The Arizona Coyotes have dealt forward Jason Zucker to the Nashville Predators. The Predators will be sending a sixth-round pick (originally from the Dallas Stars) to Arizona in exchange for the veteran forward. There was no salary retention in the trade.
Zucker was a free agent signing by the Coyotes this past offseason. He signed a one-year, $5.3 million deal in Arizona as a way to showcase his skills and hope for a long-term contract the following offseason. This season, he has scored nine goals and 25 points in 51 games for the Coyotes, along with a -5 rating and 58 penalty minutes.
The last two seasons represent a bit of a resurgence for the veteran. During the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons, Zucker put up mediocre numbers and missed half of each season with injuries. He managed to turn it around in 2022-23 with the Pittsburgh Penguins when he scored 27 goals and 48 points on a team that shockingly did not make the playoffs.
Zucker’s point pace this year would put him on track for 40 points over an 82-game season which is a bit of a downturn when compared to last year, but taking into account playing in Arizona instead of Pittsburgh, those are pretty solid numbers.
The Predators have been an interesting team to watch as we approach the trade deadline. At various points during this season it appeared as if they’d be sellers and potentially start a long-term rebuild. However, the players had something to say about that as the team won eight straight games and have gone 9-0-1 in their last 10 games.
That run put the team firmly in playoff position as they are currently sitting in first place in the Western Conference wildcard race with an eight-point lead on the challengers in third and fourth place. The team decided to be buyers at the deadline and have already acquired Anthony Beauvillier from the Chicago Blackhawks, and now Zucker from the Coyotes.
Those two moves will go a long way towards helping their forward group and strengthening their scoring and overall depth.
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