Training camps across the NHL are officially underway, which means everyone from owners, management, coaching staff, players, media, and everyone in between have gathered at practice facilities across North America in anticipation of the 2024-25 season. The Anaheim Ducks have had an eventful week that began with the Rookie Faceoff and has since included the naming of the rugged Radko Gudas as the team’s ninth captain and a handful of intense practice sessions at Great Park Ice in Irvine, CA. The sessions continued today with the entire training camp roster split into three groupings.
Second-year head coach Greg Cronin will have time to take an extensive look at the seasoned veterans, pending rookies, top-flight prospects, professional tryout (PTO) players, and everyone else over the next few weeks before making numerous important personnel decisions for the upcoming season. Today, let’s recap his debut season as an NHL head coach, highlight some of those big decisions, and set some expectations for Cronin and his staff.
Debut Season Was a Mixed Bag for Cronin
From a standings perspective, the Ducks’ marginal improvement to a 27-50-5 record in 2023-24 from 23-47-12 in 2022-23 isn’t much to write home about. They won four more games but collected points in three fewer games as a whole. They scored five fewer goals but also gave up 42 fewer. It resulted in a one-point improvement. So, not all that different. Personnel-wise, though, there is a major difference. Out were veterans holding precious lineup slots and in were young players rightly deserving of their chance to be everyday players. This is what Cronin inherited – a loaded pipeline, a lineup full of holes, more questions than answers, and an organization coming off its worst season in franchise history.
This transition brought significant growing pains that were felt in all phases of the game – even strength, power play, penalty kill, offense, defense, you name it. But it was all made significantly worse by both the injury woes and penalty trouble the Ducks found themselves in. It felt like from Game 1 to 82 they were either dealing with lineup absences or falling behind/costing themselves games because of poor discipline. From that perspective, it was an up-and-down season that just didn’t give the Ducks, or Cronin, a chance to find a footing.
A coach’s job is to set the tone. To develop a philosophy that is motivating and can be learned, emulated, and followed. Cronin said all the right things before and throughout last season, from teaching his players to be responsible on both ends, making sure they commit to details, competing hard, and understanding the process. There were periods where it looked like it was sticking, but other moments that just left you scratching your head, wondering whether he was getting through to the players at all. For a team that took 30 more minor penalties than the next closest team, it was fair to wonder that.
This is a Reset Opportunity for Players and Coaches Alike
In the same way the upcoming campaign is a reset for many Ducks, it too is a reset for Cronin. It’s not that he did a bad job; he didn’t. His vocation until this point in his career has been player development. Skill and systems building. Long-term stuff that you can’t really judge a coach on after one season, let alone one riddled with the changes, injuries, and discipline issues we’ve discussed. This long-term thinking is what made him the right choice for a team full of young players and prospects.
Related: 4 Ducks Bold Predictions for the 2024-25 Season
A fresh season brings excitement, new opportunities, and a clean slate which can benefit everyone. It’s critical to understand the wins and learnings of the season prior, which was reflected in his postseason comments with the media shortly after the season ended. This is an important season for the club as it continues its climb out of the rebuilding stage and toward contention, so entering training camp with a clean slate will be especially helpful as they make key decisions in a variety of areas.
Cronin Has Important Decisions to Make
After five straight bottom-five finishes in the Western Conference throughout their six-season rebuild, the Ducks need to take a step forward this season, plain and simple. Ultimately, this comes down to the players performing. Cronin, however, needs to set them up for success, which will require him to make a number of important personnel decisions. Let’s look at a few:
Offensive Combos
Loaded with talent up front, Cronin needs to maximize the talents of Trevor Zegras, Mason McTavish, Troy Terry, Leo Carlsson, and Cutter Gauthier. Does that mean putting all of them on the top two forward lines, or would they be better served by skating alongside some veterans like Alex Killorn and Frank Vatrano? Both of those veterans found success last season playing with some of these young skaters, and by the looks of training camp so far, they’ll get the chance to do it again. It may take some experimentation, but Cronin must find combinations that result in more goals, which the Ducks desperately need if they are going to keep up with teams in 2024-25. They only scored 204 goals last season, good for 2.48 goals-per-game. That’s simply not going to cut it. A healthy Zegras and an eager Gauthier will provide a boost, though.
Defensive Combos
The Ducks are equally loaded with potential on the blue line, but it again comes down to optimal pairings. Pavel Mintyukov, when healthy, should command a top-pairing slot because he has both the offensive and defensive tools to be a complete defenseman. Does Cronin pair him with a smooth-skating veteran like Cam Fowler? Or a dependable, defense-first guy like Gudas? Also, who plays every day? With guys like Olen Zellweger, Tristan Luneau, Jackson LaCombe, Brian Dumoulin, and Urho Vaakanainen competing for second and third-pairing slots, someone won’t be.
A mix of veterans and young players on the blue line is what the Ducks need to keep goals out of their net. They need guys that will be hard on opposing forwards. Gudas and Dumoulin should lead the way in that regard.
Goaltending Tandem
Is it time for Lukáš Dostál to replace John Gibson as the starter in Anaheim? Hard to say, but Dostál sure made his case last season when he dominated the starts toward the end of the campaign. Gibson is a seasoned veteran with an ultra-calming presence, which may be what the Ducks, who will once again be one of the league’s youngest teams, need early on to settle in. Big decisions in the crease are coming Cronin’s way.
Special Teams
Ah, the fun stuff. The Ducks have creativity, skill, confidence, and offensive exuberance littered throughout the lineup, but what does it mean for the powerplay? And who gets to play on it? There’s enough talent to make both power play units for the Ducks dangerous and fun to watch. I’m excited to see how Cronin and his staff experiment with combinations.
As for the penalty kill, this should be a veteran-laden group. You need penalty killers that will push guys around and punish them for trying to take the puck to the net. There wasn’t enough of that last season. Both the power play and the penalty kill need to be better, both in conversion percentages and volume. Draw more penalties, take less, and kill off more than last season.
Cronin, Like the Players, Will Be Much Improved in 2024-25
Heading into a second season as head coach should be way more comfortable for Cronin. There are new faces, but he’s familiar with most of his players. There’s no settling into his new environment required. His philosophies have had about a year to sink in. Now, he can just focus on evaluation, the X’s and O’s, and setting this team up for success on the ice. It’s a critical time now, but his season of experience, combined with the familiarity and improved health of his roster should set Cronin and the Ducks up to be much better this season. Hitting 70-75 standings points is reachable and should be considered a disappointment if they can’t get there.
