- The Ducks have invited winger Joey Larson to their upcoming development camp, reports Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal (Twitter link). The 23-year-old had a strong sophomore year at Michigan State this season, leading the Spartans in goals with 16 while adding 16 helpers in 38 games.
Ducks Rumors
Ducks Sign Rodwin Dionicio To Entry-Level Contract
The Anaheim Ducks have signed defense prospect Rodwin Dionicio to a three-year entry-level contract set to begin next season. Dionicio previously signed a three-year contract with Biel-Bienne of Switzerland’s National League, though he’ll now stay in North America, having earned the first NHL contract of his career.
Dionicio recently wrapped up his third season in the OHL, where he ranked third among all defenders with 73 points in 60 games. It was an electric season, largely thanks to Dionicio being dealt to the Saginaw Spirit at the OHL Trade Deadline. He formed a formidable duo with OHL ’Defenseman of the Year’ Zayne Parekh – a top 2024 Draft prospect who led defensemen scoring with 96 points in 66 games. Saginaw is now one of the four teams competing in the upcoming 2024 Memorial Cup and could earn an edge over their championship-winning competition thanks to the offensive upside of their defensemen.
Dionicio totaled 154 points through 167 games in the OHL, the 16th-highest point-per-game pace of any OHL defender since 2010. But his strong scoring hasn’t kept Dionicio from criticism. He’s been highly scrutinized throughout his OHL career, with many pointing out concerns about his skating mechanics, defensive positioning, and ability to create outside of his teammates. Dionicio went undrafted in the 2022 Draft in part because of those critiques, though a strong 2022-23 season and 2023 World Juniors performance were enough for Anaheim to draft him in the fifth round of the 2023 Draft.
The critiques have made it hard to gauge just how high Dionicio’s upside could be, though his 17 points in 17 playoff games this season speak to his ability to perform in the clutch. An NHL contract will offer Dionicio with the perfect opportunity to show just how strong of a player he can be. He’ll likely move to the AHL next season, where he’ll join a list of strong Ducks prospects, including defenders Tristan Luneau, Noah Warren, and Tyson Hinds.
NHL-Affiliated Prospects Playing In 2024 Memorial Cup
The field for the 2024 Memorial Cup, the top club tournament in junior hockey, is set. The QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltigeurs, the OHL’s London Knights and the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors all swept their respective league championship series within the last two days to advance to the CHL championship tournament, joining the host Saginaw Spirit of the OHL.
This year marks the first Memorial Cup held in the United States since 1998, which was hosted by the WHL’s Spokane Chiefs. The Spirit will attempt to become the first U.S.-based team to win since the Chiefs in 2008, and they have a strong chance. They’re stronger than a typical host team, finishing second in the league in the regular season with a 50-16-2 record and trailing London by just two points. They were eliminated by London in six games in the Western Conference Final.
The Knights lead the way with 10 NHL-affiliated prospects on their roster, including two first-round picks in Flyers defenseman Oliver Bonk and Maple Leafs forward Easton Cowan. The latter was named the OHL playoffs MVP after leading the Knights in scoring with 10 goals, 24 assists and 34 points in just 18 games. He had 15 points in four games in their championship sweep over the Oshawa Generals.
If you’re looking for some non-Stanley Cup Playoff hockey to watch, check to see if your favorite NHL team has prospects suiting up in the tournament, which begins May 24:
Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL champion)
D Mikaël Diotte (Devils, free agent signing)
RW Ethan Gauthier (Lightning, 2023, 37th overall)
RW Alexis Gendron (Flyers, 2022, 220th overall)
D Vsevolod Komarov (Sabres, 2022, 134th overall)
NHL Utah 2022 first-round pick D Maveric Lamoureux is out for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery in March.
