Anaheim Ducks Mailbag: Ryan Getzlaf’s Retirement Plans

Heading into the 2020-21 season, we all have questions about the Anaheim Ducks. You asked, so we answered.

With the uncertainty of the 2020-21 season, many questions have gone unanswered. Even more so for Anaheim Ducks fans. Bob Murray has made his expectations for the season clear; he wants his team to compete. However, his actions seem to reflect the exact opposite. This has left fans both puzzled and frustrated. We have more questions than we can count, with little to no answers.

It has been a while since we have done a mailbag here at Pucks of a Feather, but we knew you would have questions and we, as always, have a plethora of opinions at the ready. You asked, and now we are answering.

1. Will Ryan Getzlaf retire with the Anaheim Ducks?

Ben Thomasian: Yeah, probably. But, I could see him leave for a season before coming back to retire.

Garrett Brown: This feels like it could be a touchy subject. For many years now, Ryan Getzlaf has been at the forefront of Anaheim Ducks hockey, and fans may be reluctant to let him go. With players of his caliber and historically long tenure (he could feasibly get to the top 20 of games played with a single franchise after two more seasons), there are two main reasons for a player to part ways.

First, they could become a salary-cap casualty (see Corey Perry). In this instance, a player may demand long term when signing a contract in their prime, but by the end of the deal, it has become an anchor to a team based on the player’s diminishing return. Buyouts or lopsided trades will soon follow.

The second possibility is that after spending years and years chasing the illustrious Stanley Cup, a player makes the difficult decision to leave, instead of spending the twilight of their career on a contending team (see Joe Thornton or Ray Bourque). Because Ryan Getzlaf doesn’t fit this bill on either end, I am going to guess that he will finish his career with the Ducks.

Currently; yes, his salary does hurt the Ducks relative to his production. However, his contract is up next year and the next contract he signs will be considerably smaller, and I believe that Bob Murray will want to bring back a cup-winning captain who is capable of mentoring countless young Ducks.

Brad Senecal: Yes. Now I do believe that a detour may occur at some point, as Getzlaf is entering the final year of his contract term. I mentioned in my previous article if the Anaheim Ducks are on the outside of the playoff race once the trade deadline comes, I believe Murray would be crazy not to move the captain.

Getzlaf has played for a long time, and I believe he would love to make one more run for a Stanley Cup. There are a ton of teams that could use a player like Getzlaf to put their team over the top, though the Ducks would have to retain salary, I feel that they would still be able to receive a fair compensation.

However I do not believe Getzlaf is ready to retire for a couple more years, and if he were to leave at the deadline and potentially win the cup, he will return to Anaheim to finish his career, similar to Patrick Marleau (barring another trade this year of course).

Ciara Durant: Yes. There is no doubt in my mind that Ryan Getzlaf will retire with the Anaheim Ducks. Ryan Getzlaf is the Anaheim Ducks. Every pinnacle the franchise has reached has been under the tutelage of everyone’s favorite chicken coop building, bald-headed, Dadslaf. Getzy not retiring with the Ducks would be an even bigger travesty than Paul Kariya, and possibly Corey Perry, not retiring with the organization.

Now, I think the more important question is: will Ryan Getzlaf spend his entire career in Anaheim? And that is a subject, much like the situation with Pears, that is painful to talk about. With all the rumors surrounding our Captain the last two seasons, it would not be a surprise to me if Bob Murray offered him the chance to play elsewhere prior to retiring for the chance at another Cup.

His contract is quite expensive, and while he is off the books after next season, Murray could rake in quite a decent asset or two by trading Getzy at the Trade Deadline. I doubt the Ducks actually pull the trigger, but I also didn’t think they’d actually buyout Corey Perry. Nevertheless, Getzlaf will retire as a Duck. I’m sure fans would rather burn down Honda Center before they let him retire in something other than a Ducks jersey.