Anaheim Ducks Veterans vs. Prospects: Who Dominates the Team In 2019-2020?
After a disappointing 2018-2019 season, the Anaheim Ducks veterans and prospects battle to maintain roster spots. Which side will win?
In an upcoming season full of uncertainty, there is one fact that is certain: the Anaheim Ducks have become a much younger team. General Manager Bob Murray is allowing a lot of younger players to show their worth this year, and it’s a humongous gamble.
But the question stands, now that the young will battle the old for roster spots, who will come out on top? From the Goaltenders all the way to the Defensemen, let’s take a look at the young and the old to see which group on the current roster will dominate the four areas of the 2019-2020 Anaheim Ducks.
Gibson Vs. Miller
Starting off, let’s take a very quick look at the second most clear-cut area of this Anaheim Ducks team, the goaltending. The tandem for Anaheim will yet again be John Gibson and Ryan Miller. Ever since the Ducks signed the now 39-year-old veteran in the summer of 2017, he’s been the reliable back-up that the Ducks lacked in 2016-2017.
John Gibson, however, has been undeniably one of the best starting goalies the Ducks have ever had. Starting in 2014, Gibson has been a fantastic piece of the Ducks lineup and has been fantastic throughout the playoff games he’s seen. While Miller has his set of accomplishments, he’s getting older, and he’s great at what he does in backing up Gibson. So, youth wins in the goaltending department, but the veteran presence is still in the mix to take over.
The Veteran Centers
Moving on, the Forward department is all over the place in terms of youth and veteran players. The Ducks have six centers on the team roster currently, and all except two of them are below the age of 30. Captain Ryan Getzlaf and Alternate Captain Ryan Kesler are both above 30, but considering that Kesler is set to miss the 2019-2020 season due to hip surgery, it’s Ryan Getzlaf, Adam Henrique, and Derek Grant representing the veterans.
This particular core of centers is really strong without separating the prospects from the veterans, but that’s not to say that they won’t have their struggles. Considering that Ryan Kesler is out, and Corey Perry was sent packing, the real teacher for the youth is down to just Getzlaf.
Still, with that fact, Getzlaf is a rock, and he’s put up 315 points in total for these last five seasons. If he stays healthy, he’s set to put up more great numbers for his age. Not to mention, he’s still the ever-loyal captain that will lead the prospects no matter what, so their development really hinges on Getzlaf and head coach Dallas Eakins.
Adam Henrique might make a case all his own to beat the prospects and their productivity with his talent level. Ever since Bob Murray traded for him back in 2018, he’s been a fan favorite for a reason. Last year, he played all 82 games and had 42 points, and his healthy return ensures that he’ll be producing again this season.
Derek Grant came back to Anaheim in 2019 after leaving for Pittsburgh, and although he wasn’t with Anaheim for more than 31 games, he still managed nine points for the team. His best season was in Anaheim back in 2017-2018, and Grant will be in for a homecoming season that might be his best yet.
The Prospects and Young Centers
The young Ducks centers are Chase De Leo, Devin Shore, Sam Steel, and Sam Carrick. Chase DeLeo is the wild card in this situation, as he could either flourish or get tripped up. An Orange County born player, De Leo will certainly fight hard to stay on his favorite childhood team. His stats in San Diego last year were amazing, with 55 points in 66 games played, so he’s proven that he can produce.
Devin Shore was acquired from the Dallas Stars in a trade during the latter half of last season, and through 34 games with Anaheim, he did a great job. He ended the season with 12 points in Anaheim. Although he didn’t have much time to show off his true potential, the 2019-2020 season will provide him with 82 games to do so.
Sam Steel was very impressive in his first 22 games with Anaheim, managing to net 11 points via 6 goals and 5 assists. Steel also had his first hat trick during a game against the Vancouver Canucks, so he’s showed his scoring prowess. He was only the second Ducks rookie to ever record a hat trick, with the other being Bobby Ryan.
Even when he went down to San Diego, he really impressed with 41 points in 53 games played, along with 13 points in 16 AHL playoff games. With his young legs and his blazing fast speed, Steel is a fantastic addition to this already strong Ducks center core, so expect to see him play most of the upcoming 82 games during the season.
Sam Carrick is in the same boat as Chase De Leo, and he’ll have to fight with some extra gusto if he wants to stay with the big club in Anaheim. Having only played six games with the Ducks and scoring only one point, he’ll need to be a better producer to keep up with his fellow prospects. Still, he’s played very well before for his age, and it’s more than likely that he can do so again.
Who Stands Victorious In the Center?
In the battle of prospect vs. veteran, the center department goes to the veterans. It’s a controversial area, seeing as the youth have their contributors, but the tandem of Ryan Getzlaf and Adam Henrique will consistently lead to scoring chances. It’s just an incredibly strong duo, along with Derek Grant, who is willing to step it up for the team that he played his best year for.
For the youth, Chase De Leo and Devin Shore have the potential to battle for dominance, but again, Getzlaf and Henrique are more proven, so it’s a safer bet that they’ll do better. Sam Steel has the most promise to really shine this season on the prospect’s side, but it’s yet to be seen how his production will spread out over the season, unlike the short 22 games he played last year. The veteran presence might not be so lucky in the future, seeing as how amazing the prospects are in this area, and how they could really blossom this season with the likes of Steel and De Leo netting goals for days.
No Battle Found On the Wing
In the next department, we have the wingers. Seeing as how the oldest winger for the Ducks is 28 years old, it’s the youngest part of the team, so there’s really no battle between veteran presence and prospect magic.
