Pacific Notes: Woodcroft, Klingberg, Perry
Although he failed to find a new role as a head coach in this summer’s coaching carousel, Jay Woodcroft will return to the NHL next season. According to Frank Seravalli of the Daily Faceoff, the Anaheim Ducks are expected to hire Woodcroft as an assistant coach to serve on Joel Quenneville‘s staff.
It’ll be a few days before the Ducks formalize Woodcroft’s hire. His previous contract with the Edmonton Oilers runs through July 1st, so an announcement should be coming then. Woodcroft hasn’t coached in the NHL since the 2023-24 season, when he was fired as the Oilers’ head coach on November 12th.
As valuable as the Ducks likely perceive Woodcroft’s previous head coaching experience, they likely targeted him to help improve the team’s offense. The Toronto, Ontario native coached Edmonton to a 79-41-13 record in 133 games (64.3% win percentage), while the team finished eighth in GF/G at the end of the 2021-22 season, and first in the league during the 2022-23 season.
Other notes from the Pacific Division:
- After a largely successful return to the NHL this past season with the Oilers, it doesn’t appear that defenseman John Klingberg will return to the team this summer. Speaking on the Chris Johnston Show, host Chris Johnston reported that Klingberg is likely to become an unrestricted free agent. That doesn’t necessarily mean he won’t return to Edmonton, but he may find more lucrative offers elsewhere. Although injuries limited his return during the regular season, Klingberg finished the postseason on a high note, scoring one goal and four points in 19 games with a +3 rating, averaging 19:08 of ice time per game.
- Unlike Klingberg, the same doesn’t appear to be true regarding veteran Corey Perry. In today’s episode of Sportsnet’s Around the NHL with Elliotte Friedman, a segment on Sportsnet 590, Friedman shares that Perry and the Oilers are working towards a new deal. Assuming a relatively cheap deal for Perry, there’s little to lose for Edmonton. The 40-year-old veteran is coming off his 20th NHL season, scoring 19 goals and 30 points in 81 regular-season contests, with another 10 goals and 14 points in 22 postseason games.
Flyers Acquire Trevor Zegras From Ducks
The Flyers are nearing a deal to acquire forward Trevor Zegras from the Ducks, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. Anaheim will receive center Ryan Poehling, the Blue Jackets’ 2025 second-round pick (No. 45 overall), and Philadelphia’s 2026 fourth-rounder in return, Friedman adds. The Flyers have since made the trade official.
That’s a relatively quick ascent from Friedman’s report under two hours ago that the Ducks were in deep talks with multiple clubs on a Zegras move. While it didn’t appear anything was particularly imminent at the time, that’s now changed.
While Zegras has spent the past two seasons mostly on the wing, he’ll presumably shift back to his natural center position in Philadelphia. The Flyers have been on the hunt for a young, established NHL center with a top-six projection for a while now. They were previously connected to pending Wild RFA Marco Rossi, but his cost uncertainty and desire for a long-term deal made those talks stall. Instead, they’ll opt for a player with a slightly riskier projection in Zegras, but land someone signed through next season at a cheaper cap hit than what a Rossi contract would have cost them.
Injuries have robbed Zegras of nearly half his potential workload over the past two seasons in Anaheim since signing a three-year, $17.25MM contract in 2023. He’s had just an 18-29–47 scoring line in 88 games during that time, but still averaged over 17 minutes per game and saw his defensive performance improve significantly this past season with positive relative possession numbers in less sheltered offensive deployment at even strength.
That offensive regression was still highly disappointing considering how Zegras burst onto the scene. In his first two full NHL campaigns, Zegras hit the 20-goal and 60-point marks on both occasions and finished as the Calder Trophy runner-up to Moritz Seider in 2022. It looked like he was fully set to hit on the upside the Ducks thought he had when selecting him ninth overall in 2019, but his subsequent injuries and contract stalemate two years ago threw that plan off course.
He now gets a fresh start in Philly for an acquisition cost that Flyers general manager Daniel Brière certainly won’t lose any sleep over. While Poehling was a high-end fourth-line piece for them, they have plenty of internal replacement candidates for that role and still have three second-round choices in this year’s draft after dealing away the Columbus pick.
