Anaheim Ducks: Top Five Players of the 2019-2020 NHL Season
Through seventy-one games in the 2019-2020 NHL season, there were some stand-outs for the Anaheim Ducks that deserve some praise. Sadly, we won’t know whether there would be others that earned a spot on this list if the season finished properly, but for now, we are taking a look at the best players that meant the most to the Ducks.
The Anaheim Ducks were projected to finish with seventy-seven points and to be out of the playoffs according to thescout.com, and with their remaining schedule, it is not hard to see how that ship would sink. However, with the good you take the bad and vice versa, so instead of mourning the loss of an already abysmal season, it might be good for Ducks fans to see what went right for Anaheim.
Judging the top five players for Anaheim this year was a tough task considering that some of them are no longer with the team, but it all came down to how much of a difference they made for the team. Whether it was production or general team spirit, these five players gave their hardest efforts to keep the team at least close to .500 and running. This list will also not exclude players that were traded at the deadline for a good reason, but we’ll get to that as soon as the list starts. And now, the five players that gave Ducks fans a good show.
Derek Grant is the most unlikely savior of an NHL season, but weird times call for weird situations, so the fifth spot on this list goes to the hard work that Grant put in during another stint in Anaheim. Grant is a twenty-nine year old center that has had three stints in Anaheim, all of which saw him put up some decent numbers in terms of points. In 2019-2020, he scored fourteen goals and racked up six assists for twenty points on the season before being shipped off to Philadelphia, but more important were his face-off numbers.
Through forty-nine games in Anaheim, Grant took 629 face-offs and won 323 of them for a face-off percentage of 51.4, not shabby for a veteran center looking for time on the ice. His nickname “Elite 1C” became a favorite among Ducks fans on all the social media platforms and our love for him grew even bigger in his third stint. Averaging 13:52 minutes on the ice, Grant also had forty-four hits, fifteen takeaways, three short-handed goals, and only twenty-eight penalty minutes. All around the most solid veteran center you could ask for on a short deal.
Although his time may be up in Anaheim, we here at Pucks of a Feather solute him for all the hard work ethic that he brought and the amazing short-handed goals he gave us. Who knows, though, perhaps there is a fourth stint in his future? Only time will tell.
In his seventeenth season, goaltender Ryan Miller did not disappoint in the slightest for the Anaheim Ducks. Sadly, his season did not end with the Stanley Cup that he deserves from putting up so many stellar years and being one of the most legendary American born goaltenders to ever put his pads to the ice, but that does not mean that he did not give his very best.
In twenty-three games played, Miller started nineteen and had a record of 9-6-4. It does not seem like the best record or anything special, but considering the circumstance of his age and possible retirement, there has to be a place on this list for him. Even despite those six losses, he only allowed more than three goals in a game four times in his twenty-three games. Miller bolstered a .907 save percentage with 621 saves against 685 shots faced in 1238 minutes and had eleven quality starts (QS) compared to only two really bad starts (RBS). For such a grizzled veteran, it is impressive to see him putting up those numbers at age thirty-nine.
If this is truly Miller’s last season in the NHL, it will have been a pleasure to have seen him represent Orange County for three seasons out of his seventeen in the NHL. No doubt a Hall of Famer, we wish Miller the very best in whatever his future holds. It was a pleasure to see him go out with such a bang.
In his eighth NHL season, right-winger Rickard Rakell has plenty to be proud of, but this season was especially a worthwhile one for him. While not nearly as great as the career year he had in 2017-2018, this was looking to really be a bounce back season for Rakell after a somewhat disappointing ’18-’19 season.
In four fewer games than what he played last season, Rakell was one point short of tying his production number of forty-three. In sixty-five games, Rakell finished with fifteen goals, twenty-seven assists, and forty-two points, and he still had the remaining eleven games to improve his numbers before the season was ultimately halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He was also averaging 18:10 on the ice, so he finished just short of last season with less time on the ice as well. Surprisingly, his face-off skills as a right-winger are impressive as well. In thirteen face-offs taken, he won ten of those for a face-off percentage of 76.9. It was by far the least face-offs he had seen in a season, but the ten that he won far outweigh the three he lost, so his credibility definitely went up for next season.
