When the puck drops on the 2024-25 season for the Anaheim Ducks, Mason McTavish will be entering his third full season in the NHL. After a solid rookie season and a second hampered by injury, lulls, and discipline issues, the time is now for the former Olympian, World Junior champion, and now-veteran of 153 games to cement his status as a top young forward in the league. The Ducks have many players billed with that potential, and soon enough, one (or some) of them will hopefully make that leap and truly break into star, or superstar, status. Could it be McTavish this season? Quite possibly.
McTavish Started 2023-24 Red Hot Before Cooling Off Midseason
Whether by design or not, McTavish began last season with Frank Vatrano and Ryan Strome as linemates. Leo Carlsson, Trevor Zegras, and Alex Killorn, who made sense as linemates for McTavish, were not available to begin the campaign. That didn’t matter, as the McTavish-Strome-Vatrano combination was the best line for the Ducks early on. It was the ultimate surprise that each of them finished the season’s first five weeks as near-point-per-game players, and the Ducks went 7-4-1, including a six-game winning streak.
The McTavish-Vatrano connection persisted while the former was healthy, but injuries became a concern for the 2021 third-overall pick in December. He missed games in bunches the rest of the way before suffering a final significant injury in a win over the Calgary Flames on April 2 that ended his season. In total, he dressed in 64 games and accumulated 42 points (19 goals, 23 assists), nearly identical to the 17-goal, 26-assist campaign a season prior (albeit in 18 fewer games.) To give a sense of how fast he started, and how slowly he ended, consider the fact that half of his points came in the team’s first 20 games. His rise to stardom appeared well ahead of schedule and was in early talks as the NHL’s best sophomore, a class that included Wyatt Johnston, Matty Beniers, and Owen Power. His final 44 games, however, were riddled with injuries and scoreless streaks.
2024-25 Offers a Restart for Core Beset by Injuries and Discipline Issues
Few Ducks were spared from the injury bug last season. Many of them were simultaneous, resulting in an absurdly low number of games where Zegras, McTavish, Killorn, Carlsson, Vatrano, and Terry were all in the lineup together. We never really saw what this top six forward group could do, and, let’s be honest, this revamped group was one of the few things fans wanted to see from the 2023-24 Ducks. It’s a compelling bunch given the combination of creativity, size, speed, and finishing touch that exists among them.
Discipline was also a huge issue last season, McTavish included. He served 86 penalty minutes, one of five Ducks with more than 80. That is remarkably bad — you can’t have that many players with such significant penalty minutes, let alone your star players, and expect success. The Ducks took 399 minor penalties last season, 26 more than the next team. It was a huge reason they lost so much. However, the best thing about a long summer and a new season is the reset that it gives to this group. It’s a reset McTavish, among others, should take full advantage of.
McTavish Should Flourish in a Top Role for Ducks
McTavish’s torrid start to last season was no fluke. He has point-per-game potential written all over him. He has a finisher’s mentality with the size, strength, and desire to get to the dirty areas to score. He is surrounded by an explosive group of offensive weapons that will only get better with time, as he will. He should get top line minutes, including top power-play unit minutes, and ample opportunity to prove he can be a key weapon for the Ducks this season.
Related: Ducks’ 2024-25 Breakout Candidates: Mason McTavish
Given the chemistry with Vatrano, it’s reasonable to believe that duo will remain in place, at least to start. There will be many options to complete that line. If McTavish is kept at center, then Cutter Gauthier couls be deployed on the wing. If McTavish is placed on the wing, they can try Zegras or Carlsson at center. Maybe the newcomer Robby Fabbri gets a look. Pairing him with an equally-explosive playmaker will maximize his potential, but whoever it is, McTavish has the ability to make his teammates better. This all begs the question, how will he fare, and what should we expect?
What Lies Ahead in 2024-25?
The Ducks will be playing from behind a lot again this season, which will give players like McTavish the freedom to use their offense and creativity to make plays. They’ll need that from him. With a healthy roster, and a full season of Olen Zellweger and Gauthier, McTavish and the entire Ducks offense should look much better.
Perhaps it’s not reasonable to predict he will double his output and eclipse the 80-plus point mark, but he should get close. A 20-goal, 45-assist season is a fair expectation and well within reach for the still-developing 21-year-old. The bottom line is the Ducks need some of their young talent to become point-per-game players if they are to start winning more games. McTavish, who is entering a contract year after an up-and-down season, is one of a few with that ability, so look for him to come in hungry and ready to lead the way.