It’d be Jakob Silfverberg and Nicolas Deslauriers against everyone else, and it’s not a fair fight with Rickard Rakell and Troy Terry being the main competition. Daniel Sprong and Ondrej Kase also have the potential to be major contributors for the team, seeing as they’ve both had spectacular pasts, so really, the wing belongs to the prospects.
This will be a fantastic core to watch develop over time, and could possibly be the flashiest part of this Ducks team for a while, so really watch for what they can accomplish together.
The Veterans On Defense
Last but not least, we have the defense department. The defense is the oldest part of the Ducks, with five players being 28 or older. So, it’s six veterans on two prospects. Starting with the veterans from youngest to oldest, we have Hampus Lindholm, Cam Fowler, Josh Manson, Michael Del Zotto, Chris Wideman, and Korbinian Holzer. Lindholm, Fowler, and Manson are the Ducks that fans know the best.
Hampus Lindholm has been playing for the Ducks for six seasons now, and his total points have stayed consistent, always somewhere between 28 and 30. His PIM numbers are somewhat middle ground, and he definitely has helped more than he’s harmed. Lindholm is a reliable player, and it’s safe to say that he’ll have another good year with the Ducks. But, this year, he might just have a great season again, such as he did in 2014-2015 with 34 points and 32 PIM in 78 games.
Even though Fowler really dropped off last season after only playing 59 games and tallying 23 points, he’s made some great comebacks before. After only playing 69 games with 28 points in 2015-2016, Cam Fowler really shined in 2016-2017 with 80 games and 39 points. And aside from that, Fowler stays out of the penalty box relatively well with low PIM numbers across the board.
Josh Manson is in the same boat, coming off a disappointing season in 2018-2019 with only 74 games played and 16 points. However, he’s really worked to keep his PIM and TP consistent, so he’ll be a nice piece to have around in any case.
Michael Del Zotto and Korbinian Holzer both share very similar stories in their times around Anaheim. Del Zotto only played 12 games with the Ducks before moving on to the eventual Cup champions in St. Louis, and he had three assists. Del Zotto is looking to stick around for the year unlike his last time around, and he hopes to keep up the great defense he provided last season.
Holzer played 22 games with the Ducks before being finally sent down to San Diego, and he had four points. He’s played very few games for the Ducks during his tenure, but he’s been getting more chances from Bob Murray to try and breakthrough with some spectacular numbers. Considering that this is his last season before free agency, the pressure is on for him to put up the numbers that Murray wants to see, and Holzer just might shine under such pressures. Watch for what he does, as this might be his best season with the club.
Chris Wideman is the wildest card there is for the defense, and there are two ways his tenure could go. Either he reverts to 2016-2017 form and plays well through at least 80 games while producing close to 17 points and laying on the body spectacularly, or he’ll stay the same as last year when he only had seven points after bouncing around from three different teams. The other bad bit of information is that even in his best season, his PIM was somewhat high, so he could also lead to some untimely penalties, those of which Anaheim needs much less of.
The Prospects and Young Defenseman
Ending off with the two prospects on the defense, we have Brendan Guhle and Jani Hakanpaa. Both Guhle and Hakanpaa are still unproven, but they might be the most interesting players Anahim will have this year.
Brendan Guhle was acquired in one of the more controversial trades in the Bob Murray era, the one that saw a fan favorite in Brandon Montour leave for Buffalo. And to make a bad wound worse, Guhle was injured and missed out on the end of the season.
Before that, he recorded his first assist in Anaheim during his first six games with the club, and only recorded two penalty minutes. He’s still young, but he’s incredibly fast and shows plenty of promise for the Ducks like he did for the Sabres, just so long as he can stay healthy this time around. Those who are superstitious, please feel free to knock on wood now.
Jani Hakanpaa is the one thing that every Ducks fan loves to see, a promising Finnish player. He’s coming off two amazing career years in a row, scoring 47 points in 110 games. He had incredibly high penalty minutes last year, with 94 minutes in the box, but seeing as his regular PIM number is somewhere around 60, it was simply an off-year.
Hakanpaa is also a big man, and he can put people to the boards, which will add some much-needed grit to the Ducks. As Elite Prospects Scout Ulf Andersson suggests, the main area he needs to improve in is his skating. Considering that Dallas Eakins is fantastic at working with his athletes and developing them, there’s a lot of promise for Hakanpaa. He might be the main one-year contract to get prioritized after this season with his potential.
Final Results
With the defense finally done, it’s finally time to unveil which side takes home the right to run the team for this upcoming season.
The Better Man Wins
It comes down to this, who wins the battle of prospects and veterans? Prospects have taken the wing and goaltending, while the veterans have the center locked down. And with the defense, it looks like the veterans win here, making it 3-2 still in favor of the prospects. The core veterans on defense are great, with Fowler, Lindholm, and Manson being the focal points, and they can and will fill their roles as solid defensemen.
Del Zotto will also pitch in some great play to help the core, while Holzer and Wideman might weigh the defense as a whole down. The prospects are both somewhat mysteries with their potential of either being amazing or just okay, but with Eakins to develop them, they’ll still make fine additions to an already solid defensive core when healthy.
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In the end, the prospects won a close battle, and it really could go either way with different eyes. The key for the youth is the wing, which reigns supreme in young players, while the key for the veterans is the defense with three special core veterans. Keep in mind that the roster is still subject to change, but for now, it’s all based on what the NHL and Hockey Reference list the roster as. So, with these listed players, it will be a very strong and young team with the veterans to help bring out the best of the prospects.
A team is a team no matter what, so the prospects and veterans will all have to mesh together to give the Ducks a real chance to contend. And with a young star goaltender, a great young core of wingers and defensemen, and a great veteran center presence, the Ducks might just not do as bad as some of the experts project them to do.
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