Are We Sleeping on What the Ducks Might Be Capable of Next Season?

They have amassed a solid prospect group and still have a ton of cap space. Maybe they'll be better than we expect.
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[@BoyNamedSue4]

As someone who’s been cheering for the team since the Kariya days, I just want them to be 500 this year. Anything on top of that is a bonus.

[@elwizschold]

Same here

[@BigJim5754]

Yep! He didn't even mention Frank The Tank???!!!!

[@brAnd7onX87]

@@BigJim5754 I was wondering the same. Frank had the most goals for the team you cant forget frankie.

[@Regel2008]

Same. AT LEAST 500 I’m a happy camper

[@bdonaghu]

At least you have seen a Cup. As a Sabres fan since 2005, I'm completely miserable 😂😭

[@jordanholmes9943]

The McTavish/Strome/Vatrano line was magical at the beginning of the year. If that’s the third line, I’m stoked.

[@maverik094]

Yeah @TheHockeyGuy should use dailyfaceoff, there are depth charts.

[@voodoo2plus1]

I’m excited for the new logo and jerseys. I’m excited for year 2 of Minty, Carlsson, and Zelleweger, LaCombe. Year 1 of cutter and maybe a surprise call up or two. Zegras redemption season to silence all the haters! Killorn picked it up after his surgery last season, will that continue? I’m curious to see if the new coaching for our Special Teams makes any difference. Our PP and PK were laughable before, large in part because of our talent but the team didn’t seem to be coached well. I want to see a system implemented and followed this year.

[@ivantot506]

Keys to success 1. No injuries - Last year injuries killed their top 6 and they were playing most of the year missing 3 of the top 6 forwards 2. Young players taking another step 3a. More discipline in their game - Last year they just took too many penalties 3b. Improve play on PP and PK 4. (🙏) Get Necas This team has so much potential, they just have to put it all together

[@heathclark318]

Offer Sheet Byfield!!!!

[@lanemars]

Necas might be the missing peice the ducks need

[@doaftheloaf]

@@heathclark318 byfield signed a 5x6.25 today.

[@doaftheloaf]

@@lanemars what are you trading for him? it might have to be zegras for what the canes are asking. in which case you need to ask for more. necas and artamonov, maybe? i think the latter is going to be a solid third line forward.

[@martin9202]

@@doaftheloaf Sorry, but Necas has a higher value than Zegras now... Necas played tough PO games on the second line. Has much more experience and showed he can play on both ends of the ice... Zegras is an offensive player who hasn't been scoring much, defensively invisible... I was just thinking that it would need to be Necas for Zegras + Young Roster Player + pick ... Or they're cooking something bigger if Kuzn goes to KHL maybe Gibson is included... 🤷

[@rgold9329]

The Ducks had like 2-5 games last year with the entire team healthy, no exaggeration.

[@Sporthighlightspro-ex4su]

As a ducks fan it was annoying

[@TheMostCasualLurker]

Why you gotta remind me Goldy 😭😭

[@rgold9329]

@@TheMostCasualLurker It was just so brutal bud. They need to find some new medical staff or something that is just unacceptable.

[@mbertrand]

Finally, something Ducks related that doesn’t say “rebuild”. This team should be ready to start competing again in the next couple of seasons.

[@fstrcf]

no mention of vatrano? top scorer last year with 37 goals

[@maverik094]

It's the second time he forgot about Vatrano. He didn't have him in contract video.

[@jonah.donohue]

He’s going to be traded lmao

[@rgold9329]

I was wondering that myself.

[@AVOIDAVOIDVOID]

@@jonah.donohueat the deadline

[@coreymcewen8737]

Even the hockey guy is sleeping on the ducks

[@joshhardy2860]

Was disappointed with free agency but I think they have the best prospect pool. Going to be a great team soon

[@seanragsdale5636]

It felt they were quieter than Lou with the Islanders in free agency lol. Maybe they’re scared of another anchor contract like Ryan Strome has become?

[@TonyTwoTwice]

We need the cap space to sign all of our the future superstars.

