Barring a miraculous yet unlikely outcome, the Anaheim Ducks will not be contending for the playoffs but should take a meaningful step forward in their path back to competitive play. They cannot afford another bottom-five finish in the NHL standings. In their post-Cup-contending era (2018-present), they have made numerous first- and second-round picks. They have engineered trades, brought aboard veteran talent, named a new captain, hired coaching staff at both the NHL and American Hockey League (AHL) levels, celebrated their 30th season as a franchise, and even changed uniforms. They enter a new decade in their short-but-storied history in need of a bang or the 2024-25 season will be a disappointment.
Related: Anaheim Ducks’ 3 Keys to a Successful 2024-25 Season
A big way the Ducks can deliver a big season is through an improved bottom-six forward group, which has teetered between underwhelming and nonexistent for years. For the first time in a while, it looks like it has a good chance to meaningfully supplement the offense of the top six. That said, let’s look at the players likely slotting into these roles and set some expectations for them.
Frank Vatrano: Replicate Your 2023-24, Please?
In fairness to Frank Vatrano, who scored a career-high 37 times in 2023-24, tops on the Ducks, he deserves to be higher in the lineup. After all, he developed a tremendous cohesion with Mason McTavish. They were the Ducks’ most consistent and dangerous duo when the latter was healthy. But there are a number of reasons that he will likely be relegated to a bottom-six forward role, at least to begin the campaign.
First off, it’s his place in training camp. He has been skating on a line with Robby Fabbri and Ryan Strome. Now, training camp lines are statistically unlikely to hold over the course of the season, but as of now, head coach Greg Cronin sees this as the best fit for his team and has placed McTavish between Troy Terry and Trevor Zegras. Second, there’s an experience and age factor to consider. Vatrano, Strome, and Fabbri are roughly the same age and have similar experience. They are similar players in that they battle hard, play with a feisty edge, and are consistently capable of providing 35-40 points (roughly half of a point per game) over the course of a full season.
Vatrano’s 59 goals and 101 points since joining the Ducks in the 2022 offseason represent the best two-season stretch of his career, and he has done it on the back of his competitive edge and shoot-first mentality. If he can maintain that edge and continue fighting to attain scoring positions, then he becomes the focal point of a bottom-six forward group that can do more than just give the top skaters a break. It may not be fair to expect another 35-plus goal season for Vatrano, but he will need to lead that charge and stay ready for offensive opportunities.
Ryan Strome: Don’t Replicate Your 2023-24, Please?
Ryan Strome is a truly perplexing case. He arrived in Anaheim the same offseason as Vatrano on the heels of a 195-point, 263-game (four-season) stretch with the New York Rangers. That was good for a point-per-game (P/G) average of .74. That’s pretty impressive stuff. He hasn’t come anywhere close to that in his time with the Ducks. Instead, he has been a frustrating player whose lack of discipline and defensive deficiencies have made him almost a complete liability. He is minus-50 in two seasons in Orange County and served 79 and 86 minutes in penalties in 2022-23 and 2023-24, respectively. For a guy whose cap hit is $5 million, that’s just unacceptable. Strome’s time-on-ice (TOI) last season was the lowest it has been in the previous six, and it was for good reason.
However, a new season means another reset. Strome will get a good crack at solidifying his third-line center spot with Vatrano and Fabbri, which should give him opportunities to contribute offensively. He has put together consecutive 41-point seasons in Anaheim. He says he’s looking for more. It’s great that he wants to convert more chances, but he needs to be better defensively and shore up his discipline if he’s really going to help the Ducks. After a hot start last season, he was ice-cold the rest of the way and missed a number of great chances to score more. Given his projected role, volume isn’t likely to be on his side, so he needs to focus on converting the chances that do come his way. He’ll likely struggle to hit a third-straight 41-point season, but hopefully, I’m wrong on that prediction.
Robby Fabbri: Welcome to the Ducks
Fabbri was an under-the-radar acquisition by general manager Pat Verbeek given his offseason goals of acquiring a top-six forward or top-four defense talent (in fairness to him, he did say he wanted to improve his bottom six, too). Perhaps it could be a sneaky good pickup in the end. Fabbri is a Stanley Cup champion, joining Alex Killorn as the only Ducks with such credentials. Like Vatrano and Strome, he is a veteran presence with a half-point per game potential, which the Ducks could really use for their third line. He has put up at least 14 goals four times. That’s not insignificant.
Fabbri’s health is a major red flag. He hasn’t played 72 games since his rookie season back in 2015-16. In fact, he hasn’t come close to that number since then. If he can stay healthy, then a 10-12-goal, 30–35-point season alongside Vatrano, Strome, or whoever else he plays with should make the Ducks a deeper team offensively.
Isac Lundeström: Show Me What You’ve Got
Another player in need of a big season? Isac Lundeström, who signed a one-year extension this offseason that constitutes his last best chance to earn a permanent depth spot in the Ducks’ lineup. An Achilles injury limited him to 46 games last season but he played decently in his return as a fourth-line center.
Lundeström hasn’t found his 2021-22 season’s 15-goal form. He will be a depth forward at best for the Ducks in 2024-25, so he may not get the volume to find it again. So his best way to contribute will be as a dependable, smart, and efficient center who can likewise chip in offensively when opportunities present themselves in the 12-14 minutes of ice he’ll draw each night. He is only 24 years old, so he should have the legs to be efficient. Look for him to center the third or fourth line this season and put together a 5-10-goal campaign while also contributing on the penalty kill.
Several Others in the Hunt for a Depth Spot
So far, we’ve discussed four of the six spots on the bottom two forward lines. It’s hard to see these four not factoring into the lineup nightly, which means there are two spots left for a number of players.
Ross Johnston, Brock McGinn, Nikita Nesterenko, Brett Leason, Sam Colangelo, and Pavol Regenda are all possibilities. The Ducks will inevitably carry a few of these players or others, but who will fill the spots is anyone’s guess. If the Ducks need more sandpaper and size, then Johnston and McGinn will get some chances. Brett Leason also fits that bill but has some scoring touch. Colangelo has youth in his favor and looked good in his limited action toward the end of last season, the same as Nesterenko.
It will depend on the Ducks’ needs, but the ability to contribute on offense, and not be liabilities on defense, must be taken into consideration when deciding who fills the final slots on this forward group.
Bottom Six Must Be More Reliable Offensively
The Ducks’ nonthreatening attack of recent seasons is a byproduct of the entire lineup just not being good enough to consistently produce offense. The influx of youth over the years should begin to change that narrative soon enough with the hope that they drive a much-improved train in 2024-25. If the bottom-six, which should look the best it has in years from a personnel perspective, can help the big guns out, then the Ducks should score more than 204 goals this season. Will it happen? Let’s see…
