Why Dany Heatley will thrive with the Anaheim Ducks

Teammates

November 15, 2013; Raleigh, NC, USA; Anaheim Ducks forward

(10) is congratulated by forward

(15) after his 2nd period goal against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Center. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

Heatley has played with some good teammates and line-mates but this may be the best line he has ever had. Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry are true gamers and give it night in and night out. They also recognize the opportunity in front of them this season and will make sure Heatley doesn’t take a night off.

Last season, Dustin Penner was the other wing with the Getzlaf-Perry pair until the trade deadline, and he was able to put up 32 points in 49 games. I can be on board with Heatley maybe losing a step or two, but he has a significantly better skill set than Penner and should be able to accumulate that and so much more.

This team is also the deepest team that Heatley has ever been on and because of that it may give Heatley more space. Whether at 5-on-5 play or on the power play, the Ducks have so many guys that need to be defended well that Heatley could slide through the cracks and make some teams pay.

He will get his chances and this is the kind of system of a high-flying, creative, hard-nosed offense that could perfectly fit into Heatley’s style. If it does the Ducks will look like absolute geniuses.