Canucks Offseason Centre Trade Targets: Mason McTavish & Pavel Zacha
are the Vancouver Canucks about to make a massive splash in the trade market with Ma Mason McTavish and Pavl Zaka emerging as prime center targets we’re looking at potential deals that could completely reshape this team’s offensive core but here’s the million-dollar question what would it actually take to pry these talented centers away from their current teams and more importantly should the Conucks even pull the trigger on these blockbuster moves we’re going to dive right into that right after the intro [Applause] [Music] what’s up guys welcome to the line change and as you guys can see I’m rocking my Abbottzford Canucks hat that I picked up the other day um trust me next thing I get that’s Abbottzford related will be a jersey it’ll obviously be plain but I’m hoping I’ll be able to put a name and number on the back let me know in the comment section down below which name and number should I put on the jersey uh but moving on to our topic uh we’re going to be looking at not one but two offseason center trade targets and we’re going to be using an article excuse me excuse me yeah we’re going to be looking at two articles uh for each person so let’s go ahead and dive right into it we’re going to start off with Mason McTavish of the Anaheim Ducks this article is of course brought to you by our friends at Kox Army this article in particular is written by Jacob Fraser so let’s dive right into it excuse me near the top of the Vancouver Conucks trade target list this upcoming offseason should be restricted free agent Mason McTavish mcdavis just finished his third NHL his just finished his third full season with the Anaheim Ducks and has subtly improved each year since he’s been in the NHL the 22-year-old centerman has been a very solid option for the Ducks in the middle six but with the Canucks potentially being able to offer a bigger contract sorry guys over there but with the Canucks potentially being able to offer a bigger role he could be a great option for the team to grow into that second line center role quickly let’s take a look at the player himself the former third overall pick in the 2021 NHL draft has had three straight 40 plus point seasons reaching a new careerhigh in goals assists and points this last year uh this past year so 22 goals 30 assists 52 points making him the second leading scoreer on the Ducks behind Troy Terry who is at 55 points these point totals don’t scream high-end second line center sorry guys these point totals don’t scream high-end second line center but McTavish was able to put up these numbers playing 16 minutes and 53 seconds per night on the league’s 24th place team and at just 22 years old McTav McTavish could be in for another big jump to to make could be in for another big jump to grow into that role he’s a big 6’1 220 lb power forward that is hard on the fore defensively sound and has a nose for the net we haven’t seen him in the NHL playoffs yet in his career but we do have some samples of his game in crunch time mctavish made the game-saving defensive play in the 2022 World Junior Championship Gold Medal game against Finland where he batted the puck off the goal line in overtime and Canada and Canada went on to win win later on in that game of course there is a massive difference between a gold medal game in the World Juniors and the NHL playoffs however given the grit and his play style it would be fair to assume McTavish could maintain his play throughout a playoff run let’s take a look at the fit mcdav spent the majority of last season in the Ducks middle six playing alongside a combination of Trevor Ziggress Sam Sam Kangelo Carter Goce and Robbie Fabry his fit on the connects would be an would be an immediate middle six centerman that would complement Philip Heedle as a great one-two punch between the second and third lines hedle would play more of a finesse role that creates off the [Music] rush sorry while McTavish can crash and bang on the forte and create from down low connor Garland would also be a great fit on McTavish’s wing both Garland and McTavish like to cycle the puck down low and work from the corners and behind the net to create scoring chances this fit could allow Garland to use his playmaking skills to set McTavish up in tight which can give him plenty of scoring opportunities drew Connor or Kefir Sherwood would also be a great fit alongside McTavish using their speed and forcheing ability to help create space through the neutral zone and get in on loose pucks starting the cycle for Garland and McTavish a line of Sherwood Okconor McTavish Garland would be a very tough third line for other teams to defend because of their puck moving and hard for checking mctavish was also featured on the Ducks’ top power play unit and would be a great fit in the bumper spot on the Canucks top unit he’s a big body that can utilize his size and reach to box defenders out create space for himself in the slot and has a dangerous shot to bury his chances let’s take a look at what it would cost the Vancouver Conucks to acquire Mason McDavish trading for a proven young player like McTavish might be a challenge although since he is an upcoming RFA there is a chance that a deal could come to fruition according to AFP Analytics a three-year bridge deal for McTavic is projected to cost just under four million while a longerterm extension is projected at six years at just under 6.8 million the Conucks do have their 2026 second round pick so they could choose to overheat him at that bridge deal however the Ducks would likely match that as they wouldn’t want to lose a player of his caliber and age for just a second round pick to entice McTavish away from Anaheim the Canucks would likely have to offer something with more term but