[@ImGriim]

They pushed are for Stamkos and Marsh. Neither player wanted to go to a rebuild and NSH tax free state helped.

[@MoreMallards]

Ducks are sitting at the edge of glory, I think. Minty and Gudas already seem like sturdy defenseman...if Solberg shows hes ready to join them this fall this team I think this teams goals against can be saved! Also praying everyone stays healthy....thats going to be the absolute key going forward. LETS GO DUCKS!!!!!

[@yoholmes273]

"Glory"....of what exactly?

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@yoholmes273 A cup or two in the next 5-10 years along with multiple deep playoff runs, pretty obvious

[@evenmoreevil]

As a Ducks fan thank you for covering this. Interesting to hear some fans are not happy with Verbeek. I think he is doing a much better job so far then Bob Murray.

[@Benjamin-gu4fc]

Saying this as a huge Ducks fan, a lot of the fanbase doesn't understand the game or have any ability to make any sort of analysis. All they see is their record and that its been too long since they've gone to the playoffs, but have no idea how they got where they are in the first place or where they're headed. Its Anaheim, not Toronto or Montreal, so it comes with the territory.

[@rocknroll368]

Ducks are stacked. They have been struggling for 6 years and have drafted lots of talent! They should be trending up starting this year.

[@CanucksVid]

The Ducks have a scary young group of players. If they can all put it together at the same time, watch out.

[@arseface2k934]

they're all within 5 years of each other so they should all be in their primes at the same time

[@Quack_Shot]

Zegras really improved his defensive play this past season, but just had bad injury luck. I’m excited to see him play this season.

[@maxmartinez3172]

As a diehard ducks fan who went to a lot of there games this last season I am expecting them to better. the pool of talent is now there and it’s time to start showing the have what it takes to start being competitive.

[@matthewkabel6246]

to be fair we had over 320 man games lost to injury last year

[@Blackin6ton]

A bit odd you totally missed mentioning Frank Vatrano, he is probably top 6 instead of Fabbri. Frank the Tank is 30, scored 37 goals and 60 points last year (both led team) and only has a $3.65m cap hit for 2 more seasons. The Vatrano/McTavish/Strome line was our best line to start the season until the injuries hit.

[@James_Ford4815]

i actually hope they keep vatrano and trade terry , but with terry contract and his regress year that'll be hard to do. terry better step up this year and at least go back to 23' numbers

[@maverik094]

It's the second time he forgot about Vatrano. He didn't have him in contract video.

[@connorloughnane1534]

1 more year

[@soapninja]

As a Ducks fan and a fan of your channel, it’s always great to see you cover the team even if you hate us. We get it. Still love your coverage regardless.

[@voodoo2plus1]

He doesn’t hate us anymore.

[@Devlin48]

As a longtime Ducks fan, I’m super excited to see what we can do this next season. Last season started super exciting but ultimately, with the injuries we suffered, it was pretty much a wash by January. We will only really see what the Ducks are truly capable of if we have better luck with injuries this season.

[@frizzledog]

Yeah as long as they stay pretty healthy across the board. I feel they will be a sleeper for sure.

[@ianross806]

There's a framed picture of Gary Bettman on the shelf.

[@brandonwolak836]

I remember that 2021-22 season where the Ducks had such a good start and then fell off, but people were actually expecting them to be contending for the playoffs in 2022-23.

[@matthewkabel6246]

No team can be anything but a lottery team with Eakins behind their bench

[@Bowman1999]

I'm interested to see what Zellweger can do for the Ducks this year.

[@FalseNi9e]

They are definitely on the come up

[@derekjay.s]

Franky v is a beast and should be one of the first mentioned

[@YoungMatt81]

After how they looked at the beginning of the year last year, i can totally see them having a big year. MacT looked like a gamebreaker, Leo was so smooth, and Minty looked fantastic. I think maybe they got gassed halfway through the season and it kinda fell apart, but still, they were impressive.

[@biglebowski3961]

Suprised Gibson is still there.

