For the first time in a long time, the Ducks will not be sellers at the NHL trade deadline, but will they be able to add to their roster for the stretch run and beyond?
All will be revealed by noon Friday, when the league office bangs its gavel on trades for the season, with every playoff aspirant seeking to bolster its chances. Coming off a convincing 6-2 spanking of the defending Western Conference champs in Edmonton, the Ducks were still six points back in a crowded field seeking a postseason berth.
Even with their ascent from the bottom to the middle of the standings, the Ducks will be prudent at the deadline, dividing their gaze between the prize of spring hockey and the ever-less-distant promise on the horizon for one of hockey’s youngest cores.
Staying or going: John Gibson
The goalie, now the longest-tenured Duck following the departure via trade of Cam Fowler, has again entered the rumor mill. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun were among those who reported that there was discussion about how much salary the Ducks might retain in a trade, where Gibson might want to end up (he has a limited no-trade clause and a $6.4 million cap hit) and what the market was like for him.
Friedman suggested that potential netminding needs for prominent franchises like Edmonton (LeBrun reported that Gibson would waive his NTC for the Oilers) and Carolina as well as the Ducks’ willingness to pick up some of his tab could stimulate demand for him. But 48 hours prior to the deadline, nothing appeared anywhere near imminent on Gibson, who had also been integral to the Ducks’ resurgence this season as part of a potent one-two punch in net with Lukáš Dostál.
Sell, rent or buy: Brian Dumoulin
Dumoulin was acquired this summer from the Seattle Kraken after the veteran defenseman and two-time Stanley Cup winner with Pittsburgh sought a transfer to an Eastern Conference club. The Kraken instead sent him to Anaheim, seemingly setting up a scenario where he might be moved at the deadline for a profit – much like Ilya Lyubushkin was last year and John Klingberg was a season earlier – or potentially move eastward in free agency. That was especially true given the Ducks’ plethora of left-shooting defenders: Fowler (now traded), spark plug Olen Zellweger, emergent star Jackson LaCombe and lottery pick Pavel Mintyukov.
Yet Dumoulin has provided a calming, stabilizing presence on the ice and in the dressing room while showing he can play either side, logging significant minutes at right defense earlier in the campaign (as had Zellweger last season). He’s also embraced not only the locale but the culture and messaging of the organization under coach Greg Cronin and general manager Pat Verbeek. With a win in Edmonton on Tuesday and a critical game in Vancouver on Wednesday, how the Ducks fare could factor heavily into whether they keep Dumoulin as an own-rental, and evaluate a potential contract extension as well.
Possible additions
This is an unusual trade deadline in that there was already a round of heavy activity ahead of the 4 Nations Face-Off break and that many teams will have salary flexibility in the years to come with cap projections taking leaps over the next three seasons, emerging from the shadow of post-pandemic economic stagnation. That’s already led to a growing number of reconfiguration-oriented swaps, or “hockey trades” in the more common parlance.
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Former Duck Rickard Rakell has been a top-five trade target on nearly every deadline board, and at 31 he has three more seasons left on his deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins. A prolific right-handed shot with the ability to play wing or center, a reunion with Rakell makes at least enough sense to explore thoroughly.
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