Speculation: 2025-26 Ducks Forwards (Overview)

[branmuffin17]

Not sure if this has been posted/discussed elsewhere; if so, apologies. Also for some, maybe TL;DR. Planning to do this for D as well, if it's okay.

Wanted to discuss an overview and get your opinions for next year's forwards, including concepts of trade/signings, prospects potentially moving to the NHL, etc. Using CapWages for reference. (Is BenchRates a viable site and generally considered accurate?)

Current Roster ($32,358,689 tied up in signed players)

• Signed for 2025-26: 9 forwards (Terry, Killer, Z, Strome, Vatrano, Johnston, Cutter, Leo, Harkins)
  • Is Harkins going to stick around? Will they keep him as a 4th line skater? Will they try to trade him or move him to the AHL? Wasn't impressed with him. Would prefer we give our prospects opportunities.
  • Do you think Q will value Johnston? What's his history on big lugs that don't do much, including enforcing?
• Current UFAs: 3 forwards (Fabbri, McGinn, Bailey)
  • What's everyone's current take on Fabbri? Worth re-signing? Stat line: 44 GP, 8G, 8A, 16P, 16:12 aTOI, -6.
  • McGinn hurt too much, shouldn't bother re-signing except on the cheap. He made $2.75M, while he brought energy, eh. Stat line: 26 GP, 4G, 4A, 8P, 11:43 aTOI, +1.
  • Assume Bailey won't be re-signed except maybe for the Gulls?
• Current RFAs: 4 forwards (Lundestrom, Leason, Washe, McT)
  • Obviously re-signing McT is priority. 3 years $6M? 6 years $7M? Would he consider signing for 8, and would we want to sign him for 8? I'm not good at estimating contracts/worth. BenchRates says ~$6M for last year.
  • Do we want to keep Lundestrom? Would Washe be a potential replacement for bottom 6C? Just have never been all that impressed with Lundestrom. He has a motor but only one offensive move (wraparound that mostly doesn't work), and even his D prowess wasn't all that impressive IMO.
  • Leason worth re-signing? He dropped off hard 2nd half. Like with Harkins, sort of would prefer to give prospects opportunities.

Prospects (won't talk about signed status for 2025-26 or beyond, assume everyone mentioned will be retained)

• Potentially ready for full NHL duty consideration (IMO): Colangelo, Nesterenko, Pastujov. (Am I overlooking anyone else here?)
  • Yes, Colangelo played a decent amount with the Ducks last year and showed he could score some. Is he a lock for next year? What role? 3rd line?
  • What's everyone's opinion on Nesterenko? I think I like his work ethic and attitude, but not sure he's what we need. Nice and tall but pretty slight (6'2", 183lb).
  • Pasta was a PPG player with the Gulls, which was double his production of the previous year. Has he finally put things together enough to warrant a true look w/ the Ducks? I've been hoping they give him a look, been wanting to see him play for quite a while. Realize he's not a strong or fast skater, but maybe his playmaking ability is good enough? How's his D?
• More seasoning needed (*but excited for their potential*): *Sennecke*, Gaucher, *Sidorov*, *Petterson*. (Anyone else I should be excited about?)

Lines (mostly categorizing to consider what's needed)

• Top 6 Capability/Potential: (5) Terry, Z, Cutter, Leo, McT
  • Let's assume Q keeps Leo and Cutter together due to late-season synergy. Assume also that Z and McT are slotted together, though if we get enough talent, I wouldn't mind having Z and McT being 2a and 2b centers...still think Z will be best as C, and it would give us some really nice scoring threat depth potential.
• Top 9 Support/Fill In: (4) Strome, Vatrano, Killer, Colangelo
• 4th Line / 13th Forward: Johnston, Harkins, Lundestrom or Washe
• Space: At least 1-2 Prospects or trades/signings.
• Need: Top 6 via sign or trade

I think some are hoping Verbeek swings big for a star / top line forward. That would definitely help things, but a reliable top-6 might be enough if we can get continued growth out of Cutter/Leo, Z and McT.

Did I get anything wrong here? Thoughts on who we'll keep / re-sign / trade?

