Speculation: 2024-25 Roster thread

[Anaheim4ever]

He seems like a gym rat through and hrough. Well, last time we saw Comtois this ripped, his career started to fell off hopefully it gets better for McT. We need him to play a better overall game

Jon Snow: The Night's Watch training video.
Needs the Game of Thrones intro theme music on that video.

 

[forever1922]

I think it’s a good starting point, but for this roster to be playoff ready, I think a bunch of turnover still needs to happen.

Zegras, McTavish, Gauthier and Carlsson are great pieces, but the surrounding players around them aren’t helping.

Well, Terry could help, depending on which version shows up. We might be adding another strong forward in Hagens, Martone, Frondell, Ryabkin(jk), Spence or Misa to the core. The absolute top end guys might be enough by themselves.

But I totally agree, we likely need just a few hits from the massive forward group to put the strong core over the edge:
Myatovic, Pitre, Terrance, Gaucher, Sidorov, Pastujov, Colangelo, Pettersson, Procyszyn, Blais, Massé.

 

[Leonardo87]

Reading a thread in the mains. Some folks think the Ducks will finish dead last? I was looking forward to seeing the Ducks climb out of the bottom and start showing life and being a more competitive team. Playoffs are not even a thought. But F'ng Dead last?

Heck another bottom 5 finish would be a huge disappointment, imo. I cannot even think about another Bottom 5 finish, but dead last???

 

[CrazyDuck4u]

Reading a thread in the mains. Some folks think the Ducks will finish dead last? I was looking forward to seeing the Ducks climb out of the bottom and start showing life and being a more competitive team. Playoffs are not even a thought. But F'ng Dead last?

Heck another bottom 5 finish would be a huge disappointment, imo. I cannot even think about another Bottom 5 finish, but dead last???

Only way we climb out of the basement is if our young guys take major steps.. We stay healthy.. And have a Special teams carry us into the playoffs.

 

[ohcomeonref]

Reading a thread in the mains. Some folks think the Ducks will finish dead last? I was looking forward to seeing the Ducks climb out of the bottom and start showing life and being a more competitive team. Playoffs are not even a thought. But F'ng Dead last?

Heck another bottom 5 finish would be a huge disappointment, imo. I cannot even think about another Bottom 5 finish, but dead last???

Most people don't follow the Ducks close enough to even know how extensive our injury problems were last year. Plus we got rid of Stool Brown.

 

[Leonardo87]

Most people don't follow the Ducks close enough to even know how extensive our injury problems were last year. Plus we got rid of Stool Brown.

When they were close to healthy were closer to a .500 team. Still wish they got a Top 6 winger and Top 4D but the guys they got will improve the bottom of the line up at least.

 

[Rybread86]

Reading a thread in the mains. Some folks think the Ducks will finish dead last? I was looking forward to seeing the Ducks climb out of the bottom and start showing life and being a more competitive team. Playoffs are not even a thought. But F'ng Dead last?

Heck another bottom 5 finish would be a huge disappointment, imo. I cannot even think about another Bottom 5 finish, but dead last???

I could see dead last if they made the rumored trade of Z and Vatrano out for picks and prospects

 

[Leonardo87]

I could see dead last if they made the rumored trade of Z and Vatrano out for picks and prospects

If that happens, pretty much setting the rebuild back. Which is contradicting what Verbeek has been saying.

 

[Reveille1984]

Reading a thread in the mains. Some folks think the Ducks will finish dead last? I was looking forward to seeing the Ducks climb out of the bottom and start showing life and being a more competitive team. Playoffs are not even a thought. But F'ng Dead last?

Heck another bottom 5 finish would be a huge disappointment, imo. I cannot even think about another Bottom 5 finish, but dead last???

It's more thinking objectively about who is actually worse than us right now, and the list is short.

I consider SJ pretty much a lock for dead last barring anything crazy or unforeseen happening, but I also think we're a lock for bottom five again barring the same thing. Our core is just too young overall to compete regularly with more established NHL rosters. The average age of a Stanley cup contending team is around 26-27 years old; the average age of our "core" (Minty/Zell/Carlsson/Gauthier/McTavish/Zegras/Luneau) is 20.

