2015-16 Anaheim Ducks Season Preview

By Alex Hobson

LEADING SCORERS

Ryan Getzlaf (25 G, 45 A, 70 P)
Corey Perry (33 G, 22 A, 55 P)
Ryan Kesler (20 G, 27 A, 47 P)

LAST SEASON

To the surprise of no one, the Anaheim Ducks had yet another great NHL season in 2014-15. They finished 1st in the Western Conference and third in the entire league, led by their captain Ryan Getzlaf and sidekick Corey Perry, as usual, and Ryan Kesler proved to be a valuable addition as well, sliding in on the penalty kill and powerplay and notching 47 points. This season was a significant one for goaltender Frederik Andersen, after previous starter Jonas Hiller left the team in the 2014 offseason for the Calgary Flames, Andersen was put to the test to see if he could live up to expectations and be a serviceable replacement for Hiller, and he did just that. Andersen posted a record of 35-12-5 with a GAA of 2.38 and a save percentage of 0.914. At the trade deadline, they acquired three defensemen in three seperate trades, bringing in Simon Despres of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Korbinian Holzer of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and James Wisniewski of the Columbus Blue Jackets. They entered the playoffs that year against the Winnipeg Jets, where they swept the young team in the first round, they then progressed to the second round and faced up against the Calgary Flames, where they defeated the Flames in five games, and then after two inexperienced matchups, they faced a much more difficult Chicago Blackhawks team, who they would eventually fall to in seven.

OFFSEASON

IN

Anton Khudobin
Carl Hagelin
Kevin Bieksa
Shawn Horcoff
Chris Stewart
Brian McGrattan
Chris Mueller
Joe Piskula
Matt Hackett
Harry Zolnierczyk
Shane O'Brien

OUT

James Wisniewski
Emerson Etem
Tomas Fleischmann
Sheldon Souray
Matt Beleskey
Francois Beauchemin
Colby Robak
Mathieu Carle

The Ducks, like every other team, began their offseason process at the 2015 NHL Draft. They didn't make any trades on the first day of the draft, but they used their 27th overall selection to select defenseman Jacob Larsson from Frolunda HC of the SHL. On the second day, however, they traded forward Kyle Palmieri to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for a 2015 second round pick and a 2016 third round pick. They then followed with a couple more moves, including acquiring goaltender Anton Khudobin from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for defenseman James Wisniewski, and acquiring forward Carl Hagelin from the New York Rangers in exchange for forward Emerson Etem. A day before free agency, they boulstered their defensive core by bringing in veteran defenseman Kevin Bieksa from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a 2016 2nd round pick. In free agency, they signed several players sych as Shawn Horcoff and Chris Stewart to cheap contracts, as well as bringing in some goaltending depth with Matt Hackett.

NEXT SEASON PT 1. OFFENSE

One problem the Ducks have always had with their offensive lines is the fact that they have never had a solid winger to play alongside of Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, but they may have found their guy via trade. Carl Hagelin could look to score himself a spot on the top line next to the Getzlaf-Perry duo. They will also look for secondary offense from newly-acquired Chris Stewart. As usual, their scoring will likely be lead by Getzlaf and Perry, with Hagelin, Kesler, Stewart, and Jakob Silfverberg following behind them. Look for youngsters such as Stefan Noesen and Chris Wagner to challenge for regular spots on the team.

NEXT SEASON PT 2. DEFENSE

Once defenseman Francois Beauchemin left the Ducks through free agency for the Colorado Avalanche, it left a gaping hold for that solid veteran defenseman the Ducks needed. They have a relatively young defensive core, led by Sami Vatanen, Cam Fowler, and Hampus Lindholm, but they filled the need for that solid veteran defensive defenseman by trading for Kevin Bieksa shortly before free agency. For bottom six options, they have defensemen Clayton Stoner and Simon Despres, as well as Korbinian Holzer competing for a spot. Look for rookie Shea Theodore to compete for a spot in the lineup come training camp.

NEXT SEASON PT 3. GOALTENDING

The Ducks' goaltending situation is very interesting for this coming year, as they have four NHL ready goalies that could maintain a spot on the roster. These goalies include Frederik Andersen, Anton Khudobin, John Gibson, and Matt Hackett. The most likely scenario appears to be Andersen starting with Khudobin backing him up, considering Khudobin has proven that he can be a good backup goaltender and has more NHL experience than Gibson or Hackett. That being said, anything could happen depending on who impresses the most at training camp, so only time will tell who will thrive and who won't.

