1. He'd be playing on Malkin's wing, not Stepan, Keller, Brassard, or Dvorak. 26 points are very unlikely. He had 46 the last season he played with the Pens.
2. I don't see a single area where Zucker makes the Pens a better team. Kessel could be productive at ES and on the PP. That was never not the case for Kessel in Pittsburgh, whatever his other failings.
Most importantly, I'd trade Zucker for another high-priced forward if he could help our PP, even if he struggled in other areas. Because we're asset-deprived, and well-rounded PP performers are scarce at the best of times. If we narrow the aperture to players who aren't only great on the PP but also play great defense and work the boards and go to the net we're not going to find anyone, and on the off chance we do they'll be out of our price range.
Like, are we just crossing our fingers and praying Forsberg will come to us or what?