next Monday, July 20. In addition, RFA Nikita Grebenkin's contract status is also as yet unresolved, but he, unlike Zegras and Drysdale, is not arbitration eligible.
"I'm glad it's done," Briere said. "It's much nicer to get a deal done, and a long-term deal done, rather than go through arbitration."