Sure we had injury issues last year, but we were a very bad offensive and defensive team and are for the most part running it back with the same roster. We're pinning all potential improvement on a lot of players that are still learning to survive in the NHL. It's going to take time to dig out.

 

[Dr Johnny Fever]

The talent is there to be a young, exciting, up and coming team. Other than injuries, the biggest concern I have is decent coaching and proper use of these guys' talent. Cronin needs to step up himself. No more post game interviews with shrugged shoulders saying "I don't know".

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

Reading a thread in the mains. Some folks think the Ducks will finish dead last? I was looking forward to seeing the Ducks climb out of the bottom and start showing life and being a more competitive team. Playoffs are not even a thought. But F'ng Dead last?

Heck another bottom 5 finish would be a huge disappointment, imo. I cannot even think about another Bottom 5 finish, but dead last???

A bad team that didn’t get any better on paper and didn’t draft anyone who looks like they can step in. Kids didn’t take too many steps forward last year (at least one went backwards) and not too many HFers followed promising guys like Minty/Zell very closely. Team improvement depends entirely on improvement by the kids that very few have any faith in, plus a return to form by Terry.

So I’m not surprised. I think treading water is just as likely as significantly improving.

 

[91Fedorov]

I was thinking about this, and I think there are a few reasons for hope this year.

1. A second year under Cronin's system should be smoother than the first year.
2. Improvement by the kids.
3. Rebound seasons from Terry and Zegras.
4. Cutter Gautier.
5. Full seasons from Zellweger and possibly Luneau.
6. Dostal pushing Gibson for starts. Dostal is putting up better numbers and should start getting more games. Also, the thought of becoming the #2 might light a fire under Gibson's ass.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

When they were close to healthy were closer to a .500 team. Still wish they got a Top 6 winger and Top 4D but the guys they got will improve the bottom of the line up at least.

Top-6 winger swap: Rico Fabbri
Top-4 D swap: Lyubushkin Dumoulin

That doesn't look promising with the downgrade at Top-6 winger. If we swap Fabbri with Cutter, it looks better, but Cutter is still a rookie. We might have to fill the RW spot with rookie Colangelo.

I had a feeling that this year was going to be another development year because we introduce so many rookies to the NHL as well as AHL last year and will be doing it again this year.

Another pressing matter is who else besides Mac can win FO% above 50%? It will matter even more for the Special Teams.

Ducks	2023-24	FO %
Rank	Player	FO %	FOW	FOL	Total FO	PP Unit	PK unit	Comment
1​	Rico	52.9%​	482​	429​	911​			No longer with team
2​	Mac	51.7%​	437​	408​	845​
3​	Carrick	51.0%​	320​	308​	628​			No longer with team
4​	Stroke	46.1%​	224​	262​	486​
5​	Lundy	44.0%​	170​	216​	386​
6​	Groulx	44.0%​	121​	154​	275​			No longer with team
7​	Zegras	38.4%​	53​	85​	138​
8​	Carlsson	34.8%​	195​	366​	561​		Maybe

Maybe Cutter can surprise us and be a FO specialist as a winger. Here's his FO stats in college, courtesy of NCAA.com.

Cutter	NCAA	D+0
Player	FO %	FOW	FOL	Total FO
Cutter	49.3%​	365​	375​	740​

Maybe that's why we saw the Captain teaching Cutter about taking faceoffs during the Dev camp.

 

[ZegrassyKnoll]

I think Dumoulin makes our defense slightly better, but just like last year, the team (unless changes are made) will thrive or die on the performance of its young players.

Last year it died, and that was mostly (IMO) because of injuries. If we stay healthy, we could absolutely thrive. But will we? That remains to be seen. I am hopeful.

 

[MMC]

Could see this team being anything from bottom 3 to a playoff team depending on how much goes right

 

[Rybread86]

Could see this team being anything from bottom 3 to a playoff team depending on how much goes right

Yup. A healthy team with young guys starting to blossom could end up vying for a playoff spot. Another injury plagued season and a stagnant year for the young guys, we could be in the lotto.

