Prospect Info: 2024-25 Ducks Prospects

[Static]

Our issues with talent have less to do with drafting and more to do with our transaction history. We simply don't trade for talent often enough and have rarely signed difference makers. Cup contenders, hell, playoff teams, have to hit on all three consistently. We barely participate in two of the three.

 

[TheDarkWingThatDucks]

Our drafting seems worse than it is because our picks have been pretty mismanaged over the years. Guys having great careers for other teams sucks balls.

It’s tough as a fan for sure, but seems pretty commonplace in the NHL. The Florida panthers top 10 scorers last year in the regular season on their way to a cup.

Reinhart - ex Sabre 1st round 2nd OA

Tkachuk - ex flame 1st round 6th OA

Barkov - drafted 1st 2nd OA by panthers

Verhaeghe - ex Tampa bay 3rd round pick

Bennet - ex flame 1st round 4th OA

Forsling - ex canuck 5th round pick

Rodrigues - ex Sabre …. Undrafted

Lundell - drafted 1st round 12th OA by oanthers

Montour - ex ducky / 2nd round

Ekman-Larsson - ex yote / 1st round 6OA

2 of the top 10 scorers for the Stanley cup winning Panthers were drafted and developed by only the panthers.

And 5 out of 10 were top 6 picks. (With 1 being a panthers pick)

The opposite of this team would be the Tampa bay lightning who won with mostly drafted players of their own in their top 10 in scoring. Considering our current GM, and inability to bring game changing UFA’s into the fold, this might be the route we are trying to take.

 

[ohcomeonref]

It’s tough as a fan for sure, but seems pretty commonplace in the NHL. The Florida panthers top 10 scorers last year in the regular season on their way to a cup.

Reinhart - ex Sabre 1st round 2nd OA

Tkachuk - ex flame 1st round 6th OA

Barkov - drafted 1st 2nd OA by panthers

Verhaeghe - ex Tampa bay 3rd round pick

Bennet - ex flame 1st round 4th OA

Forsling - ex canuck 5th round pick

Rodrigues - ex Sabre …. Undrafted

Lundell - drafted 1st round 12th OA by oanthers

Montour - ex ducky / 2nd round

Ekman-Larsson - ex yote / 1st round 6OA

2 of the top 10 scorers for the Stanley cup winning Panthers were drafted and developed by only the panthers.

And 5 out of 10 were top 6 picks. (With 1 being a panthers pick)

The opposite of this team would be the Tampa bay lightning who won with mostly drafted players of their own in their top 10 in scoring. Considering our current GM, and inability to bring game changing UFA’s into the fold, this might be the route we are trying to take.

It would be okay if we had someone else's high end players playing for us, but we don't. We have to keep our homegrown talent.

 

[TheDarkWingThatDucks]

It would be okay if we had someone else's high end players playing for us, but we don't. We have to keep our homegrown talent.

I agree and that’s what Tampa Bay did, so good news is they won in Stammer’s 12th year, so about 8-10 more years for us !

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Our issues with talent have less to do with drafting and more to do with our transaction history. We simply don't trade for talent often enough and have rarely signed difference makers. Cup contenders, hell, playoff teams, have to hit on all three consistently. We barely participate in two of the three.

• Summer of 2014, Ducks traded for C Kelser. Went to WCF in 2014-15.
• Lost in 1st round in 2015-16.
• Acquired F Eaves in Feb of 2017. Went to WCF in 2016-17. Eaves got injured prior to the WCF. Reaching the WCF cost us a 2017 first round pick from the Eaves trade.
• Vegas Expansion draft on June 21, 2017. We lost young LD Theodore.

Unfortunately, that 2016-17 season was the last we would see a healthy Kelser and Eaves... but we wouldn't find out until then. Still, we traded traded another young D-man in Vatanen to acquire C/LW Rico on Nov 30th, 2017 because injuries to our center situation. We were super unlucky with injuries and were forced to rush several youth forwards like Steel and Lundestrom.

Could you imagine having a healthy Eaves, Kelser, and Rico for 2017-20?!

I think because we didn't have a balanced draft between 2016-18, we lost out on some more potential defensemen talents. We went forward biased in those three drafts and invested in only two defensemen, one in the 3rd round (Mahura) and sixth round (Drew, who later converted to forward). They could have helped us out more either via trade or our roster.

When we did go back to a balanced draft in 2019, we hit on LD LaCombe (rd 2) and LD Thrun (rd 4). In 2020, we drafted RD Drysdale and parlayed him for LW Cutter Gauthier. We are still waiting to see on 3rd round RD Moore as this is his senior year in college. 2021 already netted us LD Zellweger (rd 2) at the NHL level. For 2022, we grabbed LD Minty (rd 1, 10 OA) and RD Luneau (rd 2). Aside from his behavioral issues. 2023 5th rd pick LD Dionicio is producing offensively. Last draft, 2024, we could have two more finds in LD Solberg (rd 1, 23rd OA) and LD Tarin Smith (rd 3).

I'm glad we went back to balanced drafting. Although, that 2023 draft was forward biased we had six picks in the first three rounds and drafted no defensemen.

 

[Static]

Terrance has a goal, masse finished with an assist.

 

[HanSolo]

I don't think the drafting is bad. In fact, I think it is above average.

What I do think is bad is the development side of the franchise. I think that can improve a lot.

This. Though I'd say the drafting is better than just above average. A lot of our drafted picks tend to perform very well after their draft year. The problem is the development in the AHL and NHL.