Pittsburgh Penguins Head Coach Mike Sullivan Talks Jason Zucker Trade
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Head Coach Mike Sullivan will have a new weapon when the Pens hit the ice against the Bolts Tuesday night.
The Pens sent forward Alex Galchenyuk and defensive prospect Calen Addison, as well as a conditional first round pick to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for long sought-after forward Jason Zucker.
Sullivan said he got the call that the deal was done from General Manager Jim Rutherford while Sully was participating in the Dapper Dan Award Ceremony Downtown Monday night.
"Coach Sullivan on @Jason_Zucker16: "We are thrilled to have Jason. We really think he's going to make us a better team. He has attributes that will fit in to the style we are trying to play. We believe he is a top-six forward. We really like his speed and his two-way game."
It is important to remember that Phil Kessel canceled this deal for Zucker last offseason, when he used his limited trade clause to nix the deal.
Sullivan says Zucker will be a top-six forward for the Pens, and is expected to make his debut in Pittsburgh tonight against the Lightning.
"We will more than likely start him with Sid and go from there," Sullivan said. "We really like his speed, his overall two-way game, his ability to shoot the puck. He's another one of those guys we think we can use in a top-six capacity to make us a better hockey team. We're excited to add him to our group."
Sullivan says he is likes the fit for Zucker here in Pittsburgh.
"#Pens HCMS: When you look at a player like @Jason_Zucker16, and the attributes he brings, we believe he can fit in and play to our identity."
The head man says that Zucker could be used to fill the void left by the injury of forward Jake Guentzel. He also thinks Zucker will be used on a line for the powerplay as well.
"#Pens HCMS: We have some ideas on how we're going to use Zucker on special teams. There will be a little bit of a feeling out process. He's a guy we certainly think we can use on one of our power plays for sure."
Zucker is set to wear #16 for the Pens and his jerseys arrived in the early afternoon to PPG Paints Arena.
"Proknitwear just dropped off game jerseys for the newest Penguin Jason Zucker #16"
