While the dust has settled on the Leo Carlsson contract saga and Anaheim Ducks GM Pat Verbeek presumably continues to hammer away at Cutter Gauthier's soul (contract extension), we have a brief reprieve in the schedule as the summer months are in full swing. With that in mind and given the context of recent events, we pose this simple question; what if Verbeek was never hired as the GM of the Ducks? What would the team look like today and would they better or worse off?
The young core would remain intact
In large part due to brutal contract negations that subsequently led to poor performances, the trio of Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale, and Mason McTavish could conceivably be with the Ducks still, if not for Verbeek. A Ducks center depth combination featuring a one-two punch of Carlsson and Zegras would be far more tantalizing than the Carlsson and Mikael Granlund lineup of today. While McTavish still might not develop into that power center the Ducks envisioned, he would almost certainly help the offense, especially on the powerplay. With the exodus of the veteran defenseman on the right side, Drysdale would slot in nicely on the top pair with Jackson LaCombe, giving the Ducks a true puck-mover for LaCombe to play off of.
No Joel Quenneville or Greg Cronin
Verbeek was one of the biggest advocates in campaigning for Quenneville to become the head coach of the Ducks. And while the team definitely saw a vast improvement in the on-ice performance, as compared to seasons past, the hiring was and still is not without its complications. But if no Quenneville, that also would mean no Greg Cronin either, which would be a boon. Cronin definitely stifled the development of Zegras and McTavish in their earlier seasons with the Ducks and arguably did more harm than good, by favoring veteran players over the supposed next young core. Dallas Eakins got the short end of the stick during the Ducks tear down phase, but a like-minded coach, such as Jay Woodcroft as he currently on the Anaheim bench, would have been a better alternative to the Cronin era.
But no Gauthier either...
In our theoretical universe, if the Ducks kept Drysdale around however, Gauthier would almost certainly not be part of Anaheim's top six today. For all of his warts, Verbeek at least had a massive win with the Drysdale and Gauthier swap with the Philadelphia Flyers. 40+ goal scorers don't grow on trees and as good as Zegras and McTavish would be, neither of them would be able to consistently find the back of the net like Gauthier.
Or Carlsson, or Sennecke
The consensus heading into the 2023 NHL draft was Adam Fantilli would be selected with the number two pick, which belonged to the Ducks. Verbeek and his staff, sort of, bucked expectations when they drafted Carlsson at second overall instead. Massive contract notwithstanding, it appears that Verbeek made the right selection, as Carlsson took a huge step forward and became the crown jewel for a Ducks franchise that was wallowing in the bottom of the standings for years. Fantilli and the Blue Jackets, on the other hand, have yet to take that next leap up from being a bubble playoff team.
Without Verbeek at the helm though, the Ducks would probably not have Beckett Senecke on the team either. Sennecke and Ducks fans were surprised when Anaheim selected the winger 3rd overall in the 2024 NHL draft, as he was projected to go much later. Flash forwards a couple years and not only has Sennecke made himself a regular top six contributor with the Ducks but was also nominated as a Calder Trophy Finalist.
Which version of the Ducks would be better?
In the real-world scenario, the Ducks are led by a young core of Carlsson, Sennecke, LaCombe, and hopefully Gauthier. We have concrete evidence that this version of the Ducks can be successful, as not only did they exceed expectations by making the playoffs, but the Ducks also did some damage by sending the Edmonton Oilers into another existential crisis and pushing the Vegas Golden Knights further than any other Western Conference team. While recent events will almost certainly hamstring the team in the near future, the Ducks have proof of concept in the young core Verbeek, and the coaching staff have decided to build around.
In our alternate universe, it would be nice to see Zegras on the ice with Carlsson again. While McTavish and Drysdale would be great complimentary pieces, neither of them possesses the same kind of upside that Gauthier or Sennecke do now. The Ducks would be a fun and exciting young team to watch, but it would be doubtful that that combination of players could carry the team into a postseason berth. Minus better coaching, we've already seen a similar iteration to these Ducks and that lineup was not nearly as successful as the real-world version.
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