[@dr3putt62]

DING! Another thousand- 324k 🎉

[@TheManny717]

You know, you can always hate on the Ducks and that'll do the trick on the reversal of fortunes that us Duck fans need.

[@ThomB1031]

It only takes 3 or 4 of the young players to achieve critical mass, then they get swagger and take off. Look at the Kings for Kopitar's rookie year. Then look at their second year. The teams weren't much different, but the results were, and it only went up from there.

[@goldpanner]

The smirk at 0:55 is the best

[@w203wuda]

thanks for the video. gotta get our new rebranded logo to ur white board!

[@fitoquintero4577]

Dont forget Vantrano...the next year he will be Free agent...he should play well

[@vipeholmskolan6052]

Deadline flip incoming

[@James_Ford4815]

with no major injuries just at .500 with major injuries i hope they do same as last year and tank again at chance for hagens

[@LivingNed]

You forgot Suchanek in net, I'd have him ahead of Clang and Clara on the depth chart. The biggest problems for the Ducks last season was injuries to key guys and the combination of taking a ton of penalties and having a terrible PK. I think Vatrano was the only top 6 guy who played a full season for them.

[@Ducktales_00]

Iam also just hoping for them to hit 500 🥳

[@jamesruscheinski8602]

could use veteran defense support? puck movement for transition passing?

[@louannsen]

As a Duck fan I’m looking for improvement for this coming season and possibly trying to make the playoffs. With the 20 million plus cap space the Ducks have they should sign a top 6 forward and a top 4 defenseman like GM Pat Verbeek said he wanted to do.

[@voodoo2plus1]

Playoffs is a huge stretch. Please calm your expectations so you’re not disappointed midway during the season. The team last year when healthy was solid but it’s overall still a young squad that is going to need to learn how to win.

[@MCAWESOME19]

Your Kings' banner in the backround is still tilted lol

[@bry12341000]

playoff season here we come

[@vipeholmskolan6052]

They have sone great pieces to build with, but it's not a finished work.

[@KarpWrangler]

I like that we are hanging onto the cap space until the team looks ready to take the next step. The next step means paying the young guys what they deserve and adding roster depth. So 22 million in cap space will get eaten up quick once Verbeek sees their ready.

[@BigJim5754]

How in the world did u not list the best player on the team anywhere on the board w Frank Vatrano???! Not only is he the best offensive player both in stats and the EYE BALL TEST, he's just hitting his prime. Verbeek needs to resign him to an extension quickly.

[@matthewkabel6246]

lmao Vatrano is nowehere near the best player on the Ducks 🤣🤣

[@BigJim5754]

@@matthewkabel6246 Enlighten me genius. He led THE TEAM in GOALS, POINTS, POWER PLAY GOALS, SHORTHANDED GOALS, OVERTIME GOALS, GAME WINNING GOALS , and GAMES PLAYED! Sometimes its better to remain silent and appear foolish then to open your mouth and remove all doubt.

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@BigJim5754 Vatrano was one of the few fully healthy Ducks this past season. He’s a 3rd liner with a plus shot, he can forecheck a bit and has good speed but he’s not very creative or much of a playmaker at all, he doesn’t create his own offense and he’s a massive hole defensively. He took advantage of optimal PP deployment and playing higher in the lineup because of said injuries to Anaheim’s best players.

[@EJOffor]

Honestly this is how I feel about the sharks (rangers fan). Some decent veteran additions in FAs and they have 2 very talented Cs coming in with Mack and Will Smith. Could be a sneaky team, not saying playoffs but could be an annoying team for your team to face if that makes sense.

[@Jonesyful10]

Its all up to the young kids. I think theyre a dark horse for the last playoff spot if multiple of their young players take some steps towards their true potential.

[@DatRollerBoyInc]

Damn no mention of Carey Terrance is crazy and my girl @duckmylife would be greatly disappointed....SKODEN!

[@TheDragonSmasher]

This is gonna age well

[@jeremystephenson3605]

Gonna miss Max Jones but last few years hes had injury problems. Going to be a few more years before they compete for a playoff spot. Like they way were building for the future.

