What could Zegras’ role look like in Montreal?
With the Ducks and Canadiens in similar situations, albeit with the latter climbing at least one rung above the former, Zegras would take on a top-six role with the Habs, and he could factor in as a winger on the second line, perhaps on a unit with Alex Newhook and Jake Evans if he didn’t line up alongside a familiar face in Cole Caufield.
This would involve Newhook kicking out to play wing while Evans takes center, and in this situation, Zegras takes the second wing position. Such a projection would fill the Canadiens top-six exclusively with younger players still in their 20s while players like Brandon Gallagher, Josh Anderson, and Christian Dvorak take up the third line.
It would also work well for the Habs in a few aspects, as the back half of their middle-six screams experience. Forwards like Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Joel Armia, and Michael Pezzetta would take the fourth line, further giving the Habs a mixture of two older and one younger player on the bottom-three.
Zegras would mainly build chemistry alongside Evans and Newhook in this scenario, and given the latter’s productivity this past season, they could turn into an entertaining combo. It sounds like a great plan, but as mentioned before, the compensation won’t be cheap.