Bob Murray Wants the Anaheim Ducks to be a Playoff Contender

Anaheim Ducks General Manager, Bob Murray, is tired of the rebuilding situation. What does he have left to do to make his team a playoff contender?

Bob Murray has, by all accounts, had himself a pretty good off-season. Many pundits scored the Anaheim Ducks draft day with an A-grade. Jamie Drysdale and Jacob Perreault highlighted that draft class, and of course, the Ducks picked up some “boom or bust” type depth to go around them.

Following that, Murray was then able to move Erik Gudbranson for a draft selection in the 2021  NHL Entry Draft, freeing up some sorely needed cap space and removing a traditionally poor player after one of his best career years. Creating value and selling “high” is never a bad idea, and in this instance, Murray did well.

As a backhanded sort of compliment, Murray’s moves often look good in isolation but don’t often seem to fit the big picture in the eyes of the fans. This time, however, free agency came upon on us and Murray used that cap space to upgrade his defensive corp, signing Kevin Shattenkirk to a three-year dear ($3.9 million per season).

Shattenkirk had a tremendous bounce-back season culminating in a Stanely Cup victory last season, playing for the highly skilled Tampa Bay Lightning team. In many ways, it seems likely that his offensive production was somewhat buoyed playing in that environment and that the lower scoring Ducks could see a suppressed output from Shattenkirk, comparative to last season, over the length of the contract.

Nonetheless, there are very few who would suggest that Shattenkirk is not a clear upgrade over Gudbranson, so to get a straight swap of players as well as an additional draft asset is quite a nice bit of business for the Anaheim Ducks GM. This changing of the guard is where things get a little interesting.

The above quote suggests that Murray is of the belief he has been rebuilding in recent years, and that time is now over. We could certainly discuss that train of thought and most certainly many have and will over the coming weeks and months. However, perhaps the more fun way to frame that comment is that the Anaheim Ducks want to become a relevant playoff team. Thus, given that framing, what more would need to be done in order to move from drafting 6th overall to being a genuine playoff fancy?

Defending the Defense

The acquisition of Shattenkirk stabilizes the Anaheim Ducks top 4 defensive unit. At least on paper. If we assume that Hampus Lindholm and Josh Manson are pencilled in as one of the pairings, then that leaves Cam Fowler to slide in with Shattenkirk. There are some question marks as to how exactly those four players will be mixed and matched, but it’s a reasonable hypothesis to work with for the time being.

In theory, the Lindholm-Manson pairing would provide the Ducks with a strong defensive unit when the situation calls for it. They struggled last season under Dallas Eakins tutelage, and indeed Manson has not particularly been an effective player over the past two seasons. That isn’t to say that he’s been a poor player, just that he’s not performed to the level he had in the few years preceding these last two.

At 29-years-of-age, it is not impossible that Manson gets his mojo back, though as age creeps up, it’s also worth considering that his past two years may be his new normal. Lindholm has well, had a poorer season last year, though he did improve as the season went on. At 26-years-of-age, I have fewer concerns that he’ll regain his form.

The Fowler-Shattenkirk pairing would appear to be a stronger offensively orientated pairing at first blush. Both are more renowned for their offensive games than their defensive acumen, though neither are slouches in that area.

In fact, there remains a lot of for Shattenkirk to essentially make the Ducks defense his own. If he can score at the same pace as he did this past season (40 points per 82 games), he would reach a mark that no Anaheim Ducks defenceman has hit since 2009-2010.

This is true of the power play as well, given that no Duck managed to score 10 power-play points this last season, and none have hit 20 points in the past decade. For all the hype the Ducks defense has gotten from its fans this past decade, they’ve truly underwhelmed in terms of transitioning defense into offense. It’s here that Shattenkirk can make his mark on the team.

How that gels with the current defensive group however is up for some debate. In particular, there should be some concerns as to whether Fowler will gel with Shattenkirk, as he’s seemingly had difficulties when paired with other mobile, offensive defencemen in the past. Sami Vatanen comes to mind as one player who played a significant volume with Fowler for mixed results.