[@CrazyDuck4u]

Success is going to rely on the Special teams mostly

[@davidchimes3464]

If everything goes their way, they could finish ahead of Calgary, maybe even St. Louis. I get the feeling that Pat Verbeek is so hard a negotiatior that he can't give the team a jumpstart in either the trade or free agency market. How he keeps Gibson year after year when not ready to give him a blueline strikes me as one example of stubbornness. His hard nosed negotiations did not stop him from overpaying Killorn. The team will need an infusion of talent at some point in their rebuild, maybe as soon as next season, and I'm not sure Verbeek has the market reputation to execute there.

[@tonykung8756]

The Ducks should tank for one more season and load up on draft picks by weaponizing their cap space and shipping Gibson off, then start to identify which young players are part of their core and lock them up long term...

[@JBTriple8]

The Ducks are one of my teams I just hope they can we can be on the track to a playoffs I feel like were like the Sabres but better built yeah rather pull the plug on Gibson than Zegras.

[@MightyD_93]

Tomas Suchanek is currently our best goalie prospect.

[@broadh2o980]

Feels like we always disappoint since the Perry and Getz era ended. So much talent but can any of them actually take the next step and become the superstars that so many teams have now, yet we are still missing? I’ll believe it when I see it. Seems like the rest of the league shits out PPG forwards now and we struggle to crack 60 with anyone

[@Cobbycoyote]

They should have brought back montour to beef up the blue line even more. Go ducks can't wait to see them again this season.

[@bryanbohlken7653]

Signing Killorn was a dumb move, what were they thinking?

[@jojowaterloo]

well like you said, they've been drafting high for 6-8 yrs, I'd think it's about time to show some results? I mean, a broken clock is correct twice a day, right?

[@chadmyers3688]

I just want progress, missing the playoffs by 10 points or less would be a W

[@gordonmacdowell8117]

I think Gibson will be retired and people will still be talking about him being traded.

[@todie13]

Sad to see Max Jones go. Fast, strong and aggressive. He will fit perfectly in Boston.

[@phillip22722]

There's nothing new this season though. I mean I guess you can argue Cutter is new, but other than him, nothing has really changed from last years team to this years team. I've been watching them get these young under 24 year olds for years now and they only seem to REGRESS NOT get better. I hope you are right and they finally start to actually play to their potential, but for a team to have almost a dozen top young prospects ON TOP OF Terry, and STILL be last place last season and only adding one more prospect to that list.......... I don't see it. Why didn't they improve last season? All these guys were on the team last year and they were somehow WORSE than the year before? With the addition of Carlsson last season.... how did they suddenly get worse?!?!?! I'm a Duck fan and I love all the great young talent they've put together, but the last two years I was expecting improvements and it didn't happen and I'm not gonna expect it for a third straight season.

[@voodoo2plus1]

You must not have watched last season. We had some many injuries. There was never a time for the top six to ever play together. Someone was always missing. I don’t think it was regression as much as it was just bad injury luck.

[@RoguePatience]

Special teams. The power play was really bad, and the penalty kill was even worse. There were many games where they couldn’t set up the power play if their lives depended on it. That has to be a point of emphasis during training camp.

[@JulietHotel580]

A finish above the bottom 5? I’m pretty sleepy.

[@TopShelfCards]

Didn’t even mention frank vatrano 🤨

[@Tickleyourpickle420]

To his credit he mentions Vatrano in the best cap hits video. He's also in the last year of his deal and is 30. Anaheim should get a good haul at the deadline for him

[@kimepp2216]

I would go for Necas and Brobert unless they want keep their options open to get in the bidding war for Draisaitl.

[@AntoineWilliams7118]

Duck my life on KZbin has really good Anaheim Ducks content

[@seanragsdale5636]

I keep believing that Anaheim is about to make the jump to serious playoff contention only for them to bottom out. Are they ever gonna reward my faith?

[@StevexOwnz]

Brynäs Legend Damian Clara. LFGGG

[@pstandlee]

I try hard not to like the Ducks but they keep drafting awesome players.

