Arent the Anaheim Ducks pretty good, though?

[De Montreal]

Reading some predictions for next season, I see a good number of posters and experts putting Anaheim just outside the playoff or at least having a major setback. I could only see two reasons why people would make this sort of prediction : 1- Their 4-0 loss against the Sharks 2- Some of their core players are aging (Getzlaf, Perry and Kesler)

However, aside from Kesler and Perry, I dont see many of their players being worse next season, where I think lot of their younger player will get better from the experiene (Rakell, Montour, Manson, Lindholm, Kase, ...) Also, it's not like Kesler and Perry were providing much last season (combined 25 goals)

They also have one of the best goaltender in the division... So am I the only one who doesnt see how a 101 points team can suddenly become a losing team? In fact, I could really see them win the division.

 

[Howie Hodge]

Don't stop believin'!

 

[Not So Mighty]

Other Pacific teams got better. We stayed the same.

San Jose added Kane. Carlyle sucks. LA added Kovalchuk. Carlyle sucks. Calgary made some big moves. Carlyle sucks. The highlight of our offseason was letting Bieksa walk. Carlyle sucks. We can only cross our fingers Vegas regresses and Edmonton doesn't become the team they were expected to be a year ago. Carlyle sucks.

I expect to hang around just outside the playoff picture all year and then fall off dramatically in the final quarter.

 

[Seanaconda]

Reading some predictions for next season, I see a good number of posters and experts putting Anaheim just outside the playoff or at least having a major setback. I could only see two reasons why people would make this sort of prediction : 1- Their 4-0 loss against the Sharks 2- Some of their core players are aging (Getzlaf, Perry and Kesler)

However, aside from Kesler and Perry, I dont see many of their players being worse next season, where I think lot of their younger player will get better from the experiene (Rakell, Montour, Manson, Lindholm, Kase, ...) Also, it's not like Kesler and Perry were providing much last season (combined 25 goals)

They also have one of the best goaltender in the division... So am I the only one who doesnt see how a 101 points team can suddenly become a losing team? In fact, I could really see them win the division.

I think they will be fine until getzlaf gets old

 

[DFAC]

Pacific is weak as hell, they will get their pts and make the playoffs

 

[All Mighty]

Not liking our chances at the moment, especially with Kesler's future up in the air. But I do agree that step one is moving on from Carlyle.

 

[Son of Petter]

I don’t see them making it. If Kesler misses the season like has been discussed that’s not good news either. Gibson can keep them in a lot of games though, he has to stay healthy.

 

[Duke Silver]

Anaheim last season gave up the 2nd-most scoring chances but had the 6th-best scoring chance save percentage.

They also gave up the 8th-most high danger scoring chances but had the 6th-best high danger save percentage.

Gibson had the second-highest GSAA (goals saved above average) based on the quality of shots he saw.

I have them pegged for a major regression next season unless they make a coaching change or tactical switch-up, because they’re leaning HARD on Gibson and Carlyle’s system is wasting all the talent they have in their top-4 D.

 

[ricky0034]

Other Pacific teams got better. We stayed the same.

San Jose added Kane. Carlyle sucks. LA added Kovalchuk. Carlyle sucks. Calgary made some big moves. Carlyle sucks. The highlight of our offseason was letting Bieksa walk. Carlyle sucks. We can only cross our fingers Vegas regresses and Edmonton doesn't become the team they were expected to be a year ago. Carlyle sucks.

I expect to hang around just outside the playoff picture all year and then fall off dramatically in the final quarter.

how do you feel about Carlyle though?

 

[Not So Mighty]

how do you feel about Carlyle though?

Can't complain.

 

[Sendhelp2Anaheim]

I think they are the team with most question marks, last year they had a ton of injuries throughout season. This year you have a lot of questions about perry kesler and eaves.

But mostly rc is a terrible coach, that playoff series should have been his job

 

[BlueDream]

I just think them and Minnesota are two teams who haven’t done anything to improve themselves while teams like STL, Calgary, Colorado look to be getting better.

We won’t see the same 8 teams make the playoffs so something will budge. Could be Anaheim. Minnesota at least has the edge with Boudreau being >>>> Carlyle.

 

[KingsFan7824]

They're predictions. You know some team(s) will fall going by history, you just never know which one, or why. However, for the last 15 years, the Ducks have usually been good.

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

Ducks can still make the playoffs and no one should be surprised if they do. They have a strong winning culture, good leadership and identity to fall back on when things don't go well. They have the ability to win games even if they're not looking like a dynamic team.

That being said i do feel the same way like a lot of people, that it's not going to be easy for them. The Western conference is looking like it could be the most competitive conference i've ever seen, it just seems like the NHL shaped up that way recently with basically all the rebuilding teams being in the East and really only the Canucks are probably still bad in the West. I think Arizona will finally have a decent season. It's pretty crazy to think that team like the Hawks are on paper one of the worst teams and they still have Kane and some other good players + Crawford and Ward in net.

Basically the margin for error is quite small. You only get to play those bad East teams twice.

If it's another year without Kesler it makes things difficult as the Ducks seem to always have their fair share of injuries, so it's pretty safe to say it probably won't end with Kesler. They managed last year, but it wasn't a fun year and they really had to grind it out to get in. Going through that again is going to be even more challenging mentally, and after getting dumped on by the Sharks in the playoffs, if things go south doubt can creep in more easily at times when you know you're probably not good enough in the end anyway. I've seen this happen in the past.