POSSIBLE 2015-16 OPENING NIGHT LINEUP

Carl Hagelin - Ryan Getzlaf - Corey Perry
Andrew Cogliano - Ryan Kesler - Chris Stewart
Jakob Silfverberg - Rickard Rakell - Jiri Sekac
Patrick Maroon - Shawn Horcoff - Nate Thompson

Cam Fowler - Sami Vatanen
Hampus Lindholm - Kevin Bieksa
Simon Despres - Clayton Stoner

Frederik Andersen
Anton Khudobin

ANAHEIM DUCKS: SOME EARLY OFFSEASON IMPRESSIONS

By Sean James

 First off, I didn’t think the Ducks were going to be too active this offseason. Boy was I wrong. I said earlier in a previous post that I thought both Francois Beauchemin and Matt Beleskey should not be resigned. So, at least I was right about that in terms of predictions. However, I think all the moves the Ducks have made have been pretty smart. I don’t really worry so much about the draft with this club since this is a “win now” type of team, also because they’ve proven over the last few years to be good evaluators. They didn’t have any glaring needs going into the draft and so in the first round they took the best player available, yet another Swede. Throughout the rest of the draft, they simply wanted to add some overall depth and they did that, especially at the center position.

However, during the draft, they were very active on the trade block. They made three trades during the weekend. They traded Kyle Palmieri to the New Jersey Devils for a couple of picks over the next two years. They traded James Wisniewski to the Carolina Hurricanes for Anton Khudobin. Finally, they traded Emerson Etem and a second to the New York Rangers for Carl Hagelin, a second and a sixth. The Palmieri trade was a bit surprising, but understandable. He has shown some flashes now and then, but has been way too inconsistent. Yeah he’s had some injury problems here and there, but when given chances, he hasn’t grasped them enough. Would it be fair to label him a bust? Probably not, but I don’t think he’s lived up to the Ducks’ expectations. Next, I don’t think the Ducks got enough value for Wisniewski. I also didn’t think they gave him enough of a chance to play, especially during the playoffs.

However, you could say that the Ducks have enough puck-moving, offensive defenseman in the lineup. I was shocked to find out that it was Wisniewski straight up for Khudobin, but that just goes to show you what the Ducks really thought they needed. They put such a high value on getting a “pure backup,” I’m quoting Ducks GM Bob Murray there, that they valued Khudobin evenly with Wisniewski. Finally, the Etem-Hagelin trade was another surprise. I knew that Hagelin was an RFA and that he apparently wasn’t close with the Rangers on a new deal. Etem is a lot like Palmieri in that he has had consistency problems and never truly established himself with the Ducks. Again, he showed flashes as well, i.e. his highlight reel goal against the Jets during the playoffs when he undressed Jacob Trouba.

This trade was first brought up at the draft as the Ducks and Rangers’ tables were next to each other and Murray asked Rangers GM Glen Sather what he was doing. He just happened to mention Hagelin and Murray’s ears perked up. The Ducks could use his speed and tenacity on the PK and just in general as that was slightly exposed against the Blackhawks in the Conference Final. Overall, the Palmieri and Etem trades were partly due to the Ducks’ future cap situation. They have a lot of young guys whose ELC’s and first contracts end after next season. They will be in need of a raise and with some other UFA’s at the same time, they needed to get some value for some of the younger guys who they thought they wouldn’t be able to resign due to the cap.

Then, free agency started, and once again, the Ducks surprised me with some moves. Like I said earlier, both Beauchemin and Beleskey were let go. They didn’t replace Beleskey, yet, but they did replace Beauchemin. They acquired Kevin Bieksa from Vancouver for a second in next year’s draft. This move really let everyone know that Beauchemin was gone, as the two sides were far apart in negotiations. I think Bieksa will be a good fit. Yeah, he’s just as old as Beauchemin and it looks like he’s on his way out in terms of play, but he’s still a veteran presence and nasty guy to play against. He has plenty of experience with the Ducks from playing against them, but he will rejoin Ryan Kesler and he has also played with some fellow Ducks while playing for Team Canada internationally. He won’t need to come in and play top-pairing minutes. He just needs to be a prick out there against the opponents’ forwards. Lastly on Bieksa, he was in the final year of his contract, so, I thought, with his age, he’d basically be a rental. However, he has agreed to a two-year contract extension late last week. Is that a smart move? Ehh, I don’t think so, but we’ll see.