London Knights (OHL champion)
C Denver Barkey (Flyers, 2023, 95th overall)
D Oliver Bonk (Flyers, 2023, 22nd overall)
C Easton Cowan (Maple Leafs, 2023, 28th overall)
D Jackson Edward (Bruins, 2022, 200th overall)
D Isaiah George (Islanders, 2022, 98th overall)
RW Kasper Halttunen (Sharks, 2023, 36th overall)
C Jacob Julien (Jets, 2023, 146th overall)
C Kaleb Lawrence (Kings, 2022, 215th overall)
C Max McCue (Blue Jackets, free agent signing)
C Landon Sim (Blues, 2022, 184th overall)
Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL champion)
RW Jagger Firkus (Kraken, 2022, 35th overall)
D Denton Mateychuk (Blue Jackets, 2022, 12th overall)
D Kalem Parker (Wild, 2023, 181st overall)
D Vojtech Port (Ducks, 2023, 161st overall)
LW Martin Rysavy (Blue Jackets, 2021, 197th overall)
C Matthew Savoie (Sabres, 2022, 9th overall)
C Brayden Yager (Penguins, 2023, 14th overall)
Saginaw Spirit (host)
C Owen Beck (Canadiens, 2022, 33rd overall)
LW Josh Bloom (Canucks, acquired from Sabres in 2023 trade for Riley Stillman)
D Rodwin Dionicio (Ducks, 2023, 129th overall)
D Jorian Donovan (Senators, 2022, 136th overall)
C Hunter Haight (Wild, 2022, 47th overall)
C Ethan Hay (Lightning, 2023, 211th overall)
G Nolan Lalonde (Blue Jackets, free agent signing)
C Matyas Sapovaliv (Golden Knights, 2022, 48th overall)
C Joseph Willis (Predators, 2023, 111th overall)
Ducks Make Multiple Front Office Moves
The Ducks will have a new face at the helm of their AHL affiliate in San Diego next season. Rick Paterson is being promoted to the role of AHL general manager after serving as Anaheim’s director of professional scouting on and off since 2005. Assistant general manager Rob DiMaio, who’d also managed San Diego since joining the club in 2022, won’t be back with the team next season for personal reasons.
While Paterson will replace DiMaio’s duties in San Diego, he isn’t taking over his AGM title under Ducks GM Pat Verbeek. That role is going to Mike Stapleton, who’s been with the Ducks as a scout since 2014 and served as their director of player personnel the last two seasons.
Part of their responsibilities in their new roles will be helping Verbeek and head coach Greg Cronin replace some vacancies on his bench. The Ducks also announced Tuesday that they’re not renewing the contracts of assistant coaches Newell Brown and Craig Johnson.
The promotion continues Paterson’s lengthy run of front office work. The 66-year-old played over 400 games for the Blackhawks in the 1980s, but his first off-ice work came with the Penguins immediately after retiring in 1988. He was an assistant coach during their back-to-back Stanley Cup wins in 1991 and 1992 before being reassigned to their minor league affiliate, the IHL’s Cleveland Lumberjacks, in 1993. Paterson served as their head coach for four seasons before heading to the Lightning.
As he’s been in Anaheim, Paterson was a jack of all trades for the Bolts from 1997 to 2005. He began as an assistant coach, briefly serving as interim head coach in 1998, before transitioning to a scouting role in 1999. He got his third Stanley Cup ring in Tampa in 2004 as their director of professional scouting and landed his fourth and most recent with the Ducks in 2007.
Stapleton is much newer to the front office game, landing his first off-ice role in junior hockey as an assistant coach of the NAHL’s Traverse City North Stars in 2005. His 697-game NHL career ended after the 2000-01 season, but he played a few seasons in Europe before hanging up the skates in 2004. He bounced around other coaching roles in the OHL and AHL before landing with the Ducks as a pro scout.
DiMaio exits as AGM after only two seasons in SoCal, a role he got after 14 seasons with the Blues as a scout and, later, their director of player personnel.
Brown, 62, ends his third stint with the Ducks after three seasons. He was an assistant coach under Randy Carlyle when Anaheim won their Stanley Cup in ’07, part of his second tenure with the club that spanned from 2005-06 to 2009-10. His first chance in Anaheim was a two-year run as an assistant in 1998-99 and 1999-00, his second NHL job after serving on the Blackhawks’ bench for two seasons prior. He’s also spent time with the Blue Jackets, Canucks and Coyotes, all in assistant coaching roles. If he doesn’t land a role on an NHL bench next season, it’ll be his first year out of the league since 1995-96.
Johnson joined the Ducks a year after Brown, only serving as an assistant the last two seasons. He’d been an assistant coach with the AHL’s Ontario Reign, the primary affiliate of the Kings, for two seasons before heading down the freeway to Anaheim. Brent Thompson, who only joined the Ducks last summer, is the only returning assistant next season.
Hockey Canada Releases 2024 World Championship Roster
May 7: Celebrini and Fantilli have returned home from Czechia, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports. The former will participate in tonight’s 2024 NHL Draft Lottery, while Fantilli’s reasons for departing are undisclosed. It’s unclear whether they’ve been removed from the roster entirely. In a corresponding transaction, the team added Kings center Pierre-Luc Dubois and Lightning forwards Brandon Hagel and Nick Paul to the roster.