While it’s an underwhelming return for the Ducks considering where his value and projection were two years ago, it’s presumably more than they could’ve gotten him had they cut bait following Zegras’ 15-point showing in just 31 games in 2023-24. They also gain $3.85MM in cap space and more roster flexibility among their top-nine forwards as they pursue a major free agent addition this summer.
Giving Zegras top-six minutes will allow names like Bobby Brink and Noah Cates to serve in more comfortable third-line minutes in Rick Tocchet‘s first season as head coach. Whether the high-ceiling playmaker gets deployed on a unit with 2023 No. 7 overall pick Matvei Michkov out of the gate remains to be seen, but his pickup suddenly offers Tocchet a much more offensively dynamic center-winger duo than he could have otherwise constructed.
While Zegras is entering the final year of his contract, he’ll be a restricted free agent in 2026 and still has another year of team control left after that. Swapping out Poehling for Zegras does drop the Flyers to a still-comfortable $15.1MM in available cap space with notable RFAs Jakob Pelletier and Cameron York still to sign and two other roster spots to fill, per PuckPedia.
Poehling actually had a standout offensive showing in 2024-25, posting a career-best 12-19–31 scoring line in 68 games while averaging 13:53 per game. He was nonetheless expendable with Cates recently receiving an extension and 2024 first-rounder Jett Luchanko pushing for an NHL job next year. He also shot at a 16.9% rate that will presumably regress in Anaheim.
He’s still a solid bottom-six pickup for the Ducks, even if the futures they’re receiving are underwhelming. He’s a 2026 UFA at a cap hit of just $1.9MM and could be flipped at the deadline for a decent return if things don’t pan out the way Anaheim hopes they will next year. He’s a short-term upgrade down the middle over a name like pending RFA Isac Lundeström and could push him or someone like Ryan Strome to a spot on the wing.
Image courtesy of Jeff Curry-Imagn Images.
Trevor Zegras Trade Talks Gaining Momentum
The likelihood of a change of scenery for Ducks forward Trevor Zegras during draft week is growing, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports Monday. Anaheim is in “significant discussions” with multiple teams on a trade for the 24-year-old, and it appears one of those talks will get across the finish line before or during the draft on Friday and Saturday.
Zegras’ name has popped up in trade rumors and speculation ever since semi-contentious contract negotiations upon reaching restricted free agency in 2023. He ended up settling for a three-year, $17.25MM contract off the back of two straight 60-point seasons, carrying what looked like a team-friendly cap hit of $5.75MM at the time while also giving the Ducks, who were lukewarm on Zegras’ ceiling as a first-line piece on a contending team, the flexibility of not making a long-term commitment.
Those talks resulted in Zegras missing a good portion of training camp, an important one with a new head coach in Greg Cronin. The ensuing 2023-24 campaign was nightmarish. He had just two points through his first 12 games before a lower-body injury took him out of the lineup for 20 games. He only returned for a few weeks before requiring ankle surgery. He was limited to a 6-9–15 scoring line in 31 appearances on the year, seeing his points per game decline from 0.80 to 0.48 while averaging 1:45 less per game than he did in 2022-23.
Injuries continued to plague Zegras this past season, limiting him to 57 games. He at least rebounded somewhat offensively, posting 12 goals and 32 points, but that still doesn’t sniff the 60-point ceiling he demonstrated earlier in his career. The 24-year-old still averaged around 17 minutes per game, was deployed almost exclusively on the wing after starting his career as a center, but was notably trusted by Cronin in some tougher defensive matchups without a meaningful hit to his possession impacts. That was a promising sign for the Ducks moving forward, but after making a coaching change and looking to make a significant splash in free agency this summer, Zegras’ future in a top-six role in Anaheim remains cloudy.
The Ducks weren’t realistically going to trade Zegras last summer, when he had two years left on his deal and his trade value was at a low point. His value has now rebounded somewhat after his improved two-way showing in 2024-25, and there are likely teams out there that still view him as having everyday second-line upside, whether at center or on the wing. If it’s the former, he’ll at least need to be paired with a winger who’s competent in the faceoff circle. Zegras has won only 40.1% of draws over his five-year NHL career and won a career-low 36.6% of them in 2024-25.