On one hand, they contributed to absurdly high shot volumes in favor of the Ducks, yet on the other, goals-against increased while that pairing was iced as well. If John Gibson returns to his all-world form of years past, that goals against concern could be moot and void, leaving only the sweet goodness of seeing the Anaheim Ducks actually shoot the puck.

All four of these players are relatively young enough and have each made it as far as a conference final or two, so there’s oodles of experience in that top 4 group. The different play styles of both pairings, and indeed each of the players, gives the Ducks the ability to mix and match in that area of the ice to respond to whatever situation arises with each game.

Finding Consistency in a Third Pairing

The third pairing and seventh defenceman are likely to be made up of Christian Djoos and one of the Ducks prospect group. There are a lot of questions regarding whether this is the right move for a team that has playoff fantasies. Josh Mahura and Brendan Guhle both showed glimpses of offensive potential over their young careers thus far, yet both have been dropped to the AHL team to work on their defensive play.

It’s certainly a high expectation to imagine the third pairing players would perform to a standard set by the top 4, however, they’ll need to be trusted for at least ~17 minutes a game, in order for the top 4 group to remain fresh and productive. There should be some doubts as to whether these two players can be those players reliably and consistently. After all, playoff berths are most often built upon the backs of consistently good-to-great efforts on a night-in, night-out basis.

Jacob Larsson would also appear to be set as one of the 5th-7th defencemen. He too has a number of question marks to his name, though I may be higher on his future than many. As a “defensive” defenceman, I think he has some way to go, but I think he could potentially be part of a solid 2nd pairing in the future. At 22-years-old he has time to realize that potential.

The question arises as to whether he’s good enough now to fulfil a third-pairing role and contribute enough minutes to warrant him being part of a team with playoff fancies. If we take last season as a jumping-off point, Larsson played the 3rd most minutes of all the Anaheim Ducks defencemen, yet ranked 9th for ice time per game. Only Korbinian Holzer and Josh Mahura played fewer minutes per game.

Keep in mind that the Ducks seem pretty happy with their top 4 players and that the Ducks were near the bottom of the league in terms of goals allowed as well as shots on net allowed. Thus a great deal of improvement will need to be seen from the 3rd pairing if the Ducks are looking to bounce back with a strong defensive effort next season.

I suspect, at least at first, that Murray and Eakins will stick with the Ducks’ current group. They signed Kodie Curran as an experiment of sorts and have a few younger players on the books who they should at least consider continuing to play.

However, should Curran not pan out or the younger players remain inconsistent in their efforts and prove unreliable in an expanded role (increasing their time on ice to ~16-17 minutes per game), then I imagine Murray will make a move to bring in a veteran who he believes can consistently play that role. It wouldn’t be a shock to imagine a trade being made in the near future, shipping either Guhle or Mahura away in return for a steady veteran to play with Djoos on the third pairing. After all, they can’t all play, the expansion draft is coming up, and the Ducks have some needs that may need to be met at some stage down the line.

Turning those Scoring Woes Around

There’s no real way to beat around the bush in terms of scoring. The Ducks have been a below-average scoring team for a long while, to the point that their playoff runs of but a few years ago, primarily came on the backs of a strong defensive effort. That dearth of scoring has only reached a gloomier stage this previous season.

In some ways, the acquisition of Shattenkirk on defense offers up some hope with regards to revitalizing an anemic powerplay. His performance last season with Tampa was clearly stronger on the powerplay than it was at even strength. It will remain up to Dallas Eakins to make that work in Anaheim.

However, we can assume a slight uptick in production from the blue line should occur in that department. Similarly, it seems likely that a slight uptick in even-strength scoring could come about as a result of Shattenkirk’s smooth skating and handy puck distributions.

However, that single acquisition cannot lift a teams scoring from near the bottom of the league into the top half. It’s been mentioned before that the Anaheim Ducks forward group is one of the oldest in the league and one of the least productive. Last season the Ducks had a small fleet of 40-point scorers who flittered around the 65-game mark.