Before the start of free agency, the Ducks finally made it known that former Ottawa Senators head coach Paul MacLean was joining the coaching staff as an assistant. This was a rumor for awhile after news broke that the Sens gave Anaheim permission to interview him. In my opinion, this will probably go down as the most important addition made during this offseason. It’s not a secret the Ducks have needed to get better in their own zone and I love this hiring for that exact reason. He WILL make this team a true Cup favorite, in my opinion.

Finally, the Ducks have made a handful of free agent signings. First, they added some depth and mostly help for their new AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls. Goaltender Matt Hackett, forward Chris Mueller and defenseman Joe Piskula will all be Gulls for next season. They then resigned defenseman Korbinian Holzer to a one-year deal after acquiring him at the trade deadline. However, he never even dressed for the team, but I have no problem bringing him back for depth. Then, the Ducks signed free agent center Shawn Horcoff to a one-year deal. The only reason he was signed is because of Nate Thompson’s shoulder injury.
Thompson is gonna be out for a long time and the Ducks needed to bring in another center to play a bottom-six role and play on the PK. Horcoff is a veteran, two-way player and is a good guy to have in the locker room. Good signing, in my opinion. Finally, they signed free agent Harry Zolnierczyk to a one-year deal. Again, he brings speed and quickness that the Ducks needed. He’s also a very agitating guy to play against. A PK unit with Hagelin and Zolnierczyk would arguably be the fastest PK unit in the league. However, Harry Z really isn’t all that good, so I don’t even know how many times he will even dress. Will the Ducks do more? Nobody really knows anymore what Bob Murray is thinking, so maybe.

Quack. Quack. Quack.

AROUND THE WEB RECAP OF DUCKS’ MOCK DRAFT SELECTIONS

By Sean James

Bleacher Report on Jun. 22
Kelly Friesen of Bleacher Report on Jun. 6
Winging it in Motown of SB Nation on Jun. 11:
Daniel Sprong – RW, Charlottetown (QMJHL)
In terms of skill, he’s a top 10-worthy pick. However, his smaller size seems to have hurt his ranking. However, he has some very good offensive upside with a good wrist shot with a quick release. He has good hands and can burn by many defenders with his speed. He has a very high hockey IQ when he has the puck. Needs to add muscle and work on his game without the puck and play in the defensive zone. His talent has been compared to Alexander Semin.

Damien Cox of Rogers Sportsnet on Jun. 13,
NESN on Jun. 22:
Paul Bittner – LW, Portland (WHL)
Has excellent size at 6’4”-194. His style of play has been compared to Scott Hartnell of the Columbus Blue Jackets. He’s a hard worker along the boards and gets to the dirty areas. He has soft hands and a powerful skating stride. He’s a big strong kid with a big shot, but scouts have said that he needs to learn how to use that size and strength more consistently.

BSN Denver on Jun. 3,
The Cannon of SB Nation on Apr. 2:
Denis Guryanov – RW, Ladia Togliatti (MHL)
This guy is an interesting prospect. He has only played eight games of professional hockey and has not yet appeared for Russia’s top junior team. However, scouts have said that his skill level could potentially make him a top-line player. He has shown a natural ability to score goals and create opportunities. He has good puck skills with a good shot and a fast release. At 6’2”-185, he does possess some decent size. Much like many other Russians, he is an excellent skater with a great first step. Scouts have also said that he should not have a problem acclimating to the North American game.

CSN New England on Jun. 2,
USA Today on Jun. 1:
Jordan Greenway – LW, USNTDP (USHL); Will be attending Boston University
Greenway is another guy that could be available at the Ducks’ slot that has a good power forward game. Scouts compared his play to Milan Lucic, who while he can be quite a dick at times, is still a pretty good power forward. Greenway is 6’5” and listed at 223. Scouts have raved at his ability to winning battles along the boards with his physicality while also using that strength to protect the puck. He does not possess an overly powerful shot and his release reportedly needs to be worked on. Also, his overall consistency has not been impressive apparently.

Broad Street Buzz of the Fansided Sports Network on Jun. 14:
Jake DeBrusk – LW, Swift Current (WHL)
DeBrusk is one of the better two-way prospects available in this draft. To go along with his good two-way play, DeBrusk has good mobility and a nice scoring touch. He has always been willing to get to the dirty areas and play below the hashmarks. He is not physically imposing, but he has some nice skill that can be used to create space for himself and his teammates.

