With the Anaheim Ducks near the bottom of the NHL standings and many players being discussed as trade bait, it was expected that team management would make some moves ahead of this year’s trade deadline. Yet when the deadline passed and the smoke cleared, the Ducks had very little to show for.
The two trades they did make involved acquiring a fifth-round pick a year from now and giving up a pick that was one round later, along with a decent defenseman. The key return was Haydn Fleury and again, while I do like Fleury, he’s not going to turn this team around. Overall, I’m just pretty shocked as to how little got done at the deadline.
In terms of not dealing a defenseman like Josh Manson, who had been rumoured as a potential target for some teams, I can understand it to an extent. Teams have to consider expansion draft implications and probably don’t want to acquire someone now, just to lose them after a playoff run.
However, as we know, forwards are much easier to protect, yet Rickard Rakell was not dealt and I can’t imagine his value is going up as less term remains on his deal. His cap hit and term were perfect for this market (especially if the Ducks retained salary) and I can’t help but see him sticking around past the deadline as a missed opportunity. Maybe general manager Bob Murray wasn’t getting the offers he wanted but I wouldn’t be so sure they’ll be getting any better, with Rakell essentially in rental territory from here on out.
Danton Heinen was also heavily linked to Vancouver a little while ago and Troy Terry was reportedly on the trade block (though I do think that one would have been a mistake). A Ryan Getzlaf trade was reportedly being discussed as well and even Nicolas Deslauriers was rumoured to be getting dealt to Pittsburgh, in a deal that never came to fruition.
The point is with so many ‘discussions’ and so many trade pieces, it doesn’t make much sense that Anaheim got so little done at the deadline. It seems as though either Bob Murray is in denial as to how far away the Ducks are from truly competing or he’s just moving at a snail’s pace in building for the future. Either way, the Ducks missed a key opportunity to make progress in their rebuild.
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