the team doesn’t have the proper draft compensation to do so in an offer sheet this is where a trade would have to come in the Canucks 2025 first round pick would be a good starting point in order to get a deal done but they would have to add a few assets to that as well with the Ducks taking a step forward this season and McTavish ending the year with 25 points after the trade deadline so after 28 games or sorry 25 points in 28 games a trade may not be likely unless the Canucks were to truly blow away the Ducks with an offer perhaps adding a younger roster player like Neil’s Hoglander and their 2026 second round pick could be enough to get a deal done but given the Ducks are now transitioning to a contending team they likely would hold out hold a young player who could help them now over picks say like a Victor Mancini so Kucks fans is the 15th overall pick in this year’s draft plus their 2026 second round pick and Neil Hoglander and Victor Mancini too high of a price to pay for Mason McTavish or is the risk worth the reward of getting a young middle six center who is yet to reach his true potential let us know in the comments below so Mason McTavish um so after reading this excuse me um so with Mason McTavish I have brought up McTavish previously a few months ago i believe I brought him up around the trade deadline um but not only having read this article but also thinking about it uh I don’t think the Canucks should even attempt to go after Mason Magtavish as obviously it’s going to cost them too much uh in the end and also I wholeheartedly agree with what this article said anaheim is not going to be willing to give up McTavish unless they had their socks rocked by by the Canucks or or if if they had their socks blown off by by the Canucks with an offer and the Conucks obviously do not have the pro the the prospects or the number of prospects I should say to facilitate this deal so but it is he’s still I would still classify him as a target no I think it’s not just going to be the Canucks that could be targeting Mason McTavish it could be other teams trying to entice him to or well not sorry not entice him but you know are going to be asking about McTavish you know are going to be knocking on Anaheim’s door you know asking them hey what do you want for McDavish um I also think Anaheim would be foolish to let them go especially since they are starting to turn things around and are looking to be a contending team uh for the first time in a very long time so and they’re going to need a guy like me Tavish in their lineup and on their roster so I do not think that the Canucks really stand a chance at acquiring Mason McTavish as a as a trade target and having him be their second or third line center i just think the cost is too much and also Anaheim is not going to be willing to part with a player not only as young as him but someone with so much potential i just don’t see it happening so there is that but let’s look at part number two so let’s look at the second player that we’re going to be talking about the second player is is Pavle Zaka of the Boston Bruins so let’s go ahead and dive into this one this article is written by Stefan Roget from Kucks Army let’s dive right into it the Vancouver Conucks do tend to have a pretty good history with players named Pavle i see what you did there Stefan in our ongoing search for a new center for the Canucks to potentially target via trade during the summer of 2025 we land on Pavl Zaka of the Boston Bruins the Conucks and Bruins have exchanged a number of players in recent years if rarely directly last summer the two teams effectively traded Nikita Zidorov and Alias Lenholm for Jake De Bras Danton Heinen and Derek Forward via a series of four UFA signings might the two teams get together for an actual trade this off season if they do expect the 28-year-old 6’4 207 lb Zaka to be a prime to be of primary interest the Bruins have struggled to make up for the considerable loss that was that was the retirement of Patrice Berseron minus him their center depth has suffered greatly so why would they be interested in moving Zack in the first place i completely agree with that especially considering they traded Charlie Coyle it all comes down to what the Bruins decide to do from here but there are a couple of scenarios in which we could see Zaka hitting the market the first is if the Bruins decide to move toward a full rebuild they did just sell off Brad Marshon and finished well outside the playoffs for the first time in recent memory see Bruins fans it don’t feel so good does it should they decide to go down the rebuild path Zaka is probably just slightly too old to keep around especially with younger centers like Morgan Geeki Matthew Press Fraser Minton and even Casey Middlestat already on deck but a rebuild seems a bit unlikely given that the Bruins still have veterans like the aforementioned Sedorov and Lynholm along with bigger names like David Passernnack Charlie Makavoy Hampus Lynholm and Jeremy Swayman all under long-term contract so the Bruins will probably aim to retool before they rebuild under that scenario the Bruins would find themselves fairly desperate to land a true 1C in the quest for that goal they’ll pretty much need to trade one of those aforementioned middle six centers both for cap and roster space zaka is the oldest of the bunch and still retains some trade value so he makes the most sense to go here there’s also the disappointment factor to consider the Bruins acquired Zaka in part to potentially take over some of the load from Bersron upon the ladder’s retirement while Zaka has become a better and more well-rounded center in Boston than he was in New Jersey he hasn’t taken that full offensive step forward that was hoped for and now the Bruins have other younger centers