 

[Anaheim4ever]

Top-6 winger swap: Rico Fabbri
Top-4 D swap: Lyubushkin Dumoulin

That doesn't look promising with the downgrade at Top-6 winger. If we swap Fabbri with Cutter, it looks better, but Cutter is still a rookie. We might have to fill the RW spot with rookie Colangelo.

I had a feeling that this year was going to be another development year because we introduce so many rookies to the NHL as well as AHL last year and will be doing it again this year.

Another pressing matter is who else besides Mac can win FO% above 50%? It will matter even more for the Special Teams.

Ducks	2023-24	FO %
Rank	Player	FO %	FOW	FOL	Total FO	PP Unit	PK unit	Comment
1​	Rico	52.9%​	482​	429​	911​			No longer with team
2​	Mac	51.7%​	437​	408​	845​
3​	Carrick	51.0%​	320​	308​	628​			No longer with team
4​	Stroke	46.1%​	224​	262​	486​
5​	Lundy	44.0%​	170​	216​	386​
6​	Groulx	44.0%​	121​	154​	275​			No longer with team
7​	Zegras	38.4%​	53​	85​	138​
8​	Carlsson	34.8%​	195​	366​	561​		Maybe

Maybe Cutter can surprise us and be a FO specialist as a winger. Here's his FO stats in college, courtesy of NCAA.com.

Cutter	NCAA	D+0
Player	FO %	FOW	FOL	Total FO
Cutter	49.3%​	365​	375​	740​

Maybe that's why we saw the Captain teaching Cutter about taking faceoffs during the Dev camp.

Its possible Henrique falls off this year due to aging but getting fed pucks from McDavid or Draisaitl should keep his numbers up if he's used as a LW but if he was still with the Ducks he'd probably show some decline.

As for faceoffs I wouldn't worry just yet about Carlsson's numbers on faceoffs, it even took McDavid and Eichel years to get good at faceoffs, they were super horrible at faceoffs in their first seasons.
I wonder if they try Cutter as 3C in some games ? I thought Philly viewed him as a future center.

 

[snowave]

I had to at the ESPN 24/25 first look power rankings section for the Ducks: Can't say I disagree, either.

"

31. Anaheim Ducks​

Previous ranking: 30
2023-24 finish: Missed the playoffs

The Ducks were not a very good team in 2023-24. While they didn't do a ton to change the personnel this season, they did make a significant upgrade to their logo and uniforms, so at least they'll look better doing what they're doing.

NHL Power Rankings: Way-too-early edition for the 2024-25 season

With the draft, free agency and the first wave of summer blockbusters in the rearview mirror, here's how each team stands looking ahead to the fall.

www.espn.com

 

[Ducks DVM]

Its possible Henrique falls off this year due to aging but getting fed pucks from McDavid or Draisaitl should keep his numbers up if he's used as a LW but if he was still with the Ducks he'd probably show some decline.

As for faceoffs I wouldn't worry just yet about Carlsson's numbers on faceoffs, it even took McDavid and Eichel years to get good at faceoffs, they were super horrible at faceoffs in their first seasons.
I wonder if they try Cutter as 3C in some games ? I thought Philly viewed him as a future center.

Out of curiosity, I went back to 2014 and looked. Carlsson, for centers taking at least 200 faceoffs (arbitrary number to weed out players with low numbers), Carlsson is 2nd to worst at 34.8%, ahead of only …Kyle Palmieri? At 34.2%.

Surprising, Jack Hughes is 4th worst at 35.7%, despite taking 2207 faceoffs. So you can clearly produce while not winning faceoffs, but I wonder how much it plays into New Jersey being so bad?

 

[Anaheim4ever]

Out of curiosity, I went back to 2014 and looked. Carlsson, for centers taking at least 200 faceoffs (arbitrary number to weed out players with low numbers), Carlsson is 2nd to worst at 34.8%, ahead of only …Kyle Palmieri? At 34.2%.

