What's going to be Quackening For Next Season

While the Ducks plan on keeping their core together and giving it another shot at being champions, there are a few holes that they may need to fill in order to improve. 

Out:

As we all know, Patrice Bergeron has retired, which means he will be leaving a huge hole that simply cannot be filled. Last year, however, GM VideoJ brought in Boone Jenner, not only for a playoff push, but to fill the hole for the future. Mikael Backlund is primed for a pay increase, which will most likely be his last pay day, entering this year at 35 years old. He has already notified the team he will be testing free agency, however, he is willing to take a bit of a pay cut to remain with the team. Backup goaltender Kevin Lankinen will not be signed. As of yesterday, they also decided to cut ties with Jakub Chychrun, there was a logjam on the back-end that had to be addressed. With the emergence of some of these young stars, it looked as though there was no room for the young defender. He only had one year left on his 5.4 million dollar contract and would be due an increase next season. A defensive grouping featuring Roman Josi, Jaccob Slavin, Jakub Chychrun, Andrew Peeke, John Carlson and Mikey Anderson faired well last year, however with the emergence of Brock Faber, as well as a full season with John Carlson, VideoJ believes they will be even stronger this year. Alexei Toropchenko was sent as well in the deal. 

Demotions:

GM VideoJ hopes to keep some of the underperformers in the organization, but they will be relegated to AHL duties. This includes Isac Lundestrom, who has struggled since the Ducks brought him in, and Juuso Valimaki, whose stats will not crack the top 6 defenders. Several AHLers have still shown flashes of why they are still within the organization, but are yet to put together a strong enough effort to make the pro club. Biro, Beckman and Clarke all come to mind. 

Cracking the Pro Roster:

Some young guns seem to be emerging, or significantly improving for this upcoming season. Most notably, Brock Faber, has shown he will be a permanent fixture in the top 4 defense corps this year. Connor McMichael had a strong season, showing he can possibly be in the bottom 6 for the Ducks. Shane Pinto has also secured a role in the bottom 6 and Jakub Lauko could be fighting some of the incumbents as well, especially if there are any injuries. Seth Jarvis exploded this year and will be skating in the top 6 to start off the year, as we hope to see him continue his development. Joey Daccord had a phenomenal season and looks to challenge Tristan Jarry for starts.

Additions:

While GM VideoJ will be monitoring the Mikael Backlund situation, free agency has yet to hit, so there’s no telling who may be added yet, however in the Chychrun deal, not only did Anaheim add picks in the 2nd and 3rd round, they brought in former all star Jonathan Huberdeau to the mix. While Huberdeau has regressed in the last two seasons after an 100-point effort in 2021-2022, Anaheim hopes he can have a bounce back season this year. He looks to slot in on the third line, but may see a bump up if he proves himself by Christmas.

Line Predictions:

Brad Marchand                     Boone Jenner                 Alex Debrincat

Seth Jarvis                        Mikael Backlund??             Bryan Rust

Patrick Laine                       Adam Henrique                Jonathan Huberdeau

James Van Riemsdyk     Vladislav Namestinikov        Shane Pinto/Connor McMichael

Roman Josi      Jaccob Slavin

John Carlson     Brock Faber

Andrew Peeke   Mikey Anderson

Tristan Jarry/Joey Daccord