GDT: #80 ⋅ COL @ ANA ⋅ 7:00 PM PDT

[Kalv]

I'm so sick of Cronin's loser hockey

A game like this should add to the list of reasons to part ways with him. Not sure how Pat views it

 

[JAHV]

I don't know why this game bothers me as much as it does, but I'm pissed. Frittering away a two-goal third period lead to the Avs AHL team and blowing a shutout opportunity for Dostal. I'm ready for this season to be over. And apparently so is the team. Garbage.

 

[Terry Yake]

A game like this should add to the list of reasons to part ways with him. Not sure how Pat views it

"they improved record wise from the last few seasons" is probably how verbeek sees it

cronin's not going anywhere unfortunately

 

[Son of Gib]

If Cronin is back, I will genuinely be trying to care as little as possible next season.

 

[Hey234]

Like most games this season, there are too many issues. Not winning faceoffs, lack of sustainable offense, bad special teams, lack of structure, bad line combinations, confusing line usage, some vets not playing hard, relying too much on the goalie, etc...

Despite all of that, the talent on this team could have won this game. There is so much to be excited about for the future, but there is a clear and unmistakable issue with how they play. I'm so tired of Cronin hockey.

 

[mightyquack]

Verbeek please do the right thing. Enough of this crap.

 

[mightyquack]

You guys really need to prepare for another year of these coaches. They aren't going anywhere.

Then hopefully Verbeek is fired along with them after they have an awful first 20 games next season. As I've said previously, any half-decent GM makes a change this off-season, if Verbeek doesn't, he's not an NHL level GM as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Hey234]

Then hopefully Verbeek is fired along with them after they have an awful first 20 games next season. As I've said previously, any half-decent GM makes a change this off-season, if Verbeek doesn't, he's not an NHL level GM as far as I'm concerned.

Agreed. In hindsight, he's made good moves overall. Many picks seem to be progressing well, FA signings have been okay, and trades have been strong. His main mistake by far has been coaching. If he can't see this as the teams main issue, then he doesn't deserve to be the GM.

 

[MMC]

Lol Cronin ain’t going anywhere, this team had the second biggest improvement in the entire league from last season to this one after and very closely behind Washington

 

[ohcomeonref]

Picked the perfect game to fall asleep during second intermission!

 

[anezthes]

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

Not even an “I hope you’re my usher next year” on the way out

Did you deliver as many contrarian lectures to the fans in your section about how you don't care if Cronin stays or goes but it's dumb to want him to go as you did here?

If so, it's a mystery.

 

[Arthuros]

Lol Cronin ain’t going anywhere, this team had the second biggest improvement in the entire league from last season to this one after and very closely behind Washington

Sad to say, gotta agree.

You'd need a fairly competent GM (at least, by GM standards) to admit that the season really was on the back of goaltending and we've remained league-worst in a lot of areas, not the least of which is coaching. I don't think PV is that guy.

 

[shach1]

Sad to say, gotta agree.

You'd need a fairly competent GM (at least, by GM standards) to admit that the season really was on the back of goaltending and we've remained league-worst in a lot of areas, not the least of which is coaching. I don't think PV is that guy.

For all the bad about murray, at least he said to the media " good goaltending covers up a lot of crap.

 

[MMC]

Did you deliver as many contrarian lectures to the fans in your section about how you don't care if Cronin stays or goes but it's dumb to want him to go as you did here?

If so, it's a mystery.

Only to @Leonardo87

 

[MMC]

Sad to say, gotta agree.

You'd need a fairly competent GM (at least, by GM standards) to admit that the season really was on the back of goaltending and we've remained league-worst in a lot of areas, not the least of which is coaching. I don't think PV is that guy.

Even if he did, I’m not convinced the Samuelis sign off on it under these circumstances

 

[CrazyDuck4u]

Thats just wrong.. We have no freedom of speech anymore?

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

Thats just wrong.. We have no freedom of speech anymore?

You need to spend more than 12 seconds trying to understand the first amendment.

 

[MMC]

Thats just wrong.. We have no freedom of speech anymore?

Sounds like Felix is once again talking out of his ass. I’ve heard this plenty and no one gives a shit and I’ve personally called security on people who do way worse and it never escalates to the level of them getting kicked out.

Also freedom of speech absolutely does not apply to what you’re able to shout at a hockey game lol, this would be fine but if you’re repeatedly shouting obscenities in my section you’re at least getting a talking to from me

 

[ohcomeonref]

You need to spend more than 12 seconds trying to understand the first amendment.

Freedom of speech, not freedom from consequences of said speech.

 

[Mr Rogers]

Yeah I think that was the worst game of the year

 

[CrazyDuck4u]

You need to spend more than 12 seconds trying to understand the first amendment.

Freedom of speech. And I know Constitutional law.

