Anaheim Ducks Mid-Season Report Cards: Randy Carlyle and Bob Murray

The Anaheim Ducks are 44 games into the NHL season, which means it’s time for mid-season report cards! Before we dive into the players, we’re handing out grades to Randy Carlyle and Bob Murray.

We’ve officially hit the midway point of the NHL season. As it currently stands, the Anaheim Ducks have earned 46 points in 44 games. Their 19-17-8 win-loss record is good enough for a fourth-place Pacific Division spot and just barely out of the playoff race.

It’s time for us to hand out our mid-season grades, and this time we’re starting with Randy Carlyle and Bob Murray. These two men have been entrusted with the success of the team, so it is only fitting that they get put in the hot seat first.

Disclaimer: While the nine-game losing streak will factor into the grades, it is only fair that I push aside all bias opinion and grade fairly based on the entirety of the season up to this point. 

Randy Carlyle — Head Coach of the Anaheim Ducks

Grade: D

If you’re confused about this grade, please read the disclaimer above. I have been very vocal about my position on Randy Carlyle, and I will not change my opinion now. He is better suited for a front office job at this point. However, I must be fair in my assessment.

Under Randy Carlyle, the Anaheim Ducks have a 19-17-8 record. While this is not ideal, it has not yet reached “worst case scenario” status. Things could be a lot worse, but on the flip side, things could be a lot better.

One of Carlyle’s biggest offenses this season has been his unwillingness to be flexible and make changes to the roster in the midst of their nine-game losing streak. He is opting to have players like Brian Gibbons on the fourth line as opposed to Pontus Aberg. Ryan Kesler could also use rest, which I’ve been preaching for the past few weeks.

He also refuses to switch up the defensive pairings. Fowler has been out with an injury for the majority of the losing streak. However, as soon as he came back, it was right back to the old pairings that didn’t work before he was sidelined.

I won’t beat a dead horse, but if RC refuses to pair Hampus Lindholm and Josh Manson together, at least reunite Mason and Jakob Larsson. Fowler and Manson have limited chemistry and it’s better for the entire team if we just move on from this experiment.

Nevertheless, as I said, I must give credit where credit is due. Under Carlyle’s direction, the Anaheim Ducks won 9 out of 10 games in late November and early December that was quintessential for the team.

If they had lost any of those games, they would probably have already had to kiss a chance at the playoff’s goodbye. While there is still that possibility, the Anaheim Ducks are only one win away from being in a playoff position again.

The dump and chase tactics he preaches are quite frankly getting old. However, I must admit that it has worked out better when the team fully embraces it than when they try to mix it with Bob Murray’s “speed” tactic.

Bob Murray — General Manager of the Anaheim Ducks

Grade: C-

I am giving Bob Murray a slightly below average grade, a vast improvement from his failing early season grade.

One thing that is working against the seasoned GM is his refusal to fire Randy Carlyle. I wouldn’t have such an issue with it if he didn’t repeatedly state that he believed in Carlyle and his strategy as head coach.

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While Luke Schenn and Andrej Sustr also still count as a strike against him, neither have dressed as a Ducks in weeks, spending time either scratched or with the San Diego Gulls. A wise choice on both Bob Murray and Randy Carlyle’s part. Brian Gibbons has not been the greatest addition to the team either.

Nevertheless, he made a great trade early last month when he traded Marcus Pettersson to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Dutch forward, Daniel Sprong. Although it may not have been a major trade that turned heads, Sprong has turned out to be a big asset for the Ducks.

Sprong has played 15 games with the Anaheim Ducks so far since they acquired him and he already has 5 goals and one assist. While those stats are not overwhelming, he has filled a role that the Ducks were missing previously.

He has one of the better Corsi For percentages on the team and isn’t afraid to shoot the puck. As we have been preaching since he was acquired, he also has one of the best shots on the team. I think as he grows more comfortable with the team, and is given better opportunities, he will continue to thrive.

The trade with Pittsburgh was a very smart trade on Bob Murray’s part and is a big reason why his grade has improved so much since we first took a look at him earlier in the season.

Be sure to stay tuned for the rest of our mid-season grades as we work our way through the rest of the Anaheim Ducks roster.