[@peterolbrisch8970]

You might ( MIGHT ) be able to say the same thing about Chicago. If everyone keeps pace with their career averages, they can score 250 goals. Add a jump in production from Bedard and you have 260, 270. Better backup goalie can add some wins. It will be up to the defense. If they improve, it could be interesting. 1

[@voodoo2plus1]

This isn’t a Chicago video. Go away. Jk jk Only kidding lol 😅

[@Cloud-dt6xb]

I root for both and it does sting to see them struggling so much right now, but I know both can put up a fight when everything's clicking so hopefully things at least start turning around with this next season.

[@peterolbrisch8970]

@@voodoo2plus1 😂👍

[@arseface2k934]

Chicago is 2 or 3 years behind the ducks

[@peterolbrisch8970]

@@Cloud-dt6xb Thanks for your reply and have a great day!

[@larrym4813]

Terry needs to step up and earn his contract this season. Vatrano was a super star and didn't even get a mention. Kilhorn looked good the last 2 weeks of the season. He needs to be better and stay injury free. Ducks are missing that one really good defensemen. If they could just fill that need it would be a turning point. All the young talent they have should be able to carry the team with scoring. Goals against and penalty killing is what did them in. They are not a team that can win a 1 goal game and they can not hold onto a lead.

[@jamesruscheinski8602]

trade Gibson for bottom four defense? to Philadelphia? Toronto?

[@sebastiencarrieres8825]

It's hard to say you like them, eh! 😂

[@MatzeMB85]

What I don't get is that the ducks need goalscorers and Daniel Sprong is just sitting there in free agency. Should be good for 20 goals at least. More with power play time.

[@jayjayson9613]

Shannon get rid of that hideous Duck foot. Even though they are going to look like traffic cones on the ice with all the orange they will be wearing, at least they were smart enough to go back to the old logo

[@BossyBurrito]

There are two major issues: 1. Lack of top-tier talent. It’s near impossible to make noise without at least one franchise player 2. Lack of development. We’ve had a top-rated farm for years and years with nothing to show for it (Jones, Steel, Comtois, Lundestrom, Drysdale, Zegras, etc) Bonus: letting talent walk, especially on D. Lindholm, Montour, Megna, etc

[@xerneasrising2412]

Um, Z is not to be lumped into that group. He already has 2 30 goal seasons.

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@xerneasrising2412 20* but your point stands

[@matthewkabel6246]

Leo Carlsson is literally a franchise center and Pavel Mintyukov has the potential to become one of the best defensemen on the planet

[@BossyBurrito]

@@xerneasrising2412 I’d argue that he hasn’t reached the level that his expectations put him at this point in his career

[@BossyBurrito]

@@matthewkabel6246 keyword is “potential” on both accounts. They both look great, but one season does not a franchise player, make.

[@josue580]

I dont know any Ducks fan who has said anything bad about Verbeek l.

[@TheChristopherlib]

I actually don't mind this roster so much, but Anaheim is just always awful I can't pick them to finish with anything higher then about 70 points.

[@brAnd7onX87]

So because they are always awful it means they will be awful? What an anaylsis lol.

[@TheChristopherlib]

