The Philadelphia Flyers and Anaheim Ducks have connected on a few trades in recent years.
First, it was the disgruntled Cutter Gauthier being dealt to Anaheim for Jamie Drysdale and a second-round pick. Then it was the Ducks’ turn to trade away a player needing a change of scenery, sending Trevor Zegras to the Flyers for Ryan Poehling, a second-round pick, and a fourth-round pick.
Both teams are probably pretty happy with how those deals have turned out so far. Drysdale and Zegras have become key parts of the future, while Gauthier has shown his goalscoring potential in Anaheim, and Poehling has provided some nice depth down the middle as well.
So, with another Ducks center in the rumor mill, there is naturally going to be speculation that Pat Verbeek and Danny Briere could connect on another trade.
The Flyers were recently linked to Ducks center Mason McTavish. However, trading for McTavish would likely be a mistake for Briere and the Flyers.
I discussed the idea of trading for either Matty Beniers or Mason McTavish with Joe DeMarini and Jacob Russell on this week’s BSH Podcast.
Joe DeMarini: I would avoid McTavish. If it’s a second-round pick and Garnet Hathaway, sure, you take that swing any day of the week, but I don’t know. I don’t see it.
Jacob Russell: I’d agree with Joe in the fact that I’d have Beniers over McTavish. I think Beniers in a role where he can play in between a Martone and Konecny or a Tippett and a Zegras, even potentially, I think you can dream on him finally fulfilling that goalscoring potential that you kind of hoped he’d have at this level by now … Meanwhile, McTavish, beyond the fact that the player, I don’t necessarily know if he’s got that next level of potential the way Beniers does. I don’t know how I feel about going back to the well and getting another Duck. You know? Just picking off all the old Ducks… I just don’t think, especially when you already did the Zegras move, that getting a guy like McTavish, I can’t really project to have a top-line role in the future. I don’t know if that really makes sense.
Ryan Gilbert: Cutter Gauthier, Beckett Sennecke. Those were McTavish’s two most common linemates. In 328 minutes together, 59.6% of the expected goals share at 5-on-5, according to MoneyPuck. That’s the whole season, probably more in the first half of the season. You know the narrative of McTavish being moved to wing, not being sound defensively. You look in the playoffs, he played with Ryan Poehling and Chris Kreider. So, Ryan Poehling was clearly the center on that line — played a bit with Gauthier on the wing instead of Kreider as well — but McTavish feels like another project where it would be Zegras-like. If you didn’t get Zegras, maybe you can get McTavish. The thing about getting another Duck just makes it weird.
You can listen to our full discussion on this week’s episode of the BSH Podcast.
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