Anaheim Ducks: Moves Bob Murray Could Make During Offseason
By Brad Senecal
This offseason should be one of the more eventful in recent years, with both the shortened season and the introduction of the Seattle Kraken. What are some moves Bob Murray could make to move the Anaheim Ducks in a different direction?
With the first round of the NHL playoffs coming to an end, more teams are shifting their focus from the play on the ice to working on making their organizations better. The Ducks obviously have been focused on the latter for a while now, missing the playoffs for the third straight year while finishing second last in the NHL standings.
The Ducks joined the other 14 non-playoff teams (excluding Arizona), as well as the newly minted Seattle Kraken, for the 2021 NHL Draft Lottery. While NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly called out the teams in the order of where they would be drafted, no change came from the order of where the team finished.
Of course to the sorrow of all Anaheim Ducks fans, they ended up being the sole loser of the draft lottery, falling one spot to the third overall pick, as the Kraken ended up moving to the second overall selection.
While some fans have voiced their displeasure with losing out on the lottery, the way the upcoming draft looks, having a top-five pick will be a real opportunity to land a difference-maker. With the Ducks now knowing where they will be selecting in the draft, it is a good time to look at how the team’s offseason will go. Our team at Pucks of a Feather will go into depth on our predictions and ideas for what direction Bob Murray and co. can take this team.
In this article, each member will discuss: who we believe the team will select at the #3 overall pick, who they could lose to Seattle in the expansion draft, one trade Bob Murray could pursue, and one free agent the team should bring in.
The Anaheim Ducks are in an interesting spot as they are a team that just finished next to last in the league with a handful of important impending free agents. They are also entering the offseason with a fair amount of cap space, as Ryan Getzlaf‘s $8.25M salary comes off the books. One thing is certain though, the Ducks drastically need to set their direction for the future, and here is how our team sees the offseason playing out.