with more potential that they’d love to give that opportunity to but a different franchise one without young centers on deck and one that perhaps might be entirely comfortable with Zaka remaining just a decent 2C he currently is might find Zaka more valuable than do the Bruins right now a team like the Vancouver Canucks let’s look at the player selected at sixth overall in the 2015 NHL entry draft zaka is still probably considered a bit of a draft letdown the rest of the top 10 that year Conor McDavid Jack Eel Dylan Stro Mitch Mner Noah Hannifan Ivan Prover Zach Ransky Teim Omire and Miko Rantin zaka is pretty plainly the worst of the bunch but that doesn’t make him a bad NHL player it just makes him part of an exceptional draft class compared to the one that we have this year the draft hype made plenty of sense at the time zach was a late bloomer who rose rapidly through the ranks of his draft based primarily on his rare blend of size skating ability and genuine puck skill it’s safe to say that the new New Jersey Devils didn’t get their money’s worth from that 60 or what the sixth overall pick zaka stepped right into the NHL in his draft plus two season posting eight goals and 24 points as a rookie which were respectable enough numbers but Zaka plateaued fairly early on as a sophomore he notched 25 points then 25 points again in his third year the 2019 2020 campaign looked to be a bit of a breakout for Zaka as he managed eight goals and 32 points in just 65 games but that was a plateau too zaka got 35 points the next season albite in only 50 games then 36 points in 70 games for 2021 2022 at which point the New Jersey Devils had Jack Hughes and Niko Hishir in the fold and were ready to move on that summer the Devils dealt Zaka to the Bruins for Eric Kala a more productive forward sure but also won six years Zaka senior the Bruins for their part still held hope for Zaka breaking out and he kind of did zaka’s first season in Boston in 2022 2023 was easily was easily his best yet with a major offensive step forward to 21 goals and 57 points in 82 games he kept that going strong with another 21 goals and 59 points in 78 games for 2023 2024 before suffering a bit of a step back to 14 goals and 47 points in 82 games for 2024 2025 in other words Zach had turned into a 50 to 60 point center essentially the minute he was traded to Boston and he stayed at that level for three seasons running that’s basic 2C production but Zaka has also taken efforts to round out his two-way game to better fit into the structured Boston system zaka was a bit of a defensive disaster in New Jersey his 2020 2021 season was his best offensive output for the Devils but it also saw him on the ice for 22 goals for and 36 against at five on five he turned that around instantly in Boston his even strength gold differentials there 6539 5633 and 53 52 the last one might not sound as as impressive but that Zaka kept it positive through a trying 2024 2025 season in Boston is still worth mentioning especially because as Zaka has rounded out his game he’s been given more and more responsibility he never achieved a positive control of high danger chances in New Jersey he’s always done so since coming to Boston and as of 2425 he he’d become their most reliable defensive center he’s gotten better at faceoffs too with a 53.2% rating last year is he Patrice Bjon 2.0 no not even close but Zaka is a player who can post some 60 odd points whilst getting greater than average difficulty matchups and keeping his head well above water sounds like a rockolid 2C so long as the cost isn’t too out of line with the production speaking of cost let’s look at the cost would the Bruins accept the 15th overall pick for Zaka we think they certainly would same goes for any of the Kucks’s truly blue chip prospects but we’d imagine that for this player in particular the Kucks would be aiming at a lower price tag zaka is old enough to reason reasonably say that he’s maximized on his potential as a center he is what he is at this point and what he is not is someone with any real one seat potential left if the Canucks are really going to part with a premium future asset it should probably be for someone with more upside but that’s not to say that they can’t find a right price for Zaka the Bruins have been accumulating draft picks and players in the 20 to 25 age range maybe it’s as simple as a second round pick a B-level prospect or two think Sawyer Mino or Kuril Kudrazv and the extra cap space to pursue a true ony that comes with dumping Zaka’s contract that contract by the way two more seasons at 4.75 million that’s expensive enough that the Bruins might want it off the books as they pursue more expensive free agents and trade targets but it’s about perfect for what the Conucks might want to spend on a genuine 2C zaka does have an 18 no does have an 18 no trade clause but we don’t see that as a major barrier especially after how last season went in Boston both sides might be looking for a fresh start here for a fresh start here and that too could lower the overall asking price let’s take a look at the fit and how Pavle Zako would fit on this Kucks roster and in this lineup we’ve looked at plenty of centers with upside so far zaka is a little different he’s mostly he’s a mostly finished product at this point but that product but that product is certainly one the Canucks could use zaka slots in as a two seed that is never going to challenge Elias Patterson for one seat status at the same time that consistent production of about 50 to 60 points combined with his increasing defensive abilities make him a mighty fine compliment having someone that can be relied on for both consistent offense and cons consistent defense is not a luxury that Patterson has been afforded very often in his career speaking