On a pro-rata basis, we’d be looking at potentially three high 40-point to low 50-point producers and a mid-40-point producer. These are nice numbers, yet they’re totals that are most often attributed to the supporting cast placed around the team’s stars, rather than the driving force of a team’s offense in their own rights. The fifth highest scorer, Ondrej Kase, is no longer on the team, having been traded at last seasons trade deadline, and the sixth-highest scorer, Sam Steel, scored most of his points alongside that traded player.

Thus, it should be expected that Murray may not be done remaking the team for next season. Certainly, there will be expectations that certain players will step up from last season’s step back. Troy Terry, Sam Steel, Max Jones, Maxime Comtois, Sonny Milano, and Danton Heinen, will all be asked to increase their scoring output. Though whether they are all part of the NHL team at one time is unlikely. There simply isn’t enough room for all of them, and Murray has highlighted that the rebuild is over and thus growing pains attributed to young players developing may not be acceptable any longer.

Thus, it’s worth mentioning that their futures are in Murray’s hands. Does he believe that the above-mentioned group will develop into consistent scorers on a nightly basis, at least enough to push the Anaheim Ducks into the middle part of the league? It’s worth noting here, that the Ducks sat 35-goals shy of the 15th placed Winnipeg Jets and 42-goals short of the 10th placed Las Vegas Knights team.

Bringing Derek Grant back as a free agent is not enough to bridge that gap, given he already finished the season as the Ducks 7th highest scorer. So how much rope will this young group get to develop their scoring acumen? Will they get significant game time in one particular role, or will they be routinely shuffled in and out of the team, and up and down the lineup, in short order?

It may seem silly to say, but relatively recent acquisition Daniel Sprong was often tasked with defensive assignments on the 4th line as well as scoring on the top line when he was sporadically moved in and out of the NHL team. It’s no way to develop consistency. Will we see more of the same?

How Do Things Lineup?

A further consideration is that after the Grant and Shattenkirk signing, the Ducks are out of cap space to work with. The upper limit this season is $81.5 million and the Ducks currently sit on $82.43 million, without a backup netminder signed. Ryan Kesler will very likely be moved to long-term injured reserve, which should free up some cap space, but it should be somewhat obvious that changes will be required.

Given that the Anaheim Ducks currently have 5/6ths of their defensive unit set for next season, the question could be made that a package of the Ducks prospects could be dealt for forward line help. They absolutely do not need players like Guhle, Larsson, and Mahura all sitting on the pine or being blocked from the NHL team and playing in the AHL. Similarly, up front, there isn’t enough room for each of the younger players to get NHL time.

If Murray truly has designs on a playoff team, he’ll want to find consistent performance up front. At this stage that typically means veteran players, as the Ducks don’t necessarily have young players who will enter the team and be consistently strong each night. Thus a lineup could look something like:

Rakell – Getzlaf – Milano

Heinen – Henrique – Silfverberg

XXX – Grant – XXX

Deslauriers – Backes – Rowney

It’s a very veteran group that should provide consistent play. Yet, it’s hard to imagine this group scoring with any type of meaning. The third line spots are open however, it’s hard to imagine anyone placing scoring wingers on a line with Derek Grant on purpose. With that said, Jones and Terry are two of the Ducks better defensive players and it would be of great benefit to infuse the forward group with at least a little youthful exuberance.

In a lot of ways, I simply do not see how Murray could look at this group and expect it to be a playoff-contending group as it currently sits. Milano has given them an infusion of speed, yet scores at only a slightly higher level than Troy Terry over his career. Henrique, Silfverberg, and Rakell are all who they are and have been relatively consistent these past few years.

Thus, the upside appears to be predicted from Heinen, Terry, and Jones. Heinen gave them a slightly better defensive presence than the outgoing Nick Ritchie, yet one 40+ point season in which he scored a lot of his points from secondary assists is asking a lot from the player moving into this season.

He certainly appears to be one of the most likely players to fill in the scoring void. Terry has long been hyped as a scorer in the NHL, despite his results not reflecting that and his skillset seemingly better used as a 3rd or 4th line “two-way” player. Jones, has never really been given a chance as a scorer, but he too is one that may be better suited to a supporting role.

