Speculation: 2022-23 Management/Coaching/Ownership

[FiveHoleTickler]

That's always a possibility but I'm fairly certain it was mentioned that PV didn't like the term he was looking for in the past. To be fair, 4 years is long for a guy his age. I still would have done it though.

I agree that if Des wouldn't re-sign here, then the 3rd was fine. I just don't think that's true or what happened personally. I could be wrong though.

If you admit it's a possibility, why would you choose not to believe that was the case? I'm not saying I know it was the case, but choosing to believe it isn't for no reason seems odd.

 

[Zegs2sendhelp]

People around really over estimate the need for enforcer type on the roster…. They are borderline useless

 

[Duck Off]

If you admit it's a possibility, why would you choose not to believe that was the case? I'm not saying I know it was the case, but choosing to believe it isn't for no reason seems odd.

Why do I choose to think it was more Verbeek not thinking he’s worth a contract than Des not wanting to re-sign?

Couple of reasons:

When Des mentions Anaheim, he’s pretty passionate about loving his time here and how we rejuvenated his career.

Verbeek traded impending free agents to gain as many assets as he could. I think he probably values that 3rd rounder more than Des’s contribution. I get it, he’s stockpiling assets but I wouldn’t have made that move.

Age wise, I don’t think PV thought he fit (based on other moves he’s made so far).

His comments. He mentioned he think it should be a pack mentality and implied a team doesn’t need an enforcer. To me, Des wasn’t simply an enforcer because he’s actually a good 4th liner and solid on PK, but he was capable of being that guy who holds others accountable as well.

Of course it’s always a possibility a player doesn’t want to re-sign because we’ll never know what goes on behind closer doors. Im just saying based on what I’ve read, heard, etc., I think it was more about PV not wanting to give him that contract than Des not wanting to stay.

 

[darkwingduck]

I think it's a loophole that needs to be addressed. Scrums are not the allowable fights, the two players aren't squaring up, gloves stay on, and because refs have to deal with up to 5 entanglements, liberties can be taken (ala Terry).

 

[Duck Off]

Someone else can link it because I’m on my phone, but Strickland posted the part where he talked about the Terry incident on his Twitter feed.

 

[DavidBL]

I think it's a loophole that needs to be addressed. Scrums are not the allowable fights, the two players aren't squaring up, gloves stay on, and because refs have to deal with up to 5 entanglements, liberties can be taken (ala Terry).

I think PVs point of view was a readiness issue. If you go into a scrum you have to be ready to defend yourself even if you don't plan on fighting. Seemed to me he thought TT wasn't ready for it. I actually like the pack mentality idea. An enforcer only works really when they're on the ice even if it's 12 minutes. If everyone on the team is in defend the pack mode then the other team is accountable for all 60 minutes. At least in theory.

 

[Mr Rogers]

thanks @Duck Off for the summary. His response to the Terry situation in Arizona surprised me a bit. It was honestly close to the exact opposite of how i thought he would've felt. maybe he feels differently behind closed doors and has talked to Terry about it, but still.

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

One of the worst hockey podcasts out there, happy he did the interview though. Will give it a listen later on.


Said it all along, team really lacks an identity and accountability. Nobody really sticks up for one another.

If the Terry incident happened when players like Getzlaf, Perry or even Backes were in their primes, he would’ve got the shit beaten out of him.

I feel like there’s a disconnect between what fans expect here, and what Verbeeks plan is. Judging by the summary, it sounds like no other moves are planned(?)

 

[TopShelfWaterBottle]

Just listened to this. First, that f***ing podcast is awful. It just sounds like 2 drinking buddies joking the whole time. Second, I'll summarize a bit to spare you guys from that shit.

Not a lot from Verbeek. 90+% of it was just personal stuff from him. Short version of personal things on him that I skipped through mostly:
-Farmer
- Big Hunter
-Has a ranch
-Seems to lead an extremely busy home life
-Right now he's on his ranch somewhere in the midwest. Renting a place in Irvine in Anaheim.