@@brAnd7onX87 it's not supposed to be an analysis, I'm just sharing my conclusion. An analysis would be more like this; Forwards- forwards have a lot of really good young talent that needs more seasoning, and relies heavily on inexperienced players or players off a down year to score at a solid rate. That being said, with the adds of Fabbri and Gauthier they have some decent enough depth as long as the young guys do pan out, they do lose something not having Henrique in the lineup, but Leo Carlson can take those minutes just fine as he will be without load management this upcoming season. Speaking of Leo, I think there's a good chance he breaks into the 60-65 point range this year and he should be a major bright spot; out of the young guys, I think I'm more confident in him then anyone else. If both Carlson and McTavish can develop into 60-65 point centers, then this team has a great chance of being at the very least decent this coming season. Defense- better then it has been in a decent bit, but still sketchy to me. Gudas and Fowler are both solid veteren players, but both have a ton of mileage; Gudas plays a physical game and is 34, while Fowler's played almost 1000 games, showed statistical regression last year and is 32, and this isn't even bringing up Dumolin, who could also regress further considering his age and play style. Outside of the vets with potential to decline, we see the young options being Mintyukov, who I like a lot and should be a solid asset in there top 4, Lacombe, who I like but is sketchy at times, and Vakanainen, who the organization seems to have little trust in. With all this in mind, a lot of things have to go right for this defense to turn into a solid unit, and it will mostly be decided by how good of a coach Greg Cronin is to see if he can make that happen. Goalie- I love John Gibson, but I am not at all confident that he can win with this team as it's been half a decade since he's really been any good. Lukas Dostal is a good goaltender, but I think it's more likely he ends up in the .905 range rather then the .910-915 that Anaheim would likely need to be a good team for this season specifically. Overall I like there forwards as long as they see some development and bounce backs from guys like Zegras, but the defense and goalies are major question marks. I said about 70 points for a reason, this team is better then the 59 points last year, but it's hard to project anything higher then that.

[@doaftheloaf]

if they can tighten their defense, they can move up in a hurry.

[@matthewkabel6246]

Their defense is solid tbh, their lack of forward depth is more of an issue tbh

[@doaftheloaf]

@@matthewkabel6246 then why do they give up so many shots and goals against? maybe it’s like montreal in that they have the personnel and all they need is time for them to develop. but in the meantime, dostal and gibson are getting shelled. the ducks do need forward depth. that’s a personnel issue. the defense is probably a system issue and a development issue. I actually really like what they have; they just haven’t grown into what they could be yet. solberg was a great pick.

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@doaftheloaf I'm talking about going forward, not last year. Fowler and LaCombe were one of the worst pairings in the league while Gudas and Vaakanainen were one of the better shutdown pairings. Minty displayed great 2 way upside when healthy and Zellweger only played 26 games

[@doaftheloaf]

@@matthewkabel6246 well, if they tighten up the defense, they’ll improve quickly. you have one pair that seems to work okay. as your young dmen get more experience they’ll improve in that aspect and dostal’s job will be easier. I’m not sure why fowler’s pairing was so bad, you’d think his would be better. but as a habs fan, we kind of have the same issue with matheson. I’ve always felt UV was underrated, makes sense his pairing works. your future is bright. especially if you can fill out the bottom six effectively.

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@doaftheloaf Fowler's honestly a victim of excessive deployment. In isolation he's not that bad but when they play him 30 mins a night and run him into the ground he gets eaten alive in his matchups and can't handle that utilization against top competition. Dumoulin helps stabilize things on the back end too. If the pairings look something like Mintyukov-Gudas Fowler-Zellweger Dumoulin-Luneau/LaCombe that'd be decent.

[@zachwalentiny]

The Ducks and Flames will be competing for last place in the Western Conference.

[@goaliecoachmike]

Doormat Destiny!

[@matthewkabel6246]

nope

[@DougDougersons]

Ducks look like the Oilers of 2012. top 3 draft position coming up this year!

[@matthewkabel6246]

no chance lmao

[@DougDougersons]

@@matthewkabel6246 The chances are strong little one

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@DougDougersons strong that you’re wrong for sure!

[@DougDougersons]

@@matthewkabel6246 Please explain to me how the Ducks will not be an absolute tire fire

[@matthewkabel6246]

​@@DougDougersons 1. They have the deepest group of 23 and under talent in the league, and many of them will be regulars in the lineup this coming year 2. Many of said 23 and under players who missed significant time last year (Carlsson, Zegras, Mintyukov, McTavish) will presumably be healthy this season and the Ducks will see significant improvement in the standings by virtue of that + their natural development given their previous experience in the league. Anaheim had over 320+ man games lost to injury and it was predominantly to their best players. Zellweger and Gauthier will also be full timers as well. 3. They have a very formidable D corps that offers size, shutdown ability, mobility, and dynamic play driving/offense. Mintyukov-Gudas Zellweger-Fowler Dumoulin-LaCombe/Luneau 4. They have one of the best young goalies in the league in Lukas Dostal 5. They have the personnel to have two great PP units, and Newell Brown (the worst PP coach in the league) is gone.

