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Three keys for the Ducks to make progress in their rebuild this season

September 21, 2021, 8:45 PM ET [5 Comments]
Ben Shelley
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The Anaheim Ducks had a quiet offseason and have a very similar roster heading into the coming season.

Despite the fact that the Ducks are likely to find themselves back at the bottom of the standings though, there are still some steps they can take to prepare for the future. Here are three ways the Ducks can make progress this season.


CONTINUE TO INTEGRATE YOUNG PLAYERS INTO THE LINEUP

Last season, we saw Jamie Drysdale and Trevor Zegras join the Ducks’ lineup. They both made an immediate impact and were two of the team’s best players from the time they made the jump to the NHL.

This year, we need more of the same. That isn’t to say players should be rushed into the Ducks’ lineup but as prospects appear to be ready, the Ducks shouldn’t hesitate to make room, even if it means sitting some veteran players. The priority going forward has to be developing younger players and part of that means making sure they can create some spots in the lineup and also allow players work their way up the lineup.


WEAPONIZE CAP SPACE

The Ducks currently sit with over $13 million (with an additional $7 million on injured reserve in the form of Ryan Kesler) and while we’ve seen teams like the Arizona Coyotes use this to their advantage, Anaheim still hasn’t really used their extra space as a tool. The Ducks did take on David Backes’ contract at the 2019-20 trade deadline but considering how much extra cap space they have, Anaheim could do far more.

While many bad contracts have already been traded this offseason, there could be more teams looking to offload contracts, once we get deeper into the season and teams need to clear space to potentially make other moves. If the Ducks get another shot at using their cap space to take on bad contracts in order to acquire future assets, they shouldn’t pass it up this time.


TRADE VETERAN PLAYERS FOR FUTURE ASSETS

It was surprising to see no key players dealt last deadline, then even more surprising to see none dealt in the offseason. However, we’re now a year away from Hampus Lindholm, Josh Manson and Rickard Rakell all becoming unrestricted free agents and the Ducks need to take the opportunity to flip some of them, if not all, for assets.

The Ducks have yet to make significant moves to kickstart a rebuild, but we can expect some deals this season. Anaheim needs to rebuild their prospect pool and trading off veteran players for future assets is the way in which to do it.



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QuizMaker
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