For the stuff that's more Ducks related, not a lot, but here's some key points:

Was asked if he approaches new GM gig like Yzerman - I felt like he sidestepped the question for the most part. He talked about traits he admired about Yzerman but didn't confirm or deny that he likes that same approach

He was asked about the Terry incident (the primary reason I wanted to listen). - I didn't love his answer personally. He implied a lot of that was on Troy for going into the scrum not prepared to fight, only to break it up. Said he had a chat with him. Said he didn't like the way the other players on the ice handled either. Said they had several team meetings. The most troubling part for me is he said the rest of the season after that for things like that was fine. I disagree, as I thought we were consistently getting pushed around.

In the same topic, he was asked about if a team needs an enforcer. He said that he thinks there's a role for that in the game still, but that he isn't necessarily "building his team that way". He believes in more of a pack mentality where all guys are stepping in.

He was asked if they are always crunching the numbers for the cap. He mentioned Solomon is their guy for that and that this offseason they were somewhat worried about reaching the floor. He acknowledged there is a budget, but didn't elaborate at all what, or even about, it is.

Klingberg deal - Said they reached out to his camp early in free agency. Sounds like more term was discussed, but not at that cap number. Went quiet for a while and new agent reached out to them and said they were good with 1 year deal which is why it happened quickly.

A lot of what he said implied we're still very much rebuilding. He said there's several draft picks who aren't ready that they think will be fixtures in the lineup. He mentioned this when asked "what are you going to do with all that cap space?". I took at it as "we're not going to just use it all up and sign deals that will prevent us from doing win now moves in the future." He didn't cite any timeline or anything like that.

Was asked about Zegras. Said back in the day he would have hated it, but says game has grown and skill like that should not be looked at negatively.

That's about it. All in all, I was disappointed considering it was over an hour to listen to. If you're interested in 2 guys shooting the shit and asking PV questions about his normal life, you'll love it. That's just not for me. I was hoping they'd ask more about potential moves or are there any other players you're still looking at, etc.. Not really any of that. The most insightful thing was the Terry incident, which I didn't love his answers. He implied it wasn't a personnel issue, but a team culture one. I definitely disagree. Not saying the culture can't be improved, but there's definitely a lack of team toughness on this roster.

I'm sure this is written poorly as throwing together between calls so sorry in advance for difficult read.

Sounds like a guy I would want to hang out with outside of the rink that’s for sure

 

[FiveHoleTickler]

Why do I choose to think it was more Verbeek not thinking he’s worth a contract than Des not wanting to re-sign?

Couple of reasons:

When Des mentions Anaheim, he’s pretty passionate about loving his time here and how we rejuvenated his career.

Verbeek traded impending free agents to gain as many assets as he could. I think he probably values that 3rd rounder more than Des’s contribution. I get it, he’s stockpiling assets but I wouldn’t have made that move.

Age wise, I don’t think PV thought he fit (based on other moves he’s made so far).

His comments. He mentioned he think it should be a pack mentality and implied a team doesn’t need an enforcer. To me, Des wasn’t simply an enforcer because he’s actually a good 4th liner and solid on PK, but he was capable of being that guy who holds others accountable as well.

Of course it’s always a possibility a player doesn’t want to re-sign because we’ll never know what goes on behind closer doors. Im just saying based on what I’ve read, heard, etc., I think it was more about PV not wanting to give him that contract than Des not wanting to stay.

Des also mentioned wanting to be on a contender at this point of his career and it was reported he wanted to test free agency. If that's true and you're Verbeek, trading him is probably the right move.

 

[Kalv]

Des also mentioned wanting to be on a contender at this point of his career and it was reported he wanted to test free agency. If that's true and you're Verbeek, trading him is probably the right move.

He ended up with the Flyers tho, lol

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

I think we need to keep in mind that PV (like BM) isn't an articulate or forthcoming speaker. Hard to draw a strong conclusion about what he's actually saying. I know he's been described as intelligent...okay.

That said I didn't love that clip. It does sound a bit like victim blaming and anyway Troy was literally doing what PV supposedly wants, which was stepping in for a teammate. He said they had a bunch of team meeting? I guess the gist was, always be ready to fight all the time or else you deserve to be beaten up and you're a shitty teammate?