[@sak4aak]

Still a couple years away and they will be good then IF they gel as a team. I do believe they should trade Zegras though.

[@matthewkabel6246]

Why would they want to become actively worse?

[@sak4aak]

@@matthewkabel6246 you assume they won’t get a quality player in return? It’s more about bringing in a better character guy with a similar skill set. Not sure his schtick will endear him to management. There’s a reason he’s been the subject of trade rumors, even with his skill set. Where there is smoke, there is fire.

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@sak4aak Verbeek has deemed Zegras a central part of their core and he's not actively shopping him. The Ducks have plenty of character guys and Zegras himself displayed immense on AND off ice maturity last year in the midst of a difficult season health wise. Every baseless Zegras trade rumor is unsubstantiated, the Ducks would be out of their mind to trade a talent like him, at 23 no less when he's already proven to be a productive NHLer under horrific circumstances

[@gordonfan291]

if Zegras does end up being a long term player for the Ducks, which based on the contract talks last summer I would expect him to not be, then I want it to be on the wing and not at Center truthfully. He usually seems to play better when he doesnt have to worry about faceoffs or being in one spot on the ice but at the same time I dont think the asking price for a Zegras trade should be low which is where the problem is there. Im also torn on Fowler at this point. Part of me wants to see Fowler be the next career Duck but he is so bad defensively that it isnt even funny and part of me wants to also see him gone. Potential is a funny concept truthfully because its easy to have a lot of potential and never see anything ever come from it. if FHM is anything to go by if I was Pat I wouldnt be doing anything with our cap space but I also dont kno if I see a roster that is really all that improved over what we had last year either. I like Leo, Dostal, Mintyukov, and Gudas while not on board with Fowler, LaCombe, Zegras, McTavish at times (plus will see what happens with him as a RFA next summer) and would just want to at least get something back for Gibson to allow Dostal to be the guy going forward

[@matthewkabel6246]

I disagree, I actually think Zegras is at his best when dictating play through the middle of the ice with more room to attack and back off defenders. Zegras gets less puck touches when relegated to the wing and his board play isn't particularly strong, although I think it's improved. Faceoffs should not be a reason to move him off center, he's the best pure facilitator on the team and he became much more diligent and responsible in his D zone coverage last year.

[@gordonfan291]

We need to be doing better than 40% in the faceoff circle sooner rather than later and saw our 2 best faceoff guys go via trades last year (which I still think was the right play) but ya agree to disagree especially since in today's NHL even a winger isn't restricted to just the boards when going around the offensive zone

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@gordonfan291 McTavish was a great faceoff man and Leo and Z will continue developing that part of their game. Cutter has experience taking draws as well. Agree with your point about positional hockey being more of a thing of the past. But there's a much more dynamic element to Z's game when he's a pivot and his superior production at center relative to the wing backs that up

[@AntoineWilliams7118]

Let’s go hockey

[@richv4811]

Quack! Quack!! Quack!!!

[@generalimlerith8356]

Nah bro nothing the ducks have shown me tells me they’ll be good this year Gibson is on the decline hard

[@garychow041]

is Vatrano gone? He was good last year. ha, ha

[@Tyler_Chicken]

Ducks are like the Oilers pre-McDavid. Every year, people think their young guys are going to take a big enough step forward that they'll become a playoff team, and it just doesn’t happen. My hot take is that I think the Sharks will become a playoff team before the Ducks.

[@TheHockeyGuy]

No one has picked the Ducks to make the playoffs since they started missing them.