Anaheim, which drafted Zegras ninth overall in 2019, will presumably look for at least a first-round pick or equivalent asset in return. Considering the dearth of impact center pickups in free agency or on the trade market aside from names like Mikael Granlund, Marco Rossi, and John Tavares, they should be able to get it.
The Canadiens nearly landed Zegras at the 2024 draft and, since they’re still looking for a long-term solution as their No. 2 center behind Nick Suzuki, should be expected to pursue him again here. Teams like the Blackhawks, Canucks, Flyers, Kraken, Penguins, and Sabres who have shown interest in acquiring Rossi from the Wild are also likely keeping tabs on Zegras as a fallback option.
Ducks Interested In Tavares, Boeser As Marner Backup
While the Anaheim Ducks may be prepared to offer pending free agent Mitch Marner a record-breaking offer, the team is interested in several other additions if Marner signs elsewhere. This list includes veterans John Tavares and Brock Boeser, per The Fourth Period.
Anaheim holds more than $30MM in cap space (per PuckPedia), and ownership recently discussed the desire to build a Stanley Cup-caliber team as soon as possible, setting off speculation that they’ll aggressively pursue Marner. Yet with only one winner in that sweepstakes, the Ducks are also eyeing pending free agents like Tavares and Boeser to bolster their offense.
While Marner appears almost certain to leave Toronto, Tavares remains optimistic about re-signing with the Leafs. Still, at 36, he may view Anaheim’s cap-rich, rebuilding opportunity as perhaps his final shot at a big payday. After posting 38 goals last season (his most since the 2018-19 season), Tavares proved he still has a lot left in the tank. Although his next contract won’t match his current $11MM AAV, Tavares could still land a significant multi‑year deal if he tests the open market.
Anaheim is also among a host of teams reportedly tied to Boeser. As David Pagnotta of the Fourth Period reported, Boeser is a “longshot” to return to Vancouver, setting the stage for the 28-year-old sniper to hit the open market. While the interest in Boeser’s services appears lengthy, the type of deal he’ll command is a bit murkier than other pending free agents. Unlike Tavares, Boeser didn’t set the world on fire in his contract year. His goal total dropped from 40 during the 2023-24 season to just 25 last season. His points also fell by 23, and his plus/minus dropped from plus-23 to minus-25 year over year. Still, Boeser posted his sixth career season with at least 23 goals and remains on the right side of 30. The limited options in this free agent class also work to his advantage.
Heeding the turnaround desire from ownership, the Ducks have already had a busy offseason, including the hire of Joel Quenneville as head coach, trading for veteran forward Chris Kreider, and resigning pending restricted free agent Nikita Nesterenko. The team also faces a tough decision regarding goalie John Gibson, who has long been rumored to be on the trade block. Through it all, it’s expected that the Ducks will seek to add offensive firepower in free agency, with Tavares and/or Boeser potentially serving as solid backup options if they miss out on Marner.
Ducks Re-Sign Nikita Nesterenko To Two-Year Deal
The Ducks announced yesterday that they’ve extended left winger Nikita Nesterenko on a two-year contract. He was set to become a restricted free agent but will stay with the Ducks, receiving a one-way commitment worth $775K in 2025-26 and $800K in 2026-27 in the process, according to PuckPedia. He’ll carry a cap hit of $787.5K as a result.
Nesterenko, 24 in September, was drafted by the Wild back in 2019. The sixth-rounder had his signing rights sent to Anaheim in the 2023 John Klingberg deadline trade. He signed his entry-level contract days later after completing his junior season at Boston College.
A two-way forward with good skating ability and historically able to shoulder minutes at center, Nesterenko has taken strides over his two full minor-league campaigns. He notched a 16-21–37 scoring line in 70 games for AHL San Diego in his first full professional season in 2023-24, good for 0.53 points per game. He upped his production to 0.68 points per game here in 2024-25, notching a 13-21–34 line in 50 games. He’s got a cumulative plus-seven rating as well while leveraging his 6’2″, 183-lb frame to play a decently physical game.