May 3: Hockey Canada has released its roster of 22 players who will wear the maple leaf at the 2024 World Championship, which begins next week in Ostrava and Prague, Czechia. There are three open spots left to be filled throughout the tournament as more teams are eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Much like the initial World Championship roster that USA Hockey released weeks back, it’s almost completely made up of NHL talent – a rarity for the top-level countries at this tournament recently. The return and promise of future best-on-best international tournaments in the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off and the 2026 Winter Olympics has players and front offices looking at this year’s Worlds as a tune-up and initial evaluation for those events.
In fact, the only non-NHL player on Canada’s tournament-opening roster will be in the league next season. That’s presumptive 2024 first-overall pick Macklin Celebrini, who continues his 2023-24 campaign after taking home the Hobey Baker Award for the top collegiate player in his freshman season with Boston University. Their offense is highlighted and led by Blackhawks rookie phenom Connor Bedard and Kraken sniper Jared McCann, while Sabres defenders Bowen Byram and Owen Power highlight the back end. Blues netminder Jordan Binnington is expected to serve as the team’s starter.
The full roster is as follows:
F Connor Bedard (Blackhawks)
F Michael Bunting (Penguins)
F Macklin Celebrini (2024 draft-eligible)
F Dylan Cozens (Sabres)
F Adam Fantilli (Blue Jackets)
F Ridly Greig (Senators)
F Dylan Guenther (NHL Utah)
F Andrew Mangiapane (Flames)
F Jack McBain (NHL Utah)
F Jared McCann (Kraken)
F Dawson Mercer (Devils)
F Brandon Tanev (Kraken)
D Bowen Byram (Sabres)
D Kaiden Guhle (Canadiens)
D Jamie Oleksiak (Kraken)
D Colton Parayko (Blues)
D Owen Power (Sabres)
D Damon Severson (Blue Jackets)
D Olen Zellweger (Ducks)
G Jordan Binnington (Blues)
G Nico Daws (Devils)
G Joel Hofer (Blues)
Offseason Checklist: Anaheim Ducks
The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus several others who have already been eliminated. Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at Anaheim.
As expected, this season was a rough one for the Ducks who didn’t exactly improve their fortunes much from 2022-23. While they finished seventh in the Pacific instead of last, they only had one more point than the year before with a mixed bag of performances from their young core. GM Pat Verbeek made one big move to shake up that core in-season when he moved Jamie Drysdale to Philadelphia and it’s quite possible that another significant swap could be on the way. That’s one of the items on their checklist for the coming months.
Add Impact Pieces: Verbeek indicated in his end-of-season press conference that he’s looking to add some impact players this summer, including a top-six forward and a top-four blueliner so let’s start here. They did this last offseason, signing Alex Killorn to a four-year, $25MM contract and Radko Gudas to a three-year, $12MM deal. Both players got a bit more money than expected but they felt the overpayment was worth it to get them into the fold.
While they could look to add those types of players again over the summer (bringing in veteran leaders to fill a specific role and overpaying a bit in terms of AAV), it wouldn’t be surprising to see them try to aim a little higher this time around. Instead of culture builders, they could look to add more productive pieces to take some pressure off the young core and then when that core is a bit more ready in a couple of years, they’ll be a deeper team which should line up with when they want to try to get back into contention.
Additionally, Verbeek will likely want to add to Anaheim’s bottom-six group as well. They tried several younger players with varying levels of success this past season but if they intend to try to be more competitive, bringing in a veteran that can play some heavy checking minutes would help accomplish that. The days of just being sellers should be over now and they will have more cap room than most other teams.
Examine Zegras Options: Of course, while they’re going to start being buyers more often, it doesn’t mean Verbeek won’t look to sell in the right situation. One of those could involve Trevor Zegras, a player who, at a minimum, Anaheim would be wise to explore their options with.
Drafted as a center, Zegras may not be there much longer. The team explored moving him to the wing at times this season. With Mason McTavish and Leo Carlsson in the fold and needing top-six minutes, that made sense over dropping Zegras to the third line. In a season that saw him battle injuries, it would be difficult to fully assess his ability to handle the switch.
However, ready or not, that switch could be permanent if he stays in Anaheim with Cutter Gauthier now under contract; he’ll likely play down the middle as well before too long until he’s ready for full-time top-six duty when one of him, Carlsson, or McTavish will need to shift to the wing full-time as well.
From a value perspective, is it better for the Ducks to see if Zegras can overcome a down year and thrive with a full-time switch to the wing or cash in on him now as a center, a position always in high demand? The year he had means he wouldn’t be getting moved at his peak value but he’s a 23-year-old with two 60-plus seasons under his belt, signed at a reasonable $5.75MM price for two more years with two more seasons of club control after that. That’s still a pretty valuable trade chip if Verbeek wants to make another move to shake things up. Is the time right to play that chip? They’ll have to figure out that answer within likely the next couple of months.