[@Tyler_Chicken]

Very true! I kind of mis-worded that. I shouldn't have included the word playoffs in there like that. I meant more so that I think people expect to see young rebuilding teams like the Ducks, Sabres, etc gradually improve year over year, and eventually make the playoffs. However in reality some of these teams get stuck. Even though they accumulate more and more promising talent it just doesn't seem to come together until something more drastic happens. Like drafting/acquiring a true superstar talent, finding the right coach, adding some star level veterans, etc. It just seems to me that quite a few people have expected the Ducks to be making more meaningful steps to becoming a playoff team over the last 2 or so seasons, but they just don't. Maybe Carlsson takes some steps and becomes a true superstar over next couple seasons. To me at the moment they just have a large collection of good young players who project to be good complimentary type players but not necessarily line/play drivers.

[@cl7557]

@@Tyler_Chicken another team similar team like this are the Sabres - seem to draft well and always on the precipice of something good, but never quite make it. Seems to be down to coaching. Not sure if Cronin has the best systems - they still look lost in D zone and O zone - and sounds like it’s the same for the Gulls, where it feels like their coach is being stifled by the big club’s system. There’s a lot to be said about hiring re-tread coaches, and you have to acknowledge they least at least are trying new people, but wonder if an established coach would have been better suited.

[@mattwilliams7454]

That's a lot of high draft picks for no superstars

[@TheHockeyGuy]

Carlsson is going to be a superstar.

[@MightyD_93]

Pavel Mintyukov as well

[@martin9202]

Not sure, to me it doesn't look so bright... Too many ifs in this team... it looks like if everything is perfect they might get close to .500 record, but if one or two things happen they might be there for the draft lottery... 🤷

[@NamKim-pf1rp]

vatrano is getting traded, folks

[@RealPolo8]

Trevor Zegras, doesn’t get traded then? You don’t think 🤔 I’d love him on my team.. I think his full potential hasn’t been unlocked yet. Since he doesn’t have legitimate line mates to play with.. I think he’d be so much better on a 2nd Line Playoff Team.

[@scorpioonthelow7783]

Trevor Zegras is a hotdog. Wouldn't want him on my team.

[@RealPolo8]

He was dominant in Juniors. A little more then just a hotdog. Also, a US player going inside Top 10 is rare, B4 2020.

[@yogibearstie]

If the young D is as good as I think they are then finally we can sit Fowler. He is dreadful.

[@gregbayers7214]

They soon have to be better !Right?

[@cl7557]

It can’t get much worse? 😅

[@tehbeernerd]

I don’t get the Ducks. They have a good young core and an NHL caliber goaltender. At some point they’re going to take a step forward… right?

[@cl7557]

They had a LOT of injuries last year. I believe their full squad only played together 2 games or something ridiculous like that and that includes some players just coming back from injury. Also a new, unproven coach, but again hard to get fully established when you don’t have your full squad.

[@jomh832]

Do talk bad the ducks

[@CrazyDuck4u]

Trade for Liane.. And terry needs to wake up

[@MrThecoolguy55555]

Nope.

[@Hex760]

Yep.

[@danieldosso2455]

I still think the Duck are likely first in line for the 1st overall pick this year. They have some decent pieces, but there's not real core other than Dostal and Karlsson. Gone are the days of Getzlav and Perry, Selanne and Ryan.

[@acousticwalrus6705]

@@danieldosso2455 I think you’re ignoring what they have if you think they are the favorites for worst overall. Zellweger and Mintyukov are two young stud d men and they have a decent forward core with a lot of young talent that can take a step forward this year. I don’t expect them to make the playoffs but they shouldn’t be bottom 3 again

[@danieldosso2455]

@@acousticwalrus6705 And their young studs, outside of Zegras are young and undeveloped/unproven in the NHL. It's gonna take a few years. CBJ might very well be the next 1st overall target, but there's a couple of teams very close to the bottom.

[@matthewkabel6246]

@@danieldosso2455 Gauthier is one of the best young talents in the NHL and McTavish has shown he's a capable producer with suboptimal circumstances and is still growing as a 2 way guy

[@kyledavidson2867]

"Stupid Hockey Guy 🤣"

[@Hex760]

why?

[@kyledavidson2867]

@@Hex760 he said it in the video mocking people 💀

[@j.t.miller1641]

No I think everyone has a common understanding that this team is too soft and easy to play against

[@matthewkabel6246]

Ducks are not soft lol