That well-rounded performance has led the Ducks to give Nesterenko multiple NHL call-ups over the past couple of years. After skating in nine games with Anaheim to finish off the 2022-23 season post-ELC, he suited up three times for them last year before making a career-high 20 NHL appearances here in 2024-25. He didn’t look out of place at all as a serviceable fourth-line winger, averaging 10:19 per game while scoring four goals and two assists with a minus-four rating. He averaged a shot on goal per game, finished at a likely unsustainable but still intriguing 20% clip, and posted reasonably decent possession numbers in defensively skewed deployment.
His new deal comes in considerably lower than the $917,831 qualifying offer he was eligible for, but that would have only been for one year with a two-way structure. He swaps out the higher one-year earning ceiling for added financial protection if he’s assigned to the minors.
Nesterenko will undoubtedly be in the conversation for an opening-night job, especially since he becomes waiver-eligible for the first time next season. He’ll be a restricted free agent upon expiry in 2027 and will be owed a qualifying offer of $840K.
Is This The Year The Ducks Finally Trade John Gibson?
For Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson, the trade rumors have persisted for years as the team has undergone a deep rebuild. Gibson was once among the NHL’s elite netminders but hasn’t been part of the upper echelon of goaltenders for the past half-decade despite being compensated like one. The Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, native has two years left on his contract with a $6.4MM cap hit, which has long been an obstacle to finding Gibson a new home. Gibson’s name was brought up frequently before the trade deadline, but a weak market for the 31-year-old forced the Ducks to retain him, which begs the question: Will the Ducks trade Gibson this summer?
Anaheim has been out of the playoff picture since 2018 and has experienced a slow turnaround in its rebuild, which appears to be stuck. Gibson played well for the Ducks through some of the early years of the rebuild, which did little to help a team that just wasn’t very good. In recent years, Anaheim has been waiting for a second wave of its prospects to take the next step; however, that just hasn’t been the case, and general manager Pat Verbeek has started to make moves to insulate the younger players with veteran experience. Verbeek added defenseman Jacob Trouba last season and recently added forward Chris Kreider, who should provide veteran leadership to some of the younger Ducks.
These moves, coupled with Anaheim hoping to contend for a playoff spot, would lead one to believe that the Ducks keep Gibson in hopes he can turn back the clock to help the team reach the postseason once again after a seven-year absence. He was the better of their two goaltenders last season (albeit in limited action) and could be an essential piece for the team if they want to make some noise in the Western Conference.
Anaheim has what many believe is the heir apparent to Gibson in netminder Lukas Dostal, who is an RFA this summer and will be looking for a sizable raise on the $812.5K he made last season. Dostal certainly has a lot of upside and was good this season behind a weak Ducks team, registering a 14.3 goals saved above expected (as per Money Puck) and a 23-23-7 record. The issue with Dostal is that he hasn’t played meaningful hockey in the NHL, and there is no certainty he could hold up to the scrutiny if the Ducks find themselves in the hunt for a playoff spot late in the season. Gibson hasn’t played meaningful hockey in nearly a decade, but he has played some big games early in his career. If Anaheim opted to hang onto Gibson, they could let him play out his contract over the next two years before making a long-term decision on Dostal and whether he is the franchise’s goaltender of the future. Anaheim still has plenty of cap space with over $32MM available (as per Puck Pedia) and doesn’t have a financial reason to move him at this time. This could also afford them the ability to wait teams out and hope that someone panics and forces a trade that meets Anaheim’s asking price.
One other caveat with Gibson is that he has some trade protection in the form of a 10-team no-trade list, and he has some say over where he goes. Gibson has reportedly been willing to waive his no-trade in the past for specific teams, so it’s not likely to be a major hindrance, but it could come up if one of the teams interested in his services is on that no-trade list.
On the flip side of the coin, the goaltending market this summer is weak; there are no starters available in free agency and the netminders available on the trade market come with massive warts in their game and, in some cases (Philipp Grubauer), they might not even be NHL goaltenders anymore. Anaheim could likely place Gibson on the trade block, and he would instantly jump to the top of the list of available goaltenders, which could allow Anaheim to address other deficiencies in their roster while shedding Gibson’s cap hit.