Look Into Moving Gibson: The question of when will the Ducks move goaltender John Gibson has been around for several years now. There has been speculation at times that the team would have liked to move him while other times had some suggesting he’d like to leave. Each time it looked like something could happen, it didn’t.
This might be the summer when that changes. There are a handful of teams who either will be looking to move their starter while a couple of others might be looking to simply shake things up between the pipes. If all of those moves wind up coming to fruition, it could be a situation of musical chairs for veteran starting goalies. Perhaps that will be able to help spark a move.
Gibson will have three years left on his contract heading into next season at a $6.4MM cap hit. That’s still on the pricey side; he has the sixth-highest AAV among netminders for 2024-25 and one of the ones he’s behind is Carey Price who is going to be on LTIR until his contract expires. At a time when a lot of teams are shifting more toward lower-cost platoons, that makes him a little harder to move.
But some teams have potential ‘change of scenery’ candidates with a price tag that’s somewhat close to Gibson’s. At first glance, Pittsburgh, Seattle, and Columbus all have netminders who are being paid like a starter but lost the starting role at some point; all three goalies have an AAV within $1.025MM of Gibson’s and three or more years left on their respective contracts. Is it possible that one or more of them might be willing to make a change? (And would Anaheim in that circumstance?)
The idea of getting a high-end return is off the table at this point. Between the other goaltenders available, Gibson’s struggles (he’s coming off a career-low .888 SV%), and his price tag, the market conditions aren’t there for a big return. But if the Ducks want to give Gibson a chance to try to win somewhere else and are willing to roll the dice on a new partner for Lukas Dostal, this might be the summer where a move actually happens.
Tender Decisions: It wasn’t that long ago that the Ducks were hoping that forwards Isac Lundestrom and Max Jones were going to be a big part of their future plans. Now, they need to decide if it’s worth even tendering them qualifying offers next month, an idea that would have seemed crazy just a couple of years ago.
Lundestrom was a first-round pick back in 2018 and profiled as a potential two-way pivot. After a quality 2021-22 campaign that saw him put up 16 goals and 13 assists, the expectation was that his value would be on the rise. However, he scored just four times in 61 games in 2022-23 and then tore his Achilles tendon in offseason training, costing him 36 games this past season. When he returned, Lundestrom notched just five goals and six assists. One good season followed by two tough ones; is that worth tendering a $1.8MM qualifying offer and giving him arbitration rights? They have the cap room to give him one more look but, like Max Comtois last year, they could prefer to simply move on.
As for Jones, he was a 2016 first-round selection but hasn’t become the impactful power forward they were hoping for. Instead, when healthy, he has strictly been a depth player and barely logged 12 minutes a game this season. Jones has yet to reach the double-digit goal or 20-point marks in his six professional campaigns and is coming off a five-goal, ten-assist showing in 52 games this past season. He’s owed a $1.5MM qualifying offer with arbitration eligibility that could push that a little higher. Again, they have the money to afford to give him one more look but could earmark his spot for a different prospect or a free agent signing.
A few years ago, both Lundestrom and Jones were viewed as potential longer-term pieces for the Ducks. Now, there’s a possibility that neither is with the team two months from now. Verbeek will need to decide if the time is right to cut bait or to give one or both of them one more opportunity.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Ducks Sign Vyacheslav Buteyets To Entry-Level Deal
The Ducks have inked goalie Vyacheslav Buteyets to a two-year, entry-level deal, per a team announcement Wednesday. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Anaheim picked up the signing rights to Buteyets, 21, in the sixth round of the 2022 draft – the same one that landed them blue-chip defense prospect Pavel Mintyukov in the first round. The pick they used on Buteyets, 178th overall, was picked up from the Predators in a February 2020 trade involving depth defensemen Korbinian Holzer and Matt Irwin.
The Russian netminder stands at 6’4″ and 185 lbs. He’s spent nearly his entire career in the Chelyabinsk organization, much like Hurricanes goalie prospect Ruslan Khazheyev, who signed his ELC earlier today. Unlike the younger Khazheyev, though, he’s graduated from the junior ranks, putting up exemplary numbers with Chelmet in the professional second-tier VHL as their undisputed starter the past two seasons.