 

[Sendhelp2Anaheim]

-Bring back McTavish/Washe... let the rest walk.
-Id love to say sign marner/ehlers/bennet/boeser,
but i think well end up with someone like Kuzmenko that we might be able to get somewhat cheap.
- If tampas cap situation is a rough, id consider trading for Bjorkstrand also
-Sign a frederic or Jeanott to replace Ross Johnston as the beef
-sign dvorak or trade for JGP

Something like

Gauthier Carlsson Kuzmenko (bjorkstrand another option for kuzmenko)
Zegras McTavish Colangelo
Vatrano Strome Terry
Frederic/Jeanott Dvorak Killorn (JGP another option for Dvorak)

Harkins as 13th (or washe)

-Kuzmenko had a hot and cold season, but looked great in LA and Philly.... Right handed shot... hopefully can get him some what cheap and hopefully he can produce with our top duo.
-Dvorak is a face off ace, and can kill penalties... also chips in offensively from time to time.
-Frederic can take faceoffs, will play physical and has killed penalties in the past.... also not afraid to drop them... really the ideal 4th liner... Jeanott kinda the fall back option... rather see Jeanott than johnston on the ice.

I would love to get rid of Strome or Killorn at some point.... but idk if that is likely(if we do itll prob be strome at deadline)

 

[DaGeneral]

Harkins to the A. Let McGinn and Fabbri walk. Toss Johnston out. Bailey too. Lundy is 25, he can walk. If I’m verbeek, I’m looking to add 2 top 6 forwards.

 

[Sendhelp2Anaheim]

Harkins to the A. Let McGinn and Fabbri walk. Toss Johnston out. Bailey too. Lundy is 25, he can walk. If I’m verbeek, I’m looking to add 2 top 6 forwards.

Only way i see 2 top 6 guys... is if were trading for a guy with a year or 2 left.... i cant imagine we want to block colangelo/sennecke.

A guy like Bjorkstrand is at the end of his contract... and typically tampa is tight against cap... so might be an option to bring in.

Id really like to find a face off ace for 4th line... and a beefy guy thatll hit and fight... but can also play hockey to add to 4th line.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Notable RFA's this season left out:

Colangelo
Nesterenko
Caulfield
Mysak

Colangelo and Nesterenko should be vying for an NHL roster spot. Colangelo in a top-9 scoring role and Nesterenko in a bottom-6 role.

 

[91Fedorov]

Isn't Lundestrom an UFA? We declined his RFA contract last year and signed him to a contract after the fact. Wasn't he an UFA as soon as we declined his RFA contract?

 

[Sendhelp2Anaheim]

Isn't Lundestrom an UFA? We declined his RFA contract last year and signed him to a contract after the fact. Wasn't he an UFA as soon as we declined his RFA contract?

Either was i think we can let him go lol

 

[branmuffin17]

Notable RFA's this season left out:

Colangelo
Nesterenko
Caulfield
Mysak

Colangelo and Nesterenko should be vying for an NHL roster spot. Colangelo in a top-9 scoring role and Nesterenko in a bottom-6 role.

Note I didn't leave them out, I specifically stated (as they're listed in "Non-Roster" on CapWages) that I wasn't going to talk about signed status of those, and that I would assume any in my considered list would be retained (as we would assume they won't sign crazy $ contracts).

 

[Hey234]

RFA : Re-sign Helleson, Nesterenko, Colangelo, and Washe to standard contracts for age/youth. Dostal 6 years x 6.5 mil. McTavish bridged 2 years x 6.5 mil (personally would extend long-term but PV indicated bridge deals were preferred)

UFA: Sign Marner 14 mil x 7 years

Not Re-sign: Fabbri, McGinn, Lundestrom, and Leason

Moves: Offer-Sheet Mavrik Bourque 4.6 mil x 3-5 years (player preference), trade Strome to Montreal for 2nd, Harkins down to AHL

Gauthier-Carlsson-Marner
Vatrano-McTavish-Bourque
Killorn-Zegras-Terry
Nesterenko-Washe-Colangelo
Johnson

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

So this is where my gripe with Verbeek comes in - this forward quality of roster on paper (and on ice) is somewhat promising, but lacking actual talent.

I think people are forgetting Fabbri and McGinn both have contracts that will come off the books so that money can be wisely spent somewhere else. Two acquired players that had very little fanfare in their time here.

Never understood the love for Leason; he is as vanilla as Logan Shaw. As much as I like Lundestrom (or Lidstrom as Cro put it ) I think his time here may be coming to an end. Pains me to say it - great PK guy, smooth skater, but a black hole offensively. It sucks that he was never really given an extended look in the top - 6.