 

[bsu]

I think we need to keep in mind that PV (like BM) isn't an articulate or forthcoming speaker. Hard to draw a strong conclusion about what he's actually saying. I know he's been described as intelligent...okay.

That said I didn't love that clip. It does sound a bit like victim blaming and anyway Troy was literally doing what PV supposedly wants, which was stepping in for a teammate. He said they had a bunch of team meeting? I guess the gist was, always be ready to fight all the time or else you deserve to be beaten up and you're a shitty teammate?

This is how the meeting went "Hey Troy don't get your ass kicked next time."

 

[Static]

I think we need to keep in mind that PV (like BM) isn't an articulate or forthcoming speaker. Hard to draw a strong conclusion about what he's actually saying. I know he's been described as intelligent...okay.

That said I didn't love that clip. It does sound a bit like victim blaming and anyway Troy was literally doing what PV supposedly wants, which was stepping in for a teammate. He said they had a bunch of team meeting? I guess the gist was, always be ready to fight all the time or else you deserve to be beaten up and you're a shitty teammate?

He sounded like someone stuck between generations.

 

[cheesymc]

This is how the meeting went "Hey Troy don't get your ass kicked next time."

And a bit of "hey, I'm a small player and mastered the art of blocking punches with my ugly face during my career and I never won a fight.... I took two years of poundings as Yzerman's punching bag substitute in Detroit... Now I just need to wear these nerd glasses from my impaired vision from all of the concussions I've had... so suck it up bitch...."

 

[Deuce22]

I think PVs point of view was a readiness issue. If you go into a scrum you have to be ready to defend yourself even if you don't plan on fighting. Seemed to me he thought TT wasn't ready for it. I actually like the pack mentality idea. An enforcer only works really when they're on the ice even if it's 12 minutes. If everyone on the team is in defend the pack mode then the other team is accountable for all 60 minutes. At least in theory.

Your skilled players aren't going to be fighting. But they also can't be looking to the bench for the designated fighter every time they get roughed up a bit. I think Verbeek is trying to build a culture in which everyone is responsible for taking care of themselves, as well as each other.

 

[darkwingduck]

Group groupon for mma fighting

 

[Rybread86]

He was asked about the Terry incident (the primary reason I wanted to listen). - I didn't love his answer personally. He implied a lot of that was on Troy for going into the scrum not prepared to fight, only to break it up. Said he had a chat with him. Said he didn't like the way the other players on the ice handled either. Said they had several team meetings. The most troubling part for me is he said the rest of the season after that for things like that was fine. I disagree, as I thought we were consistently getting pushed around.

In the same topic, he was asked about if a team needs an enforcer. He said that he thinks there's a role for that in the game still, but that he isn't necessarily "building his team that way". He believes in more of a pack mentality where all guys are stepping in.

Thanks for the breakdown.

I get whats hes saying here, but these are words, not actions. No, you dont need an enforcer and honestly there are very few true "enforcers" anymore (much to my disappointment), but this pack mentality that he mentions is only good if you have guys capable of grinding and bringing the sandpaper into the lineup. We currently dont have that.

Look at the teams that are winning Cups right now. They have size, skill and sandpaper. We have... youth and skill (to a certain extent).

I also really dont like that comment about the Terry situation. If Terry just skates away because hes a high skill guy who shouldnt be throwing fists, Zegras gets the ragdoll treatment. And yeah, after that incident, we didnt see the team get tougher. If hes not adding those kinds of players, we have to hope our roster gets tougher on their own otherwise we're going to get ground down and pushed around.

 

[Rybread86]

Your skilled players aren't going to be fighting. But they also can't be looking to the bench for the designated fighter every time they get roughed up a bit. I think Verbeek is trying to build a culture in which everyone is responsible for taking care of themselves, as well as each other.

Perry, Getzlaf, Kesler. PV is looking for the 2016 Ducks. Would they fight? Sure, if it absolutely came to it. Did you expect them to? No. But were they going to check, slash, face wash, and piss you the hell off? Oh yeah.

