The Anaheim Ducks have signed defenseman Kevin Shattenrkirk and forward Derek Grant in free agency. Each player’s contract is three years long, with Shattenkirk’s AAV coming in at $3.9 million, while Grant’s AAV is $1.5 million.
Kevin Shattenkirk's three-year deal with Anaheim carries a $3.9M AAV.
Shattenkirk had a huge bounce back year and played an important role in Tampa Bay’s Stanley Cup win. He had 34 points in 70 regular season games, then added 13 points in 25 playoff games and averaged nearly 19 minutes per game this season.
Obviously, now the Erik Gudbranson deal makes a lot more sense. The Ducks were in need of a boost on the right side of their top-four defense and getting Shattenkirk for the same price they would have been paying Gudbranson anyways is a win for Anaheim.
Grant spent the majority of the 2019-20 season with Anaheim, where he was a great fit as a depth forward, before he was dealt to Philadelphia at the trade deadline. He finished the year with 15 goals and 25 points in 56 games as a whole, a pace of 22 goals and 37 points per 82 games. Grant should slide back into the lineup as a center on the fourth line.
While I do like the idea of bringing Grant back, I think a three-year deal is a bit long. Grant is already 30 years old and spending money on a fourth-line forward for more than just a year or two at a time isn’t ideal. However, the AAV is low enough that it shouldn’t be a problem.
On a less exciting note, the Ducks also re-signed forward Chase De Leo to a one-year deal yesterday.
***NOTE: We've launched a HockeyBuzz Ducks Twitter account! For anyone interested, you can follow @HB_Ducks for updates on articles, Ducks news, etc. We're starting right from scratch, so any followers would be appreciated!***
Here’s today’s poll question (results and discussion will be posted in a future article):
Do you like the decision for the Ducks to sign Kevin Shattenkirk at a $3.9M AAV for three years?
Anaheim Ducks Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»