For his other statistics, Rakell finished with eighty-one hits, thirty takeaways, and three short-handed assists. Although it does not seem like much for what was expected of Rakell after back-to-back stellar seasons, he deserves a lot of praise. Keep in mind, Rakell fell single-digit numbers short in multiple categories from last season ninety-five less minutes and four fewer games, so realistically this was a big step up for him after getting harped on for not staying consistent. He has not fallen under forty points since his third season in the NHL and continues to put up numbers to help the team up in his eight season. He could even be considered one of the main faces of the franchise at this point with how much he as accomplished in Anaheim. His Swedish friend on the left-wing would most likely agree with all the help that he has received from Rakell.
To most Ducks fans, it should not be a surprise to see Jakob Silfverberg on a top five list, but it could be a surprise to see him at the second spot. The truth is, however, that Silfverberg was selected to be an NHL All-Star for a reason. To start the season, Silfverberg was on fire and enjoying the best start to any of his years in the NHL, and although it slowed a bit during the second half, there has never been an absence of effort from this Swede.
To end off the season, Silfverberg finished with twenty-one goals, eighteen assists, and thirty-nine total points. Unfortunately, Silfverberg only got the chance to play in sixty-six games this season due to the pause that the NHL underwent, but he was almost on pace to tie his career best forty-nine points with a slight tear at the end of the season. He was seven games behind last season with eleven games total remaining, so who knows what he could have done with those remaining minutes on the ice, but the one thing that is for certain is that this was about as good of a year for Silfverberg as there ever will be.
From a scoring standpoint, Silfverberg was just about the second or third most reliable scoring option coming behind the number one player on this list and an another honorable mention player, and he was just three goals short of tying his career best twenty-four goals from last season. He was also averaging 17:41 on the ice, so there was usually a good shot of his line putting one up on the board. Assists wise, it was one of his least impressive seasons with only eighteen assists, but his goal production was plenty enough to excuse it. He also did not get to play his usual seventy games, so he was still on pace to tie his worst career assist numbers at the very least. He was only one assist shy of tying last season, in fact.
Throwing in his defense, Silfverberg was the complete package. Forty-one blocks, twenty-eight hits, forty takeaways, and a general awareness of where he needed to be on the ice at all times. In total, out of the 226 goals that were scored against the Ducks in the seventy-one games they played, Silfverberg was on the ice for only sixty-three of them. He is not a defenseman, but he does know how to lay the body on. In general, Silfverberg might be one of the most complete Ducks to have ever put the blade to the ice, and he has really started to show that over these last two seasons. Who knows what the future holds for him this upcoming season? Though for now, we still have our last player to get to. Before that, two honorable mentions that fell just short of first place.
Personally, I am aware that there is a good chunk of Ducks fans that will be very upset at me for not giving either of these players the number one spot, but it seems pretty clear, at least in my mind, who that spot really goes to judging this season alone. Still, John Gibson and Ryan Getzlaf put up their usual efforts that lead the Ducks through this trying season.
John Gibson finished the season with a record of 20-26-5 while making 1403 saves against 1552 shots. In fifty-one games, Gibson managed to put up his only losing season in his entire career and finished as the goalie with the most losses in the NHL. This has not been your average NHL season, however, and a lot of very talented goaltenders have fallen to the same fate as Gibson. Carey Price, a well-respected and skilled goaltender, came second in most losses by one less loss, and even people like Connor Hellebuyck, Martin Jones, Jonathan Quick, and Jimmy Howard ended up in the top ten. Still, Gibson did not finish near the place he realistically should have and it was clear that he struggled this season. He let in his second most goals in a season in 286 less shots than his worst statistical season (2018-2019), his save percentage dropped again by .013 percent after a nine percent drop last season, and he had a career worst ten RBS and another career worst twenty-two QS. Gibson has the potential to be one of the best goaltenders in the NHL today, but it is not unfair to say that he did not show it this season. The Ducks were third in the league for most goals against compared to last season when they were fifteenth, and it clearly shows that Gibson is starting to show wear and tear. The defense is just as much to blame considering that the team is going through a rebuild and lacks really anything more than their top five players, but Gibson just fell short of qualifying under Miller despite some of the statistics. Grant just grabbed the last spot, and had Gibson been able to finish out his last games, he could have just hopped Grant.