Outside of this lineup, the Anaheim Ducks have a few (no longer) prospects who could contribute, yet their upside is uncertain. Steel has relatively comparable stats to Kasperi Kapanen in his early days, which isn’t an indication of the players individually, just an indication that there might be some upside to his game. The question is, however, where does he fit into the lineup? This question too can be raised regarding some of the other youthful players.

Is it the End of the Road for one of our Ducklings?

Nonetheless, given the acquisition of the veteran and that the Anaheim Ducks are currently in excess of the salary cap ceiling, is it plausible that we’ve seen the last of some of the once highly hyped ducklings?

Maxime Comtois for a long time was considered a lottery pick until he slipped into the second round due to injuries. Nonetheless, fans were high on his upside. He is, however, a relatively weak skater and unfortunately, that is a trait that doesn’t seem to fit the Ducks player acquisition thesis in recent times.

Newcomer, Sam Colangelo may be the only “poor” skater acquired since Comtois himself, and he theoretically plays a similar game, though on the opposite wing. Thus, can we at least consider that Comtois may no longer be required in the future?

Lundestrom was always destined to be a middle-six defensive forward at best, but his youth may be problematic in terms of consistency on those defensive assignments. It would appear that Murray would prefer the consistency of a veteran (Grant) over the variation seen in younger players.

Given Grant is signed for the next three seasons, is that more or less the end of the road for Lundestrom? It doesn’t necessarily mean he’s trade bait, but is he attractive enough to Seattle to be dazzled by his bright shiny first-round draft status in a one years time?

It’s tough to imagine what Murray might be thinking. However, one doesn’t often pay a combined $6 million for two bottom 6 pivots and sit your highly touted youths on the bench. It’s also worth noting that the Ducks are currently sitting over the cap ceiling with some players still to sign (eg a backup netminder). Given that, it would appear that some movement is forthcoming, just what that will look like is uncertain.

Copy Cat League

If we are to presume that the NHL is, at its heart, a copy cat league, then we should assume that Bob Murray is going to attempt to mimic the play style and makeup of one of the cup finalists. Prior to free agency, the Ducks were slightly younger on defense than Dallas but far younger than the aging Tampa team. Shattenkirk makes the Ducks just a little older and, given he was on that very Tampa team, adds maybe a little bit of Stanley Cup leadership.

More from Ducks News

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• Is Pierre-Luc Dubois on the cards for the rebuilding Anaheim Ducks?
• Making the case for the Anaheim Ducks to trade with the Edmonton Oilers
• Anaheim Ducks might benefit tremendously by trading John Gibson
• How close are the Anaheim Ducks to becoming contenders again?

In the forward grouping, the Anaheim Ducks were the 3rd oldest team in the league, and far older than both the Dallas and Tampa team. However, two of Dallas’s better players in the finals were their oldest players. I’m sure Murray would have loved to acquire one of them to add even more cup finals experience, however, Grant may be enough. After all, he was a top-10 scorer on the Ducks last season, having his highest-scoring career year. If he only has to replace one of the lower-scoring youth players, maybe the Anaheim Ducks can do enough to sneak up the standings.

Additionally, Dallas and Tampa had eleven and nine players on their teams, respectively, that they had drafted themselves. Assuming that of last year’s regulars, Getzlaf, Rakell, Terry, Jones, Steel, Fowler, Lindholm, Manson, Larsson, and Gibson all suit up for the Anaheim Ducks, they can say they fit into that range comfortably. With one of those forwards likely missing out due to the acquisition of Grant, the Ducks will fall exactly on 9 players, which is coincidentally the same number as the champion Lightning team.

It is an uncanny coincidence and one I’m sure Murray has put no thought whatsoever into. Yet, it’s hard to make a concrete direction out of their current group and the hypothesized playoff berth. Thus perhaps, it’s an avenue worth exploring.

Nonetheless, Murray cannot be finished yet, as he has at least a little salary to cut leading up to the new season. With the addition of a new defensive leader and the reacquisition of a familiar face, the phrase “same-same, but different,” comes to mind. We’ll just have to see what happens next.

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