Pucks of a Feather
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Former Anaheim Ducks defenseman Simon Despres gets his NHL second chance

By Ed Stein

MONTREAL, QC - MARCH 22: Lars Eller #81 of the Montreal Canadiens skates against Simon Despres #24 of the Anaheim Ducks in the NHL game at the Bell Centre on March 22, 2016 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Francois Lacasse/NHLI via Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***Simon Despres;Lars Eller;
MONTREAL, QC - MARCH 22: Lars Eller #81 of the Montreal Canadiens skates against Simon Despres #24 of the Anaheim Ducks in the NHL game at the Bell Centre on March 22, 2016 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Francois Lacasse/NHLI via Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***Simon Despres;Lars Eller; /
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The Anaheim Ducks and Simon Despres parted company in the summer of 2017, due to his repeated concussion issues. After a year in the KHL, he was offered a tryout by Montreal this week.

Defenseman Simon Despres signed a five year, $18.5M contract extension with the Anaheim Ducks during the summer of 2015. A series of debilitating concussion over the next two seasons led Anaheim to buy out his contract last June. This week Montreal offered Despres a second chance at the NHL.

Origins

He had a successful two year run in the Juniors with the Saint John Sea Dogs, and a selection to Canada’s U-18 team. That led to his rating as one of the top North American skaters in the 2009 NHL Entry draft. The Pittsburgh Penguins selected him in the first round, 30th overall.

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The Laval, Quebec native impressed the Pittsburgh brass almost immediately. By 2011-12, Despres was a frequent call-up to the Pens when injuries decimated their roster. Unfortunately for him, he battled injuries of his own the next two seasons which kept him from a more prominent role.

Ducks

Pittsburgh sent Despres to the Anaheim Ducks at the 2015 trade deadline. It was a “hockey deal” for both teams. Anaheim had a glut of defensemen and could afford to take on a talented younger player they could sit on until the next season. The Pens, on the other hand, needed another veteran presence in their blueline group and Ben Lovejoy was the return they needed for Despres.

He was a good fit for the Anaheim defense. How could he not be? When on his game, the 6’4” was a punishing physical presence. Add to that his smooth skating ability, and an ease with handling the puck. It’s easy to see why the Ducks signed him to a five year, $18.5M contract extension in 2015. His future looked bright.

Concussions

Despres couldn’t shake his injury issues, especially hits to his head. Hockey is played with a code of unwritten rules. One of them states, if you are going to dish out hits to your opponents, you’d better be prepared to get hit as well. His big frame was an inviting target for opposing players. His first big concussion scare came in October 2015 after a nasty and illegal hit to the head by Colorado’s Tyson Barrie which put him out for 42 games.

He missed the final five games of the 2016 regular season with concussion-like symptoms. It’s not known if his condition was a re-occurrence of the earlier injury or the result of a high crosscheck by Colorado’s Gabrial Landeskog on March 9th. Despres didn’t appear injured after that hit, but the Avs captain still received a three-game suspension.

One game into the 2016-17 season, the defenseman put Anaheim in a difficult situation. Two periods into the season opener against Dallas, Despres informed the training staff that he was feeling concussion symptoms again. The Ducks subsequently placed him on long-term injured reserve.

Endgame

In the spring, I was writing for another publication. I spoke to my sources within the Ducks, the NHLPA and Despres’ agent to check on his progress. They all said basically the same thing, “he’s following the NHL concussion protocol.” Despres never played for the Anaheim Ducks again.

On June 16, 2017, Despres and the Anaheim Ducks decided to part ways. Technically, it’s against the Collective Bargaining Agreement to cut an injured player. GM Bob Murray and the NHLPA were able to reach an agreement to buy out his contract.

Despres went on to play in the KHL last season. He appeared in 44 games for Slovan Bratislava, slowly getting himself back up to speed. During the regular season, he collected 84 penalty minutes, and 11 points (4g, 7a). Earlier this week, the Montreal Canadiens gave the hometown player a path back to the NHL by offering him a professional tryout.

Next: A farewell salute to Jared Boll

Simon Despres was a popular player in Anaheim. Ducks Nation will be rooting for him to make a triumphant return. The most important thing, however, isn’t hockey, it will be to live a healthy life after his playing days are over.

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