Surprising, Jack Hughes is 4th worst at 35.7%, despite taking 2207 faceoffs. So you can clearly produce while not winning faceoffs, but I wonder how much it plays into New Jersey being so bad?

That is interesting, I didn't realize Carlsson was that bad, turns out Eichel/McDavid's numbers weren't as bad as I was remembering. they were both around 41% or so.
I expect Carlsson to get better because of his reach/size but I wonder if Jack Hughes being only 5'11 holds him back on faceoffs. Being 5'10 didn't hurt Mattheu Perreault at winning faceoffs but it seems the guys at 6'1+ are generally better at faceoffs (Barkov, Draisaitl, JT Miller, prime Kesler)

Speaking of Jack Hughes his best is 37.2% last year, after so many seasons of sub 40% faceoffs they should have a winger take faceoffs for him. Even Strome would be a faceoff wizard compared to him.

 

[All Mighty]

Out of curiosity, I went back to 2014 and looked. Carlsson, for centers taking at least 200 faceoffs (arbitrary number to weed out players with low numbers), Carlsson is 2nd to worst at 34.8%, ahead of only …Kyle Palmieri? At 34.2%.

Surprising, Jack Hughes is 4th worst at 35.7%, despite taking 2207 faceoffs. So you can clearly produce while not winning faceoffs, but I wonder how much it plays into New Jersey being so bad?

NJ started playing Hughes on the wing a lot last year.

 

[Bender66]

Yeah, faceoffs is actually one of those skills that can be taught to get someone up to NHL avg. Even Crosby sucked at faceoffs when he was first started.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Yeah, faceoffs is actually one of those skills that can be taught to get someone up to NHL avg. Even Crosby sucked at faceoffs when he was first started.

So far, only Mac has improved to over 50% FO wins, from 42.3% two years ago to 51.7% last year. Zegras' highest output in four seasons is 43.8%. Lundy's high was 47.5% twice in six seasons. Strome's high was 48.8% seven years ago in his 11 year career; in his past two seasons with Anaheim, Strome went 43.8% two seasons ago and 46.1% last year.

Rico's FO% did improve with his time in Anaheim to over 50% in six out of the past seven seasons.

I do feel relieved to see Cutter's sample size was over 700 FO attempts and finished at 49.3% in college.

 

[lwvs84]

Top-6 winger swap: Rico Fabbri
Top-4 D swap: Lyubushkin Dumoulin

That doesn't look promising with the downgrade at Top-6 winger. If we swap Fabbri with Cutter, it looks better, but Cutter is still a rookie. We might have to fill the RW spot with rookie Colangelo.

I had a feeling that this year was going to be another development year because we introduce so many rookies to the NHL as well as AHL last year and will be doing it again this year.

Another pressing matter is who else besides Mac can win FO% above 50%? It will matter even more for the Special Teams.

Ducks	2023-24	FO %
Rank	Player	FO %	FOW	FOL	Total FO	PP Unit	PK unit	Comment
1​	Rico	52.9%​	482​	429​	911​			No longer with team
2​	Mac	51.7%​	437​	408​	845​
3​	Carrick	51.0%​	320​	308​	628​			No longer with team
4​	Stroke	46.1%​	224​	262​	486​
5​	Lundy	44.0%​	170​	216​	386​
6​	Groulx	44.0%​	121​	154​	275​			No longer with team
7​	Zegras	38.4%​	53​	85​	138​
8​	Carlsson	34.8%​	195​	366​	561​		Maybe

Maybe Cutter can surprise us and be a FO specialist as a winger. Here's his FO stats in college, courtesy of NCAA.com.

Cutter	NCAA	D+0
Player	FO %	FOW	FOL	Total FO
Cutter	49.3%​	365​	375​	740​

Maybe that's why we saw the Captain teaching Cutter about taking faceoffs during the Dev camp.

Another way to look at it is Rico+Silf for Fabbri and Cutter. Makes it look a bit better. Healthy forwards makes it significantly better.

 

[Dirk316]

I can see Gaucher getting called up this season