 

[FiveHoleTickler]

Lol Cronin ain’t going anywhere, this team had the second biggest improvement in the entire league from last season to this one after and very closely behind Washington

But does it really feel like it though?

 

[HanSolo]

Lol Cronin ain’t going anywhere, this team had the second biggest improvement in the entire league from last season to this one after and very closely behind Washington

This is such a boring and unsupported claim at this point.

5v5 Offense

Expected goals for percentage
2025: 48.73 (30th)
2024: 46.77 (26th)

Though there was a slight statistical improvement, Montreal, Detroit, and St. Louis improved more.

Shot attempts % (Corsi)
2025: 45.88 (30th)
2024: 46.39 (27th)

Worse than last year.

Goals for per 60
2025: 2.35 (17th)
2024: 1.97 (30th)

PDO
2025: 100.83 (9th)
2024: 98.56 (27th)

The Ducks had a late spike offensively which juiced the goals for per game number where most of the season they were near the bottom. But that happened with a huge spike in our PDO number which meant our shooting percentage was well above the mean.

Shots on goal raw total (still haven't reached end of season)
2025: 1720 (24th)
2024: 1667 (32nd)

Minor improvement.

High Danger Shots for
2025: 157 (23rd)
2024: 150 (26th)

Minor improvement

Medium danger shots for
2025: 420 (30th)
2024: 394 (31st)

Minor improvement. Will increase with two more games to go, but we're unlikely to be ranked much higher than 29th-30th at season's end.

Overall conclusion: 5 on 5 offense saw some improvement in shot volume and raw goals. But this comes off the back of our PDO skyrocketing in the last third of the season and our having a less injured lineup. Most of the improvements came post Four Nations, where most of the season we were at or near the bottom in actual raw goals scored. Late improvement is encouraging all the same but considering the emphasis on improving defensively possibly limited offensive growth and improvement, the defensive metrics below paint a grave picture.

5 on 4 powerplay

Expected goals %
2025: 87.04% (28th)
2024: 85.96% (23rd)

Again, a small statistical improvement but other teams improved more.

Goals for
2025: 23 (32nd)
2024: 38 (27th)

So, unless this team scores 15 powerplay goals in the last two games, this year was much worse in terms of offense on the powerplay in spite of being healthier and with more experienced players.

Shots on goal for
2025: 288 (15th)
2024: 289 (31st)

Since there's 2 games to go we'll probably pass the shots on goal count from last year but this isn't a significant improvement but the fact that we shot the puck almost as much last year with far more PP goals indicates that the structure and strategy with the extra man is far worse.

Unblocked shot attempts for
2025: 450 (11th)
2024: 404 (31st)

Again not a statistically significant improvement but the reality is they're just not scoring enough on the powerplay which means Cronin and Clune are telling them to shoot more but the structure and strategy isn't doing enough to move the defense and goalie enough to create breakdowns and shot openings to convert on. Peppering the goalie with shots to the body isn't going to lead to more goals.

Powerplay faceoff percentage
2025: 43.44% (32nd)
2024: 49.23‰ (29th)

Obvious decline.


Overall conclusion: we have the worst powerplay in the league and it's gotten worse under Clune.

All Situations offense

Raw goals for
2025: 214 (28th)
2024: 203 (30th)

Goals per game
2025: 2.68 (29th)
2024: 2.57 (30th)

SOG/game
2025: 27.6% (21st)
2024: 26.8 (29th)

The Ducks can get anywhere between 0 and 12 more goals the last two games. This is not, as a whole, a significant statistical improvement. The big difference is the powerplay was better last year while we scored more 5 on 5 this year, albeit with a much higher PDO. Considering how many more man games we had with fewer injuries, we really should have produced more offense overall, but we didn't.

Faceoff percentage
2025: 44.5% (32nd)
2024: 46.7% (29th)

The other stats are useless because it lumps in powerplay metrics so the above is the overall conclusion. This team barely scored more goals than last year despite being healthier and following Cronin' genius all encompassing mantra of just shoot more.

Defense 5 on 5

Expected goals against per 60 5 on 5
2025: 2.89 (32nd)
2024: 2.54 (19th)

All situations
2025: 3.54 (32nd)
2024: 3.4 (30th)

Dramatic decline (especially 5 on 5) that contemplates shots against volume, quality of chances against, and shots attempted against. Like our 5 on 5 defense didn't just get worse from last year in spite of injuries, it's much much worse. And this coming from a guy who said defense was the priority this year.

Shots on goal against raw count 5on5
2025: 1993 (31st)
2024: 1920 (17th)

All situations
2025: 2564 (32nd)
2024: 2666 (27th)

Again, huge decline in shot suppression performance 5 on 5 in spite of being injury riddled last year. The PK was worse last year so after two more games we might see a lower raw total but not by a statistically significant difference. We're still the runaway worst shot suppression team in the league.