I see people say the Pacific is weak but i don't agree. You've got Vegas, San Jose, LA who added Kovy, Flames who had a terrific off-season, pissed off Oilers with the best player in the world and Arizona as the wild card. And let's not forget the Central division is capable of sending 5 teams to the playoffs.

I feel like the Ducks will need some new young guys to make a big impact. Whether it's Terry or Steel they need some excitement up front.

Bottom line is good teams will have to miss and the Ducks right now aren't that strong that i'd put them safely into the playoffs. However that doesn't mean i think they'll become a losing team. We're talking about 1 season and i think they can still do some damage with better health and some adjustments in the future.

 

[LuGBuG]

@scallionjj11 is going to have a field day with this one

 

[Iceman]

Pacific is weak as hell, they will get their pts and make the playoffs

That is dangerous too, they won’t go far once there, maybe 2nd round? Then they will be perceived as good enough for them not to make any radical changes.

 

[scallionjj11]

Reading some predictions for next season, I see a good number of posters and experts putting Anaheim just outside the playoff or at least having a major setback. I could only see two reasons why people would make this sort of prediction : 1- Their 4-0 loss against the Sharks 2- Some of their core players are aging (Getzlaf, Perry and Kesler)

However, aside from Kesler and Perry, I dont see many of their players being worse next season, where I think lot of their younger player will get better from the experiene (Rakell, Montour, Manson, Lindholm, Kase, ...) Also, it's not like Kesler and Perry were providing much last season (combined 25 goals)

They also have one of the best goaltender in the division... So am I the only one who doesnt see how a 101 points team can suddenly become a losing team? In fact, I could really see them win the division.

I'm assuming this is a response to my thread, which I'm not sure why you felt the need to start yet another. Apart from the vets aging and the younger players gaining more experience (which basically any team can say about their young players), Whats going to get Anaheim over the hump of choking so badly in game 7's the last 5 years or so. That's what duck fans need to be thinking about.

Luckily they are fortunate enough to be in a very weak division.

 

[byrath]

Reading some predictions for next season, I see a good number of posters and experts putting Anaheim just outside the playoff or at least having a major setback. I could only see two reasons why people would make this sort of prediction : 1- Their 4-0 loss against the Sharks 2- Some of their core players are aging (Getzlaf, Perry and Kesler)

However, aside from Kesler and Perry, I dont see many of their players being worse next season, where I think lot of their younger player will get better from the experiene (Rakell, Montour, Manson, Lindholm, Kase, ...) Also, it's not like Kesler and Perry were providing much last season (combined 25 goals)

They also have one of the best goaltender in the division... So am I the only one who doesnt see how a 101 points team can suddenly become a losing team? In fact, I could really see them win the division.

Ducks will still be a pretty good team and I'd say better than 50/50 odds of making the playoffs. 101 points though, it sounds good but 5 or 6 less and you miss out.

 

[LeafFever]

Considering the Leafs inexplicably got more mentions for regression than the Ducks, I am not sure what the big deal is. The Ducks definitely due to injuries/age of the forwards are a concern to regress.

 

[LuGBuG]

I'm assuming this is a response to my thread, which I'm not sure why you felt the need to start yet another. Apart from the vets aging and the younger players gaining more experience (which basically any team can say about their young players), Whats going to get Anaheim over the hump of choking so badly in game 7's the last 5 years or so. That's what duck fans need to be thinking about.

Luckily they are fortunate enough to be in a very weak division.

What do those game 7 losses have to do with regression this year. Also they won their last game 7 by the way.

 

[scallionjj11]

What do those game 7 losses have to do with regression this year. Also they won their last game 7 by the way.

5 for 6, not a bad track record.

I was just simply explaining that they need an extra piece to break this terrible streak they are on in the playoffs. I still think they'll regress this year as no moves seem to be likely at this point of the offseason.

 

[tony d]

I think the race for 3rd in the Pacific is going to be fun this yr. San Jose and LA probably are 1-2. I think Anaheim, Calgary, Edmonton and Vegas duke it out for 3rd to 6th in the division.

 

[PensandCaps]

With Kesler and Perry taking huge steps back and playing well below their cap hit..
I think Anaheim will struggle badly to compete. Already were a budget team...now they have 15 mil in cap space between two declining players, soon to be cap dumps.

 

[LuGBuG]

5 for 6, not a bad track record.

I was just simply explaining that they need an extra piece to break this terrible streak they are on in the playoffs. I still think they'll regress this year as no moves seem to be likely at this point of the offseason.

Yup that 1 for 6 is better percentage then 0-1..... you know cups won by Ottawa in their one appearance.... when they got spanked...... by Anaheim

 

[Getzmonster]

Weird how many Ducks related threads are on the main boards lately.

Getzlaf hasn't shown any major signs of regression, he should be fine. GM Murray is throwing a lot of heat Perry's way, so he must think there is still more in the tank there. But regardless, with Silfverberg, Eaves, Kase, etc., Perry doesn't need to shoulder the load or be a line-driver. He just needs to provide some secondary scoring. Kesler is the only "old guy" that is a realistic concern for next season. It comes to down his ability to play effectively, or Steel's readiness to fill in if Kes taps out. Other than possibly Steel, the team also isn't riding on hopes and wishes that a bunch of young guys take big steps for them to be competitive again. Overall, the Ducks are pretty stable in that regard.

Murray has been talking up the team's new approach of playing "fast" next season. What he means by that is open to interpretation. He's demanding buy in from everyone or threatening ice time. He also brought back Carlyle, which seems like the opposite of what will facilitate this big shift in play style, but we'll have to see if Randy can reinvent himself.