The Anaheim Ducks have confirmed what we already knew, prospect Emerson Etem, who led the Western Hockey League with 61 goals this season, is ready to join the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League on an amateur tryout.

Now that his current team, the Medicine Hat Tigers were swept by the Moose Jaw Warriors in the second round of the WHL playoffs, Etem is going to make the jump. It's about time. Ducks fans are drooling at the thought of him playing in Anaheim. This marks the first major step in that dream becoming a reality.

Etem and Medicine Hat blew past Saskatoon in the first round. The offensively gifted right-winger collected seven goals and five assists in the four-game sweep. But, things weren't nearly as easy in the second round. As a matter of fact, it was down right ugly.

Etem was suspended for Game 2 against Moose Jaw because of a knee-on-knee hit. The incident must have affected him because he finished the series with a single assist in the three games he did play in.

The 19-year-old will join the Crunch just in time to finish out the rest of the season. It will give him a chance to get acclimated to the AHL game before joining Syracuse for the 2012-13 season - that is unless he makes the Ducks out of training camp.

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