Totally agree, the kid needs to be respected. The new DG (last season) and coach (this year) need to calm down and understand what Z and Drysdale bring to that team

Yeah, and cap space is absolutely not an issue for Anaheim at all ... is the owner cheap though?

Drysdale's contracts situation is hilariously being forgotten by the media, most people only reporting on Zegras but, if Z only got a 3-4mil offer did Drysdale only get 2?

I even read that Z is a room cancer, but in fact this is pure fabrication. Drysdale and Z not signed show how rookie the GM is and it might slap back down the middle ...

Personally, I don't really like him that much. I'm not a fan of super cocky loud mouth players, I prefer a certain level of humbleness, even with "superstars" or, in his case, budding superstars. But, I don't think I would call him a cancer. I'm not in the room, though. So, who knows.

I agree 100% with everything everyone has said here except that I cannot BELIEVE that Verbeek is playing hardball around the $3 million mark. NOBODY could be that dumb. I think that for whatever reason, the problem is one of term rather than amount -- one side wants a bridge deal, the other a 7- or 8-season term.

I wonder if we ever find out the actual situation.

Same. I'd definitely be interested in knowing the details. I also wonder, if one side does want a long term deal, what that AAV looks like. With how skilled and cocky Zegras is, it wouldn't surprise me if he was asking for some absurd number.

I'd like to start off by stating how much I LOVE how everyone on here has found an insider in the negotiatons room seemingly overnight.

To start, with the $3AAV rumor, there's an equal chance that this was 1: an outright fabrication by the punce from Quebecoise media to stir **** up and drive clicks 2: An artfully crafted leak by Pat Brisson to put pressure on negotiations by either fan outrage and/or convincing another GM to submit an OS so that Anaheim matches and he gets himself and his client a bigger payday, or 3: a clap back offer to Brisson's opening figure being outrageously high as it is an actual offer. I, like @OldNYIfan, refuse to believe that $3 million was a serious offer.

Secondly, Verbeek can't throw around money for Z and D like he did for Gudas and Killorn. His FA signings are short termers on the team, they will not affect the long term cap like Z and D will. We went absolutely down to the wire with Terry, I suspect the same happens with our two remaining RFAs. Everyone coming in the pipeline is going to use Zegras as a benchmark for their next contracts, and we have a LOT of talent that will be looking for a deal in the next 5 years. We overpay Zegras now, and we invite a Kyle Dubas cap hell scenario. Verbeek is obviously aware of this.

We're not in trouble until we hit game 10 of the regular season and those guys still aren't signed yet, at that point, the rookies that are occupying their spots will burn a year off their ELC instead of getting a slide on their contracts.

Pretty sure it was Elliotte Friedman that reported it on 32 thoughts. Which, all reporters mess up from time to time, but he is generally pretty reliable and doesn't say things unless they came from someone seemingly in the know or that at the very least has a good feel for what is going on. Either way, I still think their deals should have been done a long time ago. Other players can't use top of the lineup players as their baseline, they will use the market for that. Which, might I add, will be changing drastically over the next 5 years and make the Z and D contract negotiations nearly incomparable.

Mostly, though, I just want the ACGM to stop being flooded with awful Zegras trades and speculation. This nonsense is clogging up the feed. haha

It was Renaud Lavoie of TSA in Quebec that broke the news 5-6 days ago, all I've heard out of Friedman on Zegras is that the term is agreed at 3 years but the AAV is still apart.

But trust us, no one's as sick and tired of **** offer ACGMs than us.

I'll bet. haha