A guy like Washe is a mystery box. Don’t think he will ever amount to anything but we will see.

McTavish I could see commanding 6-6.5 million, or perhaps even cheaper?

Verbeek has a lot to do this summer. Acquiring possibly three good-great forwards are on the wishlist.

 

[Sendhelp2Anaheim]

The more I think about it, the more I like

-sign Dvorak or trade for JPG
-sign Frederic
-trade for Bjorkstrand if possible, if not sign kuzmenko to a 1 year show me deal

 

[Quack Shot]

Not sure if this has been posted/discussed elsewhere; if so, apologies. Also for some, maybe TL;DR. Planning to do this for D as well, if it's okay.

Wanted to discuss an overview and get your opinions for next year's forwards, including concepts of trade/signings, prospects potentially moving to the NHL, etc. Using CapWages for reference. (Is BenchRates a viable site and generally considered accurate?)

View attachment 1034472

Current Roster ($32,358,689 tied up in signed players)

• Signed for 2025-26: 9 forwards (Terry, Killer, Z, Strome, Vatrano, Johnston, Cutter, Leo, Harkins)
  • Is Harkins going to stick around? Will they keep him as a 4th line skater? Will they try to trade him or move him to the AHL? Wasn't impressed with him. Would prefer we give our prospects opportunities.
  • Do you think Q will value Johnston? What's his history on big lugs that don't do much, including enforcing?
• Current UFAs: 3 forwards (Fabbri, McGinn, Bailey)
  • What's everyone's current take on Fabbri? Worth re-signing? Stat line: 44 GP, 8G, 8A, 16P, 16:12 aTOI, -6.
  • McGinn hurt too much, shouldn't bother re-signing except on the cheap. He made $2.75M, while he brought energy, eh. Stat line: 26 GP, 4G, 4A, 8P, 11:43 aTOI, +1.
  • Assume Bailey won't be re-signed except maybe for the Gulls?
• Current RFAs: 4 forwards (Lundestrom, Leason, Washe, McT)
  • Obviously re-signing McT is priority. 3 years $6M? 6 years $7M? Would he consider signing for 8, and would we want to sign him for 8? I'm not good at estimating contracts/worth. BenchRates says ~$6M for last year.
  • Do we want to keep Lundestrom? Would Washe be a potential replacement for bottom 6C? Just have never been all that impressed with Lundestrom. He has a motor but only one offensive move (wraparound that mostly doesn't work), and even his D prowess wasn't all that impressive IMO.
  • Leason worth re-signing? He dropped off hard 2nd half. Like with Harkins, sort of would prefer to give prospects opportunities.

Prospects (won't talk about signed status for 2025-26 or beyond, assume everyone mentioned will be retained)

• Potentially ready for full NHL duty consideration (IMO): Colangelo, Nesterenko, Pastujov. (Am I overlooking anyone else here?)
  • Yes, Colangelo played a decent amount with the Ducks last year and showed he could score some. Is he a lock for next year? What role? 3rd line?
  • What's everyone's opinion on Nesterenko? I think I like his work ethic and attitude, but not sure he's what we need. Nice and tall but pretty slight (6'2", 183lb).
  • Pasta was a PPG player with the Gulls, which was double his production of the previous year. Has he finally put things together enough to warrant a true look w/ the Ducks? I've been hoping they give him a look, been wanting to see him play for quite a while. Realize he's not a strong or fast skater, but maybe his playmaking ability is good enough? How's his D?
• More seasoning needed (*but excited for their potential*): *Sennecke*, Gaucher, *Sidorov*, *Petterson*. (Anyone else I should be excited about?)

Lines (mostly categorizing to consider what's needed)

• Top 6 Capability/Potential: (5) Terry, Z, Cutter, Leo, McT
  • Let's assume Q keeps Leo and Cutter together due to late-season synergy. Assume also that Z and McT are slotted together, though if we get enough talent, I wouldn't mind having Z and McT being 2a and 2b centers...still think Z will be best as C, and it would give us some really nice scoring threat depth potential.
• Top 9 Support/Fill In: (4) Strome, Vatrano, Killer, Colangelo
• 4th Line / 13th Forward: Johnston, Harkins, Lundestrom or Washe
• Space: At least 1-2 Prospects or trades/signings.
• Need: Top 6 via sign or trade

I think some are hoping Verbeek swings big for a star / top line forward. That would definitely help things, but a reliable top-6 might be enough if we can get continued growth out of Cutter/Leo, Z and McT.

