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.