Ryan Getzlaf was the more painful choice to make in excluding him from a spot on the list. Had Rakell and Silfverberg not had such great years, but Getzlaf seemed like the kind of player that was either first or not on the list at all. Getzlaf was fifth in goals and first in assists on the team through sixty-nine games played. When Getzlaf was not on the ice, it showed very well when most of the team floundered around and struggled to find a scoring touch. In his fifteenth year in the NHL, Getzlaf still managed to put up thirteen goals, twenty-nine assists, and forty-two points total, so his production is far from lacking. It has been consistently going down, but getting forty points from a thirty-four year old is still a blessing. With his leadership as captain still prevailing as his best quality, it was very hard not to give him the top spot. It was easy to decide who really pitched in the most, however.
Perhaps it is not who you thought it would be, but Adam Henrique was by far the best Anaheim Duck of 2019-2020. With the most goals, most points, tied for most games played at a full seventy-one, most even strength and power play goals, most offensive point shares, and the second most face-offs won, Henrique tops almost any chart you could look at.
This was Henrique’s third full season played, and his second in a row. He has not missed a game in almost two full seasons, and his numbers definitely show it. Twenty-six goals, seventeen assists, and forty-three points in total was where he finished, and he already surpassed his point total from last year with eleven games remaining. He also lowered his penalty minute total from last year by two minutes, which saved the Ducks a lot of stress, but he alleviated the struggles in most places. On defense, he was on pace to beat last season’s hit totals at seventy-five, but he regressed significantly in the takeaways and blocks departments at twenty-six takeaways and thirty-two blocks. His role did change quite a lot under new head coach Dallas Eakins, so it is to be expected that he reaches into new territories and losses some numbers in other categories, and he has become the bonafide goal-scorer next to Ryan Getzlaf. He was still on pace to reach his career best thirty goals very easily before the NHL season was paused, so he has not lost any of his offensive touch at the age of thirty.
Adam Henrique is also averaging less time on the ice than Getzlaf and has ninety-four less minutes and still is surpassing his production in almost everything but face-off wins and assists. In general, the Anaheim Ducks would have tanked much more efficiently without Henrique in the lineup, but thanks to that trade back in 2017, Henrique has kept the Ducks afloat in most situations. Even when he is not on a five-point tear in four straight games, Henrique is as proficient of a center as anyone on any struggling team. Despite his efforts and his production, he is still somehow a -3 in the +/- category, and that is absolutely absurd.
In theory, his five-year contract extension and Getzlaf’s last year being up after next season possibly opens up the door for Henrique to be the next captain of the Anaheim Ducks, and it would be very well deserved for him to dawn the captain’s C along with other Ducks legends. Depending on how much hockey is left in him, we might see number fourteen in the rafters of the Honda Center someday, but for now, he is the best Duck from the 2019-2020 season.
Next. Anaheim Ducks Sign Trevor Zegras to 3 Year Entry Level Contract. dark
In closing, the list of the best Anaheim Ducks players was a tough one to make due to the circumstances that saw the rest of the season completely disappear for now. The Ducks were in the middle of another tank year, and it was really hard to gauge who was really outstanding and who was just mediocre, but the five players that came out on top definitely had a helping hand in winning quite a few games that seemed impossible to snatch up. For Derek Grant, Ryan Miller, Rickard Rakell, Jakob Silfverberg, and Adam Henrique, Ducks nation is in credibly thankful. Even for the people who did not make it on the list, it was still a valiant effort, and perhaps we will see a lot of new names and faces on our top five list next season. Trevor Zegras is a name that all Ducks fans hope to see on plenty of top five lists in the near future, and that might just be the next list.
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