of the Bruins Zaka almost came off as an alias Lynholm light and Lynholm did have a positive impact on the Kucks center depth while he was here zaka definitely doesn’t fit fix the Kox’s offensive wolves single-handedly but at the same time he’s a theoretically cheap enough acquisition at a cheap enough salary that he leave plenty of cap space and assets on the table to continue to pursue another offensive to pursue other offensive options on the wing in other words Zaka appears to be a terrific target for the Canucks to pursue this summer so long as the Bruins are as comfortable trading him as we think they’ll be and so long as they don’t apply any old rival tax to their still bitter 2011 rivals so that is the um that is Pavo Zaka um and having read this article and you know listened to the examples um talking about you know why he would be a good fit why and then uh talking about what it would cost the Kox Um I’ll admit when I first heard about this idea of the Canucks pursuing Pavle Zaka I’ll admit I did not like it not because I think Zaka is a bad player or not good enough it’s just I think when it comes to a second line center you want someone who’s 60 or or you basically what when I think of a two seat I want someone you know having JT Miller as their second line center before he was traded jt was a 100 point guy you had a 100 point guy as your first line center and you had a 100 point guy as your second line center so anything below that might not to me is not good or not not necessarily not good but basically anyone who is below that production wise you know it’s I’m trying to think of a word for it i think you guys know what what I’m trying to get at though you know we’re so used to having JT and PD caliber players as one and 2C someone who has 80 plus points you know Zaka obviously is a potential 60 point guy i’m looking for someone who’s 60 or more when it comes to our Tusci and I just don’t think Zaka is that type of player he has not been able to hit 60 yet he’s been he’s gotten just below 60 I believe and although I will admit I believe it was a couple years ago I did have Z have Zach in my fantasy hockey at one point just because you know some of my centers at the time were on the IR and I needed to pick somebody up and Zach and it was also that season that he played really well in in in Boston i believe they mentioned that that was his first season in Boston so he played very well um I don’t hate the idea of the Canucks targeting Zaka but let’s just say at the end of the day he’s wouldn’t be my first choice uh but hey if the Conucks can get a deal for Zaka and it that’s not too costly then I’ I’d be okay with that if they went out and got Zaka and so long as it didn’t cost them too much I’d be fine with it but as I just mentioned he’s not my first option um so but that is this video bit of a long one um as I decided to combine the two targets into one big video and yeah so let me know in the comment section down below what do you guys think about Mason McTavish do you guys agree with me that you know there’s probably Conucks have zero chance excuse me at getting McTavish do you guys agree with me that that Anaheim would be silly excuse me or crazy to even consider trading him considering how young he is and all that potential that he has what do you guys think about Pavle Zaka as a potential uh trade target for the Vancouver Canucks this off season let me know in the comment section down below who who you would prefer who you think is most likely or rather who is more realistic between the two that the Canucks could potentially actually trade for and who do you think between the two actually no it’s basically the same thing never mind sorry but yeah know let me know in the comment section down below what you guys think and as always if you guys like this video go ahead and hit that like button if you want to stay up to date on all your Vancouver Conucks as well as your Abbottzford Canucks content be sure to smash that subscribe button and turn on your notifications so you never miss a single video reminder you can find us on social media uh you can find us on Facebook just search the line change and you will be able to find our Facebook page you can find us on Instagram at the lineange you can find us on xline van you can find us on Tik Tok as well at the line and as well feel free to follow us on all of our social media platforms it’s of course greatly appreciated and also if you prefer a audio version of this podcast you can find us on both Spotify and Apple Podcasts uh and when it comes to Spotify once again feel free to give us a follow it’s obviously as I mentioned greatly appreciated as is uh giving us a rate and review on Spotify greatly appreciated as well and yeah that’s going to do it for this video as always go Conucks go go Abby go Abby let’s win that let’s break the curse or let’s break the game two curse let’s win game two and let’s go into Texas with a commanding two nothing lead in the series and I’ll see you guys in the next video [Music] [Music] [Music] heat
The offseason is here, and the Canucks are looking to make moves. With questions surrounding the centre position, what if the answer isn’t through free agency, but a blockbuster trade?
Imagine a dynamic young talent like Mason McTavish joining the roster, bringing skill and a competitive edge. Or perhaps a versatile forward like Pavel Zacha could provide that much-needed depth and two-way game.
The front office has tough decisions to make. Will they swing for the fences and land a big name centre? Or will they look to add pieces through other avenues?
Join us on The Line Change as we explore scenarios and speculate on which centre trade targets could be wearing the Orca next season…
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