After a difficult 2023-24 season, the Anaheim Ducks are in offseason mode. Injuries and inconsistencies derailed the rebuilding club, who finished with a 27-50-5 record, the third-worst in the NHL. Their six-straight seasons without a playoff appearance is the fourth-longest active drought in the league.
Related: Anaheim Ducks’ 2024 Offseason Primer
While there wasn’t much team success, Ducks players hit a handful of individual milestones throughout the season. During the preseason, we previewed the achievements to keep an eye out for. Today, we’ll look at those milestones and see who reached their numbers and who fell short, including a few players and milestones not mentioned in the August preview.
8 Players Hit Hundred-Game Milestones
Despite dealing with injuries up and down the lineup, every player within reach of a significant games-played milestone mentioned in the preseason reached it. Fortunately, each threshold required less than half-a-season’s-worth of games, as Sam Carrick’s 37 games to reach 200 was the most daunting on the list. The first, and most significant milestone was Cam Fowler reaching 900 games played. The 32-year-old defenseman only needs 26 more games to join Ryan Getzlaf as the only Ducks players to reach 1,000 games with the franchise.
Jakob Silfverberg had the second-highest games played threshold and appeared in his 800th game during his final season in the NHL. The next-highest games played milestone came from Radko Gudas, who reached the 700-game plateau during his first season in Anaheim. Both Brock McGinn and Frank Vatrano hit the half-century mark, though McGinn’s lower-body injury to start the season delayed his 500th until New Year’s Eve.
Some of the Ducks’ younger core hit smaller games-played milestones. Troy Terry reached his 300th game in early December. Trevor Zegras skated in his 100th career game, though that game will be more remembered for Zegras breaking his ankle early in the first period and missing the next two-and-a-half months. Mason McTavish played in his 100th game in November.
Beyond the more well-known players, a few unsung stepped up throughout the season and played an expanded role. One of these surprises was Ross Johnston, who appeared in 68 games and crossed the 200-game threshold in the process. Brett Leason also appeared in 68 games and played in his 100th. Urho Vaakanainen had his first truly-healthy season and reached 100 career games. William Lagesson was claimed on waivers by the Ducks in March and played in his 100th career game in the season finale.
Goals, Assists & Points Milestones
Most of the scoring talent on Anaheim’s roster skews younger, so there weren’t many notable scoring milestones to look out for during the season. The ones we mentioned in the preseason ended up with varied outcomes. Zegras only needed one goal for his 50th and Alex Killorn entered the season two short of 200, so those were shoo-ins. On the other end, Fowler scored five goals and ended up four short of his 100th. Terry needed a 25-goal season to reach his 100th, but his goal production declined for a second-straight season and he only managed to light the lamp 20 times.
As far as assists are concerned, we only looked at three milestones in the preseason. Silfverberg recorded his 200th assist off Vaakanainen’s first career goal in January. And while his breakout season was more about his shooting, Vatrano notched the 12 assists necessary to reach 100 helpers. The biggest surprise is who fell short, as Zegras was only 10 assists short of his 100th, but his injury-plagued campaign held him to only nine.
Every point milestone touched upon during the preseason was reached. Ryan Strome recorded points in back-to-back games to start the season and reach 400-career points. It took Killorn until April, but his 34th point this season was the 500th of his career. Adam Henrique, who was traded to the Edmonton Oilers at the trade deadline, recorded his 500th point before departing for Alberta. Terry reached 200 points on the back of a team-co-leading 34 assists, and Zegras managed to reach 150-career points during his five-game point streak to end the season.
Gibson Inches Closer to 200 Wins & Franchise Record
It was mentioned as a lofty mark in the preseason, but John Gibson is on the doorstep of 200 career wins. He finished the season with 13, bringing him to 193 in his career. He would only be the second Ducks’ goaltender to reach 200 wins. Perhaps even more significant is that Jean-Sebastian Giguere’s franchise record of 206 wins is now within striking distance.
On one hand, the 13 wins he needs to match the record seems well within reach for next season. He managed exactly 13 wins this season, his lowest total in an 82-game season. However, the low win total stems from more than playing behind a struggling team. He’s ceding starts to Lukas Dostal, who finished with 14 wins. This season’s 44 starts were his lowest share in nearly a decade — we have to go back to the 2015-16 season when he was platooning with Frederik Andersen, coincidentally the last time Gibson didn’t lead the team in wins. The Gibson/Dostal goalie tandem has pivoted from workhorse and backup to a 1A and 1B situation.
Assuming their starts keep trending towards a 50/50 rate, banking on Gibson getting another 13 wins by the end of next season may be a tall order. As a rebuilding team, the Ducks could make a significant jump next season, inflating win totals. But with three more years under contract, his setting the franchise record is only a matter of time.
A Quick Look at 2024-25
Along with Gibson’s 200th and 207th win, the Ducks have a few notable milestones in reach next season. Fowler has a chance at 1,000 games, 100 goals, and 500 points. Terry and Zegras should quickly reach their goal and assist milestones, respectively. We’ll cover these potential accomplishments and more in the lead-up to the 2024-25 season.
Statistics courtesy of Hockey-Reference.