Did I get anything wrong here? Thoughts on who we'll keep / re-sign / trade?

Keep Harkins and Johnston.

Let Fabbri, McGinn, and Bailey go.

Re-sign McT, let Lundestrom go.

See what Washe has.

Let Leason go.

Sign Marner.

 

[anezthes]

McTavish → 8x8
Colangelo → Bridge

Nesterenko → 1-year contract
Washe → Sign

Bailey → AHL
Harkins → AHL

Fabbri → UFA
Leason → UFA
Lundeström → UFA
McGinn → UFA

Johnston →

 

[Quack Shot]

McTavish → 8x8
Colangelo → Bridge
Nesterenko → 1-year contract
Leason → UFA
Lundeström → UFA
Johnston →
McGinn → UFA
Fabbri → UFA

You think 8x8 for the 3C?

 

[DaGeneral]

McT isn’t worth 8x8 yet.

 

[Rybread86]

Gauthier-Carlsson-Marner
Vatrano-McTavish-Bourque
Killorn-Zegras-Terry
Nesterenko-Washe-Colangelo
Johnson

Im gonna laugh when Q keeps Z at wing and the board has a meltdown

 

[Sendhelp2Anaheim]

Im gonna laugh when Q keeps Z at wing and the board has a meltdown

I’m going to laugh when zegras is a ppg player and the main board and trade boards have meltdowns

 

[anezthes]

McT isn’t worth 8x8 yet.

If we bridge him, he’ll cost a whole lot more, me thinks.

 

[DaGeneral]

If we bridge him, he’ll cost a whole lot more, me thinks.

what do you think his ceiling is? Beniers got 7 x 7.14 last summer, but he has taken a slight step back and McT has taken a few steps forward. 7 x 7 for McT seems fair and locks him up long term.

 

[anezthes]

what do you think his ceiling is? Beniers got 7 x 7.14 last summer, but he has taken a slight step back and McT has taken a few steps forward. 7 x 7 for McT seems fair and locks him up long term.

With a proper system, good linemates, and a functioning PP, I could see him hitting 70+ points.

 

[Rybread86]

Mac is in a weird spot. He finally started to break out, but at the same time I dont know that hes shown enough for long enough to justify a long term deal. My gut tells me he gets a bridge deal, even if its more than likely a long term deal would work out best for Anaheim.

With the way the cap is going, in 3 years he could end up earning himself an extra.... 2m a year?... on a long term contract.

Just seems like Beeker and Soloman will lean more towards making use of RFA status to not pay guys too much, too early.

 

[DavidBL]

Mac is in a weird spot. He finally started to break out, but at the same time I dont know that hes shown enough for long enough to justify a long term deal. My gut tells me he gets a bridge deal, even if its more than likely a long term deal would work out best for Anaheim.

With the way the cap is going, in 3 years he could end up earning himself an extra.... 2m a year?... on a long term contract.

Just seems like Beeker and Soloman will lean more towards making use of RFA status to not pay guys too much, too early.

We also thought he was breaking out 2 years ago when he was centering Strome and Vats and all 3 were PPG. Small samples

 

[LuGBuG]

what do you think his ceiling is? Beniers got 7 x 7.14 last summer, but he has taken a slight step back and McT has taken a few steps forward. 7 x 7 for McT seems fair and locks him up long term.

If you can sign MacT to 7x7 or 8x8 you do it in an absolute heartbeat with his attitude, work ethic and talent.

 

[Rybread86]

We also thought he was breaking out 2 years ago when he was centering Strome and Vats and all 3 were PPG. Small samples

I do believe this last half of the season was a much stronger showing than anything we have seen before. If I were a betting man, and I am, I would wager to say "hes arrived". Now its up to the front office on if they want to also make that bet, or hedge.

 

[Anaheim4ever]

Im gonna laugh when Q keeps Z at wing and the board has a meltdown

I'm thinking he stays at Wing. As he gets more used to the wing the better he's gonna get as we saw in final months of the season and he won't need to put in as much defensive responsibility at Wing position as he would at center.

Reminds me of a 3B/C that is defensive liability in Baseball moving to 1B, it's an easier position to play but still gotta get used to it.