One of the more notable moves the Anaheim Ducks have made over the last couple of seasons was dealing Nick Ritchie to the Boston Bruins, in exchange for Danton Heinen.
At the time of the deal, each forward was just 24 years old. Ritchie had spent parts of five seasons with the Ducks and had just finally started to up his production. Over 101 games with Anaheim between the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons, Ritchie had scored at a pace of roughly 41 points per 82 games. Heinen had a little less NHL experience than Ritchie at that point, but was just a couple years removed from a 2017-18 season which saw him score at a pace of 50 points per 82 games. His numbers and usage did decline at bit after that, but he it seemed as though he could excel again in a larger role with Anaheim.
Each player really only had one season with their new team, as the COVID shutdown came just after the trade. This past season, Ritchie scored 15 goals and 26 points in 56 games, while Heinen managed just seven goals and 14 points in 43 games. At the end of the year, neither player was extended a qualifying offer, as Heinen signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Nick Ritchie joined the Toronto Maple Leafs.
While Heinen’s departure from Anaheim came as no surprise, Ritchie not receiving a qualifying offer from the Bruins was fairly unexpected. He scored at a pace of 22 goals and 38 points per 82 games this season and is still just 25 years old.
Regardless, it's interesting to see a trade which seemed quite notable at the time resulting in no current assets for either team, just 18 months later. So now, each player will try to make an impact on yet another new team.
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Which player were you more surprised to see not receive a qualifying offer from their team?
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