Team Outlook: Anaheim Ducks

Heading into the 2022-23 NHL season, I’m going to look at every team to see how they are looking going into the season.

From: nhl.com

2021-22:

The Ducks went 31-37-14 to finish with 76 points, good for 7th in the Pacific Division, but did not qualify for the playoffs. Troy Terry led them in points with 67 in 75 games, followed closely behind by Trevor Zegras, who had 61 in 75 games. They were led in net by John Gibson who went 18-26-11 with a .904 SV% and backup Anthony Stolarz who went 12-8-3 with a .917 SV%.

Draft: The Ducks did good with the draft. With their 10th overall pick they selected defenseman Pavel Mintyukov from the OHL. In his first season in the OHL, while being 17 years old, he put up 62 points in 67 games. They also picked up defensive pair Noah Warren and Tristan Luneau from the QMJHL in which they both played on the same team. I could see them gelling together if they were ever a pair whether it be in the AHL or possibly the NHL. They drafted a couple other wingers and got a goalie from Russia.

Additions: On the same day, the Ducks were able to get both Frank Vatrano and Ryan Strome from the Free Agency market. Vatrano put up 32 points in 71 games that he split with the Rangers and Panthers last season. Whereas Strome got 54 points in the 74 games he played with the Rangers. A couple days ago they were also able to get John Klingberg, who got 47 points in 74 games last season with the Stars as a defenseman.

Losses: Probably the biggest loss from the Ducks roster will be Ryan Getzlaf as he led the Ducks in both assists and points during his 17 season career. Another big loss that the Ducks had was Sonny Milano. The Ducks decided not to give Sonny Milano a qualifying offer before the start of free agency. Milano had a career high 34 points in 66 games last season with the Ducks. The final key loss they had was Sam Steel. Steel also did not receive a qualifying offer from the Ducks, while having 20 points in 68 games last season.

Who to look for: Defenseman Jamie Drysdale played his first full NHL season last season, scoring 32 points in 81 games. Drysdale has been on the radar for the Ducks since getting drafted by them in 2020 out of the OHL. He showed a lot of promise in the 2020-21 season with 10 points in 14 games in the AHL, and 8 points in 24 games in the NHL.

Forward Mason McTavish was drafted 3rd overall by the Ducks in 2021. He played 9 games in the NHL (3 points) and 3 games in the AHL (2 points) last season. He played 5 games with the Peterborough Petes of the OHL (5 points in 7 games) before going to the Hamilton Bulldogs and got 40 points in 24 games en route to a Memorial Cup final where he got 7 points in 5 games on the OHL’s biggest stage.

Forward Jacob Perreault scored 37 points in 55 games in his 2nd AHL season with the Ducks affiliate San Diego Gulls. He played 1 NHL game last season, not getting a point, but there is a lot to like from this player for Ducks fans.

Prediction: The Ducks have a strong rise of young players coming through their system. If they can continue to grow heading into the season, we may see Anaheim in the playoffs this season.

Stats from: www.eliteprospects.com, capfriendly.com