The Draft Analyst on Jun. 1:
Colin White – C, USNTDP (USHL); Will be attending Boston College
His rankings are kind of all over the place. He has been ranked anywhere from 18-49. Scouts compare him to Ryan Callahan in his style of play. He is very responsible in the defensive zone and is a hard backchecker and forechecker. He also is an excellent passer with nice vision and quick hands. However, scouts have said he needs to work on his skating and also needs to add some muscle to his frame.

The Hockey Writers on Jun. 4:
Jeremy Bracco – C/RW, USNTDP (USHL); Will be attending Boston College
His style of play is much like fellow young American, Johnny Gaudreau, who has comparable size. Bracco is only 5’9”-172, but his talent makes up for that small size. He has excellent playmaking skill that could help him excel on the PP. His vision, speed and hockey IQ have had scouts raving about his offensive upside. Bracco has a huge work ethic, but his defensive ability and backcheck is not good.
MyNHLDraft.com on Jun. 16:
Jansen Harkins – C, Prince George (WHL)
His all-around style has drawn comparisons to David Krejci who combines blue collar, defensive responsibility coupled with good playmaking ability. As some scouts have said, he does all the little things well. He makes high-percentage plays in all three zones and is a very smooth skater who garnished the reputation of a guy who outworks the opposition on a nightly basis. He has also shown leadership qualities that could lead him to being a captain or an alternate at the NHL-level.

TodaysSlapshot.com on Jun 4th:
Jack Roslovic – C, USNTDP (USHL); Will be attending University of Miami (OH)
Roslovic has been a surprise and a bit of a late bloomer. He began his career with the USNTDP as a fourth liner, but has progressed to play with future 1st round picks Auston Matthews and Matthew Tkachuk on the top line. He has developed a nice offensive skillset with hands that help him stickhandle in difficult situations and tight spaces. He is a good passer with good vision on the ice. However, when playing against older opposition, it was noticeable that he was being shoved around too much. He was not effective and it became clear that he needs to bulk up more and work on his shot so he can become a complete scoring threat.
To be honest, I would be happy with any of these prospects. I have full faith in Ducks GM Bob Murray and scout David McNab to make good use of every draft pick, as usual. Over the last handful of years, the Ducks have become one of the best drafting teams in the league and Ducks fans are accustomed now to them picking prospects who develop into NHL-caliber players. They will almost certainly go with a forward in the first round with how well the blue line is shaping up for the future.

History of 27th Overall

Not much to talk about right now concerning the Anaheim Ducks. So, why not look forward to the draft? For the first time in franchise history, the Ducks will select 27th overall. So here are the last five 27th overall selections:
• 2014 NHL Entry Draft – Nikolay Goldobin (LW), Sarnia Sting (OHL) – San Jose Sharks (from Chicago)
o Right now, Goldobin is arguably the Sharks’ best prospect. Left the Sting for HIFK (Liiga) where he posted 38-56-94 in 67 games played. Afterwards, he joined the Worcester Sharks (AHL) for nine regular season games where he posted 3-2-5.
• 2013 NHL Entry Draft – Marko Dano (RW), HC Slovan Bratislava (KHL) – Columbus Blue Jackets (from Los Angeles)
o I would rank him the third-best prospect within the Blue Jackets’ deep system. Made his NHL debut this season, dressed for 35 games and posted 8-13-21, but missed a large chunk of the season with a partially torn MCL in his right knee. Also appeared in 39 games for the Springfield Falcons (AHL) and posted 11-8-19.
• 2012 NHL Entry Draft – Henrik Samuelsson (C ), Edmonton Oiler Kings (WHL) – Phoenix Coyotes
o Son of Ulf Samuelsson, Henrik is right alongside Anthony Duclair in the Coyotes’ prospect system. He made his NHL debut this past season for the Coyotes and was pointless in three games. He posted 18-22-40 in 68 games for the Portland Pirates (AHL). He enjoyed a successful junior career where he posted 198 points in 162 games for Edmonton.
• 2011 NHL Entry Draft – Vladislav Namestnikov (C ), London Knights (OHL) – Tampa Bay Lightning
o He is probably the 2nd or 3rd best prospect in Lightning’s deep system. He made his NHL debut last season, and appeared in 43 games this year with Tampa and posted 9-7-16. In two seasons with in London, he posted 139 points in 131 games. He’s already posted 104 points in 134 games with the Syracuse Crunch (AHL).
• 2010 NHL Entry Draft – Mark Visentin (G), Niagara IceDogs (OHL) – Phoenix Coyotes (from Montreal)
o It seems his stock has been falling. He has competition with Louis Domingue as the Coyotes’ best goaltending prospect. But, he did miss all of the 2014-2015 seasons with an ankle injury. In 85 games with the Portland Pirates (AHL), he has posted a 3.11 goals against average and a .902 save percentage.
There is certainly some talent available at this selection, as seen in the last few drafts. There will certainly be a good player available in this draft. I am gonna do a couple of prospect bios for a few possible prospects that could be available at 27. But first here are a few notable players who have been selected 27th overall in the NHL Draft:
• 2008 NHL Entry Draft – John Carlson (D), Indiana (USHL) – Washington Capitals
• 2007 NHL Entry Draft – Brendan Smith (D), St. Michael’s (OPJHL) – Detroit Red Wings
• 1998 NHL Entry Draft – Scott Gomez (C ), Tri-City (WHL) – New Jersey Devils
• 1988 NHL Entry Draft – Tie Domi (RW), Peterborough (OHL) – Toronto Maple Leafs
• 1985 NHL Entry Draft – Joe Nieuwendyk (C ), Cornell (NCAA) – Calgary Flames
• 1984 NHL Entry Draft – Scott Mellanby (RW), Henry Carr H.S. (Toronto) – Philadelphia Flyers
June 26th. It will be a fun night, as always.

