The Philadelphia Flyers are far from being a legitimate Stanley Cup contender, but on Monday, they made a big splash in the offseason that could help them get to that status down the road.

Philadelphia sent shockwaves across the NHL by trading for Trevor Zegras from the Anaheim Ducks. In exchange, the Flyers sent forward Ryan Poehling, a second-rounder in the 2025 NHL draft and a fourth-rounder in the 2026 NHL draft.

On paper, the Zegras trade is a big shot in the arm of Philadelphia's offense that was among the least productive in the league during the 2024-25 NHL season, in which the Flyers averaged just 2.83 goals per contest — just 29th overall.

Injuries have slowed down Zegras in the past couple of seasons, playing just 31 games in 2023-24 and 57 in 2024-25, but he's undeniably a talented player who can look forward to being among the chief contributors for the Flyers, beginning in the 2025-26 campaign. In the last two seasons, Zegras, who was a first-round pick (ninth overall) by the Ducks in the 2019 NHL draft, has produced 18 goals to go along with 29 assists for 47 points through 88 games.

Article Continues Below

But even with the Zegras acquisition, the Flyers may still make another move to shore up the center position, according to Charlie O'Connor of PHLY Sports.

“Briere did not sound like a GM who is satisfied with their center situation even after the Zegras trade — nor a GM who is satisfied with merely making this move this offseason. Sounds like he wants to do more on both counts,” O'Connor shared in a post on X (formerly Twitter) after Flyers general manager Daniel Briere said that getting Zegras is “hopefully just one piece of the puzzle.”

The Flyers didn't invest a lot of their future to get Zegras, as he is entering the final year of his current contract. Depending on how he performs on the ice in the coming season. Philadelphia could either offer him an extension or let him walk in the next NHL free agency period. There is also the option for them to trade Zegras, who has a cap hit of $5.75 million.

Just 24 years old, Zegras can continue to develop his game with the Flyers, alongside the likes of Matvei Michkov and Travis Konecny.