Gibson has been linked in the past to the Carolina Hurricanes on several occasions, and they would hardly be the only suitor if Anaheim is serious about moving him. The Edmonton Oilers have also been rumored to have interest, and given the way goaltending has failed them in the two previous postseasons, it’s easy to understand why.
There would be no shortage of suitors given the state of the goaltending in Buffalo, Philadelphia, Columbus and Detroit, and there are not many options unless teams want to take a gamble on Pittsburgh Penguins netminder Tristan Jarry, who is a two-time all-star but hasn’t looked like one in quite some time. Gibson comes with his question marks, but as far as goaltenders with a track record, he is the best option, even if that track record came in the last decade.
Anaheim has also faced this distraction within the team since entering a rebuild around 2020, and Gibson began voicing his frustrations with the loss shortly thereafter. He continued to voice his displeasure the following season as the team’s struggles continued, and eventually his play began to drop off behind a weak defence. The fact that Gibson’s disillusionment goes back nearly half a decade, it’s fair to wonder if the Ducks would like to put a bad situation behind them, with the return in a trade being a secondary concern.
Lastly, Gibson was excellent in 29 games last season, and given the way the previous five years have gone as a whole, he might not ever post those types of numbers again. Gibson registered 15.3 goals saved above expected last season and won’t likely replicate that number again in Anaheim. This type of play is what has opened the door to potentially moving Gibson, and the time to sell might never be better for the Ducks and for Gibson, who would most certainly benefit from a fresh start in a new city.
Photo by Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
Ducks Sign Lucas Pettersson To Entry-Level Contract
The Anaheim Ducks have signed 2024 second-round draft pick Lucas Pettersson to a three-year, entry-level contract. Pettersson split his season between Sweden’s SHL and HockeyAllsvenskan, and is expected to return to the SHL’s MoDo Hockey next year.
Pettersson had a quiet introduction to the pro flight. He earned a call-up to the SHL after netting eight points in eight games in Sweden’s U20 league – but struggled to find a clear groove in a fourth-line SHL role. Recognizing the struggles following numerous lineup changes, MoDo opted to send Pettersson to the HockeyAllsvenskan (HA) for the entirety of January. Having his feet under him launched Pettersson’s performance. He scored a hat trick in his first game on assignment, then proceeded to net 14 points in 12 HA games throughout January and early February.
Pettersson followed his hot streak in the HA with a quartet of international friendlies with Sweden’s U20 club. He scored three points in the four games, but didn’t stay lit when he returned to league play in mid-February. By the time he rediscovered his pace – with four points in three HA games to end February – MoDo opted to bring the dynamic forward back to the top flight.
When all was said and done, Pettersson ended his season with 19 points in 26 HA games, one assist in 29 SHL games, and eight points in eight J20 (U20) games. His 0.73 point-per-game scoring pace in the HA fell just behind 2025 NHL Draft stars Anton Frondell (0.86) and Victor Eklund (0.74) on the league’s U19 leaderboards. The trio posted the highest scoring paces since Noah Ostlund (0.70, 2022-23), Lucas Elvenes (0.95, 2017-18), and Elias Pettersson (0.95, 2016-17).
Lucas Pettersson earned high-end consideration for much of the 2024 draft season. He earned a second-round bid after posting 27 goals and 57 points in 44 J20 games, though some outlets had him ranked as high as an early-20s talent. He’s a flashy, agile forward with strong puck-skills and sharp offensive instinct. Those traits will need to become consistent and refined as he eyes a move to North America, but another year in the SHL could go far in preparing Pettersson to join an often Swede-friendly Ducks lineup.
Cutter Gauthier Earns All-Rookie Nod
F Cutter Gauthier (Ducks) – Gauthier finished with the fewest vote totals for an All-Rookie nod with 79 out of a potential 187. Still, it was enough to earn third place among forwards. Despite being streaky, Gauthier finished fifth in scoring on the Ducks with 20 goals and 44 points in 82 games. Gauthier’s offensive output should improve with increased ice time during the 2025-26 season, as he finished his rookie campaign averaging slightly above 14 minutes a night.
