As they so often do, the biggest names in the NHL’s free agent market disappeared rather quickly on July 1. We saw plenty of money both intelligently and perhaps recklessly thrown around, and a healthy mix of player movement and re-ups with their current squads. The biggest players in the market were franchises eager to advance their timelines, stay in contention, or reverse fortunes – the Seattle Kraken, Nashville Predators, and Tampa Bay Lightning immediately stood out. The Anaheim Ducks, however? Well, rumors are that they tried to make a splash, but they failed and otherwise were astonishingly quiet, despite a king’s ransom in spending money. The Ducks failed to bring in a big-name free agent, still have more spending to do to hit the cap floor and remain in a murky state with a rebuild that is yet to make major strides. How else do we interpret a free agency period marked by moves that only marginally improve the bottom half of the lineup?
A Brief Recap of Ducks’ Signings and Departures
Taking nothing away from the Ducks and the difficulty they faced in bringing in marquee players, they still made some ancillary moves recently via trades, free agency, and qualifying offers to restricted free agents.
On the trade front, the Ducks acquired Brian Dumoulin from the Kraken for a 2026 fourth-round pick. This ensures they will have a proven, veteran defenseman with championship-level experience on each defense pairing. Dumoulin’s consistency, and championship pedigree, not unlike that of Alex Killorn, is not nothing. It should help in the intangibles department, especially the young defenders like Olen Zellweger, Tristan Luneau, Pavel Mintyukov, and Jackson LaCombe. That’s just the thing, though. Those young defenders, plus Dumoulin, Cam Fowler, Radko Gudas, and Urho Vaakanainen make eight defensemen. That’s before you even get to training camp, where you might have surprise performers that make a strong case for a roster spot. The point is, that somebody they just acquired, signed, or expect to take a step forward this coming season won’t be playing every day.
Additionally, the Ducks acquired Robby Fabbri for a third-round draft pick from the Detroit Red Wings. Fabbri is also a Stanley Cup champion and has been a serviceable middle-six forward his entire career. He likely slots in on the wing of a depth line centered by Ryan Strome or Isac Lundestrom. On the free agency front, the Ducks signed Vaakanainen and Brett Leason, and extended qualifying offers to LaCombe, Pavol Regenda, and Nikita Nesterenko. These moves should make the battle for middle- and bottom-six forward spots, and middle-four defense spots more interesting, if nothing else. How much better it will make the Ducks is yet to be determined.
Striking Out on Top-Six Forward or Top-Four Defense Talent is Concerning
The fact remains that $31 million to spend and one of the most promising young rosters in the game was an insufficient pitch to whichever big-name free agents gave general manager Pat Verbeek a chance. The takeaway is that the Ducks are not at a point where they can attract big names. This is unfortunate because the prospect of a player like Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, Brandon Montour, or Sam Reinhart joining the top of the roster was tantalizing, if for no other reason than their talent and winning pedigree would instantly advance the Ducks’ ongoing rebuild, which has rotated between bleak, promising, and muddled over six years. Clearly, this was too good to be true.
Related: Ducks’ State of the Rebuild: 2024 Offseason
Verbeek is still somewhat early into his tenure as Ducks GM but has already made pretty clear, through various transactions, what his vision for the roster is. He, of course, led lengthy and tense contract negotiations with Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, two guys that resemble the “modern” NHL star – undersized, offensively-minded players. Not exactly his type. He then traded Drysdale mere months after that extension was signed.
Verbeek has made unconventional picks at numbers two and three overall in consecutive drafts with Leo Carlsson and Beckett Sennecke, respectively. He handed out a pair of medium-term contracts to a pair of veterans in two of the previous three offseasons in Frank Vatrano/Ryan Strome (2022) and Alex Killorn/Radko Gudas (2023). Sure, Vatrano just had the best season of his career, and Gudas was probably the team’s best defenseman last season. And yes, Carlsson has the makings of a top-line, two-way star in this league; Sennecke very well may be the same. That said, the picks and transactions he has made carry the immense responsibility of bringing the Ducks back to respectability.
Luring elite talent is no easy task. It’s a situation where demand for it far exceeds its supply. Every offseason, marquee free agents are afforded an audience of teams eager to bid for their services. All but one will strike out. It happens. According to Eric Stephens of The Athletic, the Ducks tried to get Stamkos and Marchessault, but failed (from ‘Anaheim Ducks took big swings in NHL free agency, but made no contact’, The Athletic, July 1, 2024). However, the Ducks were better suited than anyone to pay top dollar, even overpay if necessary, for any one of a number of available players. No, they could not offer the prospect of playoff hockey, which is likely what Stamkos and Marchessault, perhaps all of them, were after. If not, it really begs the question: why couldn’t Verbeek offer the same money or a competitive offer to those two, or any others, if he had the flexibility? Did he try? Does he plan to use that money for something else? The overall quiet nature of the Ducks’ late June to early July raises so many questions.
Does No Splash in Free Agency Mean a Big Splash is Coming Elsewhere?
Verbeek stated that his goals for the offseason were to acquire top-six forward and top-four defense talent, and that he was open to any manner of achieving that – free agency or trade. Logic would suggest, then, that if he didn’t get either in free agency, then he must be going after it via trade. Right?
The Ducks still have holes everywhere, and while it’s great to revamp the depth of your lineup, another goal of his, that’s really not the issue. They aren’t losing because their depth is inadequate, they are losing games because they can’t sufficiently score or defend. They had the worst defense in the history of the NHL in 2022-23 and a goal differential of minus-129. They improved in 2023-24, but still yielded a goal-differential of minus-91. In the three full seasons since the COVID-adjusted campaigns, the Ducks have scored 232, 209, and 204 goals. The influx of inexperienced players in that time partially explains things, but you get the picture.
There is a glaring need for elite and experienced skill on both sides of the ice. There’s no way Verbeek could, or should, be standing pat (pun intended) knowing these variables. This has me thinking that Verbeek must be scouting, working the phones, and making contact with other teams to see who’s available via trade. Do we think he could bring some energy to the dog days of the NHL offseason by making a major move?
Ducks Could Probably Benefit From a Jolt
Ultimately, the Ducks are armed with an incredibly talented pool of players all with the potential to be great NHLers. No team retains all of its young talent, that’s just not the way it works. Some will leave, some might get traded, and some will spend a decade or more in a Ducks uniform. By continuing to stockpile assets, some of which seem redundant, Verbeek seems intent on observing and assessing which of these assets deserves a long-term future in the organization.
I’m all for that, but sitting and waiting until that happens, enduring painful seasons, and not supplying the Zegras’, Zellwegers, and McTavishs of the world with veteran running mates via the trade or free agent markets just doesn’t seem like the answer to me. Am I too impatient? Let me know in the comments below!