Beauchemin, Beleskey and Boudreau: Should They Stay or Should They Go?

By Sean James
Let’s address these one at a time now, shall we? Francois Beauchemin. A longtime fan favorite in Anaheim, but now he just turned 35-years-old and was a $3.5 million cap hit this season. He got a lot of attention during the final two games of the Western Conference Final for all the wrong reasons. The defense overall fell apart in those final two games, but Beauchemin especially looked poor. Just look to the first goal of Game 7. The Blackhawks had two forwards right in front of Freddie Andersen while Beauchemin was standing off to the side. By the time Beauchemin got to the front to check Jonathan Toews, the puck had already been put in the goal. He is now a UFA. He has said that he wishes to stay and the front office would like that as well. There have not been any contract talks between the two sides. After the moves made at the trade deadline, there is now a bit of a logjam at the Ducks blueline. I personally think it’s time for a changing of the guard in the defense corps with the emergence of Cam Fowler, Hampus Lindholm, Sami Vatanen and even Simon Despres and Josh Manson. So, will Boom-Boom be back? As much as both sides would like him to stay, I say, “Non!”
Matt Beleskey is coming off a career year where he set career highs in goals, points and plus/minus. He also trimmed down on the penalties this year from 64, 56 and 72 PIM over the last three seasons to just 39 this year. Then, he potted eight goals in just 16 games during the recent playoff run. He certainly scored some clutch goals during that run, including the game-winner in Game 5 of the Conference Final. Unlike, Beauchemin, there have been contract talks between Beleskey’s agent and the Ducks. In fact, Anaheim wanted to get an extension done before the deadline, otherwise he might have been available. However, no extension was agreed upon and Murray decided to keep him in hopes of a championship. He made just $1.4 million last year, but could be in for a big raise. With this being a bit of a weak free agency class, some NHL team will be willing to pay more than what Beleskey is actually worth and could offer him more consistent top-six ice time. Matty B saw time on all four lines this season and three of them in the playoffs alone. With all that said, I think Beleskey will be on the move, as well.
Lastly, head coach Bruce Boudreau and the entire coaching staff will be evaluated too. There’s no doubt, BB has done some good things here. He took over a team that was kind of lost and has posted a 162-79-29 record over three plus seasons. He’s led them to three division titles and a 21-15 playoff record. But, the big question with BB is Game 7’s. Only twice in NHL history has a franchise lost at home in a Game 7 three seasons in a row and BB has been the head coach both times……….that is staggering. I mean, he’s won Game 7’s at every other level, but can’t win them in the NHL. I believe he’s only won one as an NHL coach, and I don’t quite wanna check that out because this Game 7 talk is all very depressing anymore. Now, you can’t fire a coach just because he can’t win a Game 7 after everything else he has done, can you? Just look at how hard it is to even make the playoffs in the current NHL. Boudreau has missed the playoffs just once, and all it takes is a chance. He got over one hump this year by getting into the Conference Final, who’s to say that he can’t get over this one? I know there is a lot of frustration from the Ducks and their fanbase about losing at home in Game 7, again. I was part of it and I was quite rash in saying he should be fired. I think that Boudreau should stay, BUT if there isn’t at least progression to a Cup Final next year then maybe that would be the time to give him the ax.