2022-23 was a banner year for Buteyets, who was a top-ten goalie in the league with a .933 SV%, 2.11 GAA, three shutouts and an 18-12-4 record in 35 appearances. He made another 35 showings this season with more middling results, posting a .913 SV% and 2.57 GAA with a 16-18-0 record. He also made his top-level debut for KHL Traktor, surrendering three goals on 19 shots against Dynamo Moscow back in December.
With veteran Alex Stalock headed for unrestricted free agency, Buteyets will likely compete for minor-league time next season with the Ducks’ three other goalie prospects under contract – Gage Alexander, Calle Clang and Tomas Suchanek. Whether Buteyets is able to carve out a backup or third-string role for himself with AHL San Diego or begins his career in North America with ECHL Tulsa is something to watch in training camp. Being loaned back to Chelyabinsk for a season is also an option, albeit less likely.
Buteyets will be a restricted free agent when his deal expires in 2026.
Ducks Expected To Name Captain Before 2024-25
- The Ducks will likely fill their captaincy vacancy ahead of next season, GM Pat Verbeek said this week to NHL.com. The club has played its last two seasons without a captain after 12-year “C”-wearer Ryan Getzlaf retired in 2022. 32-year-old defenseman Cam Fowler would be the presumptive choice as the longest-tenured Duck on the roster, and he still logs major minutes as he crosses the peak of his career. Fowler led the club in average ice time (24:25) by a considerable margin this season and still managed 39 points in 81 games, although his -36 rating was the worst on the team. He made his NHL debut back in 2010 and is on track to play his 1,000th NHL game next season, all with Anaheim.
Ducks Notes: Verbeek, McTavish, Jones
Derek Lee of The Sporting Tribune is reporting that Anaheim Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek has already started to build his offseason shopping list as he looks to help the team emerge from a long rebuild. The Ducks placed seventh in the Pacific Division and finished well out of the playoffs this season once again. Anaheim hasn’t made the playoffs since the 2017-18 season but did win four more games this year than last season.
Lee reports that Verbeek is looking to reshape Anaheim’s bottom six by adding some speed and grit to the third and fourth lines and he reportedly would also like to add a right-handed defenseman to play alongside the many left-handed defensemen on the team.
In other Ducks notes:
- Derek Lee also reported that Ducks forward Mason McTavish is dealing with a sprained MCL in his knee but shouldn’t require offseason surgery. The 21-year-old didn’t play in the final six games of Anaheim’s season and was spotted wearing a knee brace two weeks ago as he dealt with the injury. McTavish finished his second full NHL season with 19 goals and 23 assists in 64 games this season and should compete for a role on the Ducks’ top two lines next season.
- Lee also tweeted that Ducks winger Max Jones is dealing with an injury as the former first-round pick has a separated shoulder. The light-scoring 26-year-old missed the final 11 games of the regular season with the injury and finished the year with five goals and 10 assists in 52 games. Jones played the season under a $1.295MM cap hit and is a restricted free agent on July 1st. He will require a qualifying offer of $1.5MM and given his lack of offensive production, the Ducks may opt to not qualify Jones and let him become an unrestricted free agent.
Cutter Gauthier To Make NHL Debut
Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reports that Buffalo Sabres forward Dylan Cozens will play for Team Canada at the upcoming IIHF World Championships. The 23-year-old last played for Team Canada two years ago at the World Championship and was second in team scoring with seven goals and six assists in 10 games.
Cozens had a disappointing run during his fourth NHL season as he and the Sabres missed the playoffs once again, extending the second-longest playoff drought in North American pro sports. The Whitehorse, Yukon native saw his point total decrease by 21 as he dropped to just 18 goals and 29 assists in 79 games this year after posting career highs during the 2022-23 season with 31 goals and 37 assists in 81 games. Despite his disappointing campaign, Cozens is still hoping to end the 2023-24 season on a high note with Canada. He cited the chase for a gold medal as his main reason for electing to extend his season and play in the tournament.
In other morning notes:
- TSN Insider Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the NHL does plan to hold an NHL Awards ceremony in the coming months and is currently looking to secure a venue for the show. The league hasn’t finalized any of the details at this time and remains in talks with several locations. Currently, the NHL hopes to hold the show on June 27th in Las Vegas which would be the eve of the NHL Entry Draft.
- Anaheim Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier will make his NHL debut tonight in the Ducks season finale against the Vegas Golden Knights. The Hobey Baker finalist signed his three-year entry-level contract earlier in the week and will make his debut in Las Vegas. Gauthier was acquired by the Ducks earlier this season in exchange for Jamie Drysdale and a 2025 second-round pick and figures to be a massive part of Anaheim’s forward group going forward. No word yet on where he will play in the Ducks lineup.