Ducks Acquire Chris Kreider From Rangers
June 12: Both teams have made the trade official. The Ducks receive Kreider and their own 2025 fourth-round pick (No. 104), which they sent to the Rangers in the Trouba deal, while the Rangers receive the Maple Leafs’ 2025 third-round pick (No. 89), which the Ducks had acquired in last season’s Ilya Lyubushkin trade.
June 11: While the deal is agreed to in principle, Anaheim is on Kreider’s no-trade list, according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic. The trade will remain in limbo until the Rangers gain clarity on whether he’s willing to waive his trade protection to facilitate the deal.
June 10: The Ducks and Rangers are in “advanced discussions” on a trade that would send winger Chris Kreider to Anaheim, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports Tuesday. New York is slated to receive a prospect and a pick in return, according to Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA TODAY Sports. The Rangers are not retaining salary on Kreider, who is signed through 2026-27 at a $6.5MM cap hit, if the deal gets across the finish line. Center Carey Terrance will be the prospect heading to New York if the deal formalizes, which isn’t expected to happen until Wednesday morning at the earliest, Seravalli later added.
Kreider, 34, has spent the entirety of his 13-year NHL career in New York. They nabbed him 19th overall in the 2009 draft – a solid piece of work considering he’d be a unanimous top-10 choice in a redraft – and has hit the 20-goal mark in 10 of his 12 full seasons with the club.
The 6’3″, 230-lb lefty had been incredibly effective, especially in recent years, as the Rangers exited their accelerated retool during the late 2010s. While always a consistent scoring threat, he erupted for a career-high 52 snipes and 77 points in 81 games in the 2021-22 campaign, leading them in scoring as the Blueshirts had their first 50-win season in seven years and firmly restablished themselves as contenders atop the Eastern Conference.
Kreider hasn’t hit 50 again, nor did anyone expect him to. However, he’s still been incredibly effective as New York’s second-line left-winger behind Artemi Panarin, scoring 75 goals and 129 points in 161 regular-season games across the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, the latter of which resulted in a Presidents’ Trophy for the Rangers. He’s also been downright dominant in the club’s last three playoff appearances, scoring 24 goals in 43 games in the 2022, 2023, and 2024 postseasons.
This season was an obviously disastrous campaign for the Rangers, who missed the playoffs entirely and saw a 29-point drop in the standings. That included Kreider, who had his most injury-plagued season since pre-pandemic. A back injury, a hand injury that may have resulted in offseason surgery, and what he later revealed to be a bout of vertigo limited him to 68 games. When healthy, his production cratered. While never a playmaker by any stretch, Kreider still had just eight assists in addition to his 22 goals, giving him 30 points on the year.
That worked out to 0.44 points per game, the worst rate of his career, excluding a 23-game trial in 2012-13. His 0.32 goals per game was far closer to his career median and just a few ticks south of his career average, though. Considering he shot at 14.5%, 0.6% worse than his 15.1% career average, there’s reasonable hope for him to get back to 30 goals again next season for Anaheim, especially if he gels well with a much younger group of centers in Orange County.
Rangers general manager Chris Drury, who had been shopping Kreider as far back as the Rangers’ early-season slide last November, wasn’t going to wait to see if the aging winger would rebound and be worth his cap hit next season. While tough to swallow for a lifelong Ranger, it’s an understandable viewpoint. With limited salary cap flexibility this summer to retool his roster and higher-paid players having no-movement clauses, Kreider, who only has a 15-team no-trade clause, was always the most likely candidate to be moved this offseason to free up considerable spending money.
It’s presumably not how Kreider, whose 326 career goals rank third in Rangers franchise history behind Rod Gilbert (406) and Jean Ratelle (336), wanted his time in New York to end. It’s also an eerily familiar move. Former captain Jacob Trouba was made available for trade at the same time as Kreider and could now welcome his ex-teammate to Anaheim after the Ducks took him on, also with no retained money, mid-season.