Do we have any of that now? No. Maybe PV is hoping to himself that McT brings some of that with him.

 

[Paul4587]

People around really over estimate the need for enforcer type on the roster…. They are borderline useless

Agreed 100%. I have all the time in the world for team toughness and having numerous players who can drop the gloves and hold their own. But I have zero time for pure enforcers who can’t play hockey like Reaves.

 

[Deuce22]

Perry, Getzlaf, Kesler. PV is looking for the 2016 Ducks. Would they fight? Sure, if it absolutely came to it. Did you expect them to? No. But were they going to check, slash, face wash, and piss you the hell off? Oh yeah.

Do we have any of that now? No. Maybe PV is hoping to himself that McT brings some of that with him.

I think he's hoping that Carrick, Jones, Comtois, and McTavish do. Good point about 2016 Ducks. Those guys weren't looking to fight, but wouldn't back down when challenged.

 

[ADHB]

Even though some are going to argue nonstop that this isn't true, a goon who only skates a few shifts per period, if that, and when he's out there can't even keep up with the play to hit anyone or do anything useful (think Jared Boll), doesn't deter anything. Guys like that go out there and provide entertainment for the fans with a staged fight off the faceoff every once in a while.

I think everyone here is for guys who are legitimately tough and can play a regular shift. We don't have much of that right now, but if you're going to add someone for toughness, it has to be a guy similar to Manson, Tom Wilson, Maroon, etc. and not a plug like Reaves or a lot of the useless guys we've had in the past like Boll. A plug enforcer sitting on the bench doesn't deter anything because no one is afraid of him. He isn't going to be able to do anything to anyone. But if there's a Tom Wilson who can go out and destroy your skill players at the drop of a hat? That's another story.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

If you do want to listen to the podcast with Verbeek, then go to the 1:51:37 mark. The video should start there. Just move the cursor over until you hear they start talking hockey.



As @Duck Off shared, Verbeek skirted around questions. There was one instance where Verbeek was asked about cap space and utilizing it either now or going forward, but Verbeek's answer was the youth need to get stronger and prepared. Verbeek completely avoided answering that question. Maybe Verbeek doesn't want to share his overall game plan for the Ducks.

On the subject of Klingberg, I came away with two thoughts: 1) We wanted Klingberg longer than a year and probably at a lower salary. 2) We got lucky with Klingberg gambling on himself for a year at $7 mil. After missing out on Nino at $4 mil AAV, the Ducks really needed to get to the cap floor and Klingberg's $7 mil solved that problem. IMO, Verbeek was more concerned about reaching the cap floor than acquiring the player. It aligns with his rebuild with wanting a short term. Even though we're lucky, I'll take getting a minute munching top-4D at that point.

I agree with mostly everyone about the Terry response. That incident is a culture shock b/c we've been reliant on having some kind of enforcer under Murray (Manson and Des) to a pack mentality with Verbeek. Murray put the onus on himself to protect his finesse players with an enforcer or two whereas Verbeek is putting the responsibility on everyone. Right now, it doesn't look great for Verbeek, but into the future he will have bigger guys on the ice where the pack mentality might have more bite. Strome, McTavish, Jones, and, to a lesser extent, Comtois adds that size and grit next season.

I thought Des provided more than just being a pugilist and would fit well with Verbeek's bigger and physical mentality. A 3rd round pick added another draft dart for Verbeek, apparently having more value than what Des brought.

 

[Zegs2sendhelp]

Agreed 100%. I have all the time in the world for team toughness and having numerous players who can drop the gloves and hold their own. But I have zero time for pure enforcers who can’t play hockey like Reaves.

Des was alright, he wasn’t worthless outside of fighting.

Team toughness is fine, guys like moen(carrick) are good for building a team….. but the game is going away from those fighter types and if the can’t keep up with the game, they really shouldn’t be out there.


The terry incident sucked, but it’s nothing an enforcer woulda helped…. Terry does need to be smarter going into those types of situations.

 

[bsu]

If we had 3 players like Carrick that could play up and down the lineup but also bring semi-toughness that would be nice. We don't need a Reeves type absolutely useless out there.