Unblocked shots attempted against 5 on 5
2025: 3094 (32nd)
2024: 2791 (18th)

All situations
2025: 3916 (32nd)
2024: 3858 (28th)

Again, two games to go, number will get higher. Doesn't account for a poor PK.

High danger shots against 5 on 5
2025: 186 (26th)
2024: 144 (3rd)

All situations
2025: 327 (31st)
2024: 291 (16th)

At the midway point of the season we were second to last on this stat so there was some improvement with some collapse from other teams. But we went from one of the best teams in the league at suppressing high danger shots (5on5) to one of the worst. Huge decline. Still two games to go.

Medium danger shots against 5 on 5
2025: 567 (32nd)
2024: 513 (26th)

All situations
2025: 729: (32nd)
2024: 759 (30th)

Self explanatory. We will probably tie or exceed last year's count with two games to go

Penalty killing raw percentage
2025: 73.6% (28th)
2024: 72.4% (31st)

Minor improvement but still bad.

Penalty minutes taken per 60
2025: 8.87 (22nd)
2024: 12.64 (32nd)

Times shorthanded
2025: 242 (30th) 3.03 TSh/gp
2024: 330 (32nd) 4.02 TSh/gp

There you go, a noticeable non goalie improvement. The team was more disciplined this year.

Overall conclusion: the team is measurably worse defensively compared to last year which is extremely grave considering Verbeek and Cronin emphasized that this year's focus was on defensive improvement while generally implying that offensive development wouldn't be a big focus and also because we had a much higher number of significant and lengthy injuries. Also, last year's team was short handed a lot more often and they still ended up surrendering more shots and chances this season. I don't think it's a stretch to say that Anaheim had the worst defense in the league this year. Leading the league in expected goals against per 60 certainly backs that up.

Goaltending

Goals against above expected (Aggregate goals saved above expected rating) 5 on 5
2025: -28.54 (2nd)
2024: +9.39 (23rd)

All situations
2025: -33.4 (4th)
2024: +11.31 (26th)

There isn't much significant difference between our goalies' play 5 on 5 vs all situations but it shows our goalies were better in special teams situation this year and worse last year. This is the most important marker. Last season our goalies really weren't bailing us out much at all. This year we can credit our goalies from preventing between 27-34 goals against more than expected for the offensive deluge they faced. So in simple terms, they had a higher workload than the majority of the league and still ended up saving way more goals above expected than most. Considering how many one goal games we won and lost in OT, I think you can statistically point to the majority of the point difference in the standings (19 points) to the goalies and their coaches.

Save percentage on SOG (5on5)
2025: 91.87% (8th)
2024: 90.94% (23rd)

All situations
2025: 90.02% (9th)
2024: 89.01% (28th)

Less impressive relative to the rest of the league but you have to keep in mind that Anaheim's goalies faced far more shots than most of the top 10 teams in save percentage and in any case, our goalies clearly improved significantly relative to last season. These numbers are also skewed by the fact that Gibson got injured and Dostal has clearly been burned out the past month. The past 20 games the team's save percentage is 88.54% which is 18th leaguewide.

So the quick sum of that data, since I doubt you'll read it is:

Anaheim was healthier, took fewer penalties, and shot the puck more. Despite that they still barely scored more goals this year compared to last year. Even if they blow out their next two opponents, the difference will be insignificant. The offense 5 on 5 was better this season but that is largely caused by a post Four Nations surge that is marked by a top third PDO rating. For most of the season they were near the bottom in total goals scored.

We have the worst powerplay in the league. One of the worst penalty kills in the league, and arguably the worst defensive performance in the league including being the worst faceoff team in the league. In virtually every defensive metric we were worse than last year.

The most notable improvement was the goals saved above expected aggregate by our goalies where last year out goalies statistically let in 11 more goals than expected while this year they prevented 33 more than expected while seeing a huge improvement in save percentage. And that's with the averages skewed by Dostal flaming out playing more games with Gibson out and the Ducks allowing more shots through to Dostal than the rest of the league.

The Ducks have won 16 one goal games and lost 8 games in OT or shootout. Not considering 2 goal wins that the goalies stood on their heads to balance out the one goal wins the goalies didn't play that well, that's between, being generous, 24-36 points gained in close games that you can credit the goalies for playing well above average, arguably elite against a barrage of shots allowed by the undisputed worst shot suppression team in the league.

The difference in standings points between this year and last year is 19 points with, at most an additional four to bring it to 23.

If you want to blindly look at raw standings improvement without considering the underlying issues, more power to you. I hope Verbeek's pride doesn't give him the same mentality. The reality of the "improvement" is the team was healthier and they got top class goaltending. In all other respects they either got worse, barely improved, or didn't improve at all.

 

[TheStuntman]

But does it really feel like it though?

Goes to show you how terribly shitty the team was last season. This season was still shit, but not as shitty.