It’s not yet clear where Kreider could fit into the Ducks’ left-wing depth chart, which includes Cutter Gauthier, former Rangers teammate Frank Vatrano, and now Trevor Zegras after the natural center was shifted away from the middle of the ice. Zegras is entering the final year of his contract and has been the subject of trade rumors for a few years now, while Vatrano is kicking off a three-year extension but has some experience playing the right side. If he shuffles over, that would make more room for Kreider to split top-six LW duties with the 21-year-old Gauthier, who’s coming off a 20-goal, 44-point rookie season.
The Rangers are at least slated to land a center prospect with moderate upside in Terrance. Anaheim selected the 20-year-old in the second round of the 2023 draft. He was the No. 10 prospect in their system, as opined by Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, amid a strong season for OHL Erie, where he was promoted to captain and finished the year with a 20-19–39 scoring line in 45 games. His season ended in February after a hit into the boards sent him to the hospital, although he was discharged within 24 hours. He is under contract – Anaheim signed him to his entry-level deal in April. Otherwise, they would have lost his signing rights on June 1.
Image courtesy of Danny Wild-Imagn Images.
Larry Brooks of the New York Post was first to report Kreider had waived his modified no-trade clause. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff was first to report the details of the draft pick swap.
Ducks May Offer Record-Breaking AAV For Mitch Marner
Many have speculated that the Ducks will be a major player in the Mitch Marner sweepstakes. The All-Star winger is nearly guaranteed to hit the open market on July 1, and Anaheim has the third-most cap space in the league early in the offseason, according to PuckPedia.
That flexibility, plus a mandate from ownership to contend for a playoff spot next season, means they could offer Marner the most lucrative seven-year offer of any club this summer. James Mirtle of The Athletic reports Monday they’re considering offering him an AAV that would push north of the $14MM mark, making him the league’s highest-paid player starting next season.
Whether Marner is considering teams that aren’t currently established playoff contenders remains to be seen. Still, it’s hard to imagine any team, aside from the Blue Jackets and their $40.4MM in cap space, being willing to enter that range. Even an offer matching, not exceeding, Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl‘s league-high $14MM cap hit comes in well north of his projected market value of just a shade under $13MM, according to AFP Analytics.
There will naturally be sticker shock when it comes to many deals this summer, with an 8.5% increase in the salary cap’s Upper Limit from $88MM to $95.5MM. Draisaitl’s mega-extension, which costs 14.66% of the cap when it starts next season, would be equivalent to a $12.9MM AAV had it gone into effect last year.
Any conversation about Marner pushing into the $14MM tier per season will result in direct comparisons between him and Draisaitl, especially with the latter’s extension being signed under a year ago and kicking in at the same time Marner’s next deal will. That’s where things will get hairy for Anaheim regarding public perception of the contract, even if acquiring a dynamic offensive threat of Marner’s caliber is a crucial long-term step in helping them return to relevance.
Draisaitl is one year Marner’s senior and had a two-year head start on him in beginning his NHL career, but the former wasn’t immediately thrust into top-six minutes like Marner was. Even still, Draisaitl’s career points per game rate of 1.21 dwarfs that of Marner’s 1.13.
The discrepancy between the two increases when putting them on equal footing regarding sample size. Draisaitl’s points-per-game rate increases to 1.32 from the beginning of Marner’s career in 2016-17. Over the past three seasons, Draisaitl has operated at a 120-point pace per 82 games compared to Marner’s 102.
The soon-to-be-former Maple Leafs winger has historically been a far more valuable player defensively than Draisaitl, but that changed this season, at least in terms of public perception. Draisaitl came one place ahead of Marner in Selke Trophy voting after posting career-best possession numbers (58.8 CF%, 61.2 xGF%) at even strength. While playoff production has far less impact on contract value, Draisaitl is in a different tier, with a 1.49 career points per game rate in the postseason compared to Marner’s 0.9.
Combine all that with Draisaitl playing a more traditionally valuable position, and it’s hard to imagine many other teams willing to match a $14MM offer for Marner if the Ducks make it, even if they technically have the resources to do so. Suppose he enters July 1 open-minded about his next destination. That discrepancy between Anaheim’s offer and whatever the second-best one is for him financially could be enough to tip the scales in the Ducks’ favor.