Anaheim Ducks Prospect Spotlight: Pair of Defensemen Make AHL Debuts

On March 16, Farjestad BK of the SHL and the Anaheim Ducks announced that the Ducks recalled prospect defenseman Stian Solberg to their organization with the intention of assigning him to the AHL with the San Diego Gulls. Solberg was drafted in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2024 NHL Draft after the Ducks traded the 31st and 58th overall picks to the Toronto Maple Leafs for the rights to select him.

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Solberg (19) had played 47 games for Farjestad BK and tallied 12 points (3-9=12) in 2024-25. The cited reason for his assignment to the AHL was injuries within the Ducks’ organization.

Upon the conclusion of Harvard University’s season in the NCAA, the Ducks announced on Wednesday they had signed prospect defenseman Ian Moore to an Amateur Tryout (ATO) contract with the intention of sending him to the AHL. Moore was drafted in the third round (67th overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft. Due to Covid, Harvard’s 2020-21 season was canceled, and Moore played that season in the USHL for the Chicago Steel. His rights with the Ducks were extended through July 1, 2025.

Moore (23) served as Harvard’s captain for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, two seasons where they lost back-to-back in the conference quarterfinals and failed to qualify for the NCAA tournament. Moore finished his 2024-25 season with 14 points (3-11=14) in 32 games and he finished his collegiate career with 56 points (9-47=56) in 122 games.

On Thursday, the Ducks announced they’d also signed prospect defenseman Will Francis to an ATO, also with the intention of sending him to the AHL. Francis (24) was drafted in the sixth round (163rd overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft.

He was first diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2020 and has defeated the disease on three separate occasions in five years. He was forced to sit out the majority of his four-year collegiate career at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and tallied one assist in 39 NCAA games.

The Gulls traveled to Henderson on Friday to face the Silver Knights for a back-to-back series against their division foe and the team at the bottom of the AHL standings. Moore and Solberg made their AHL debuts on Friday evening in a 4-0 victory over Henderson. The Gulls deployed a lineup consisting of 11 forwards and seven defensemen due to injury, which lighted the load of responsibility and ice time for the duo playing in their first games at the new level. The AHL doesn’t track TOI, so it’s difficult to know how much either defenseman played, but it seemed like Solberg received more shifts than Moore.

Solberg didn’t miss a beat in his first professional game of North American hockey. He displayed his typical brand of physicality and made an impact on every shift he played while tallying two shots on goal and taking a minor penalty for high-sticking.

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Defensively, he did well to close gaps as pucks moved up ice, and he kept those gaps as pucks came back his way. He consistently won battles in the corners and in front of the Gulls’ net, punishing attackers attempting to gain position. He was relentless when his assignment had the puck in defensive zone coverage and unwavering when his check was off-puck.

He was poised on retrievals, baiting forecheckers toward him before sending slip passes or stretch outlets to awaiting, open teammates. He confidently swung pucks high to low in the offensive zone and walked the blueline astutely in search of shooting angles. He instantly became one of the Gulls' best defensemen in his first game.

Moore’s transition to the AHL from the NCAA wasn’t quite as smooth as Solberg’s from the SHL. He was a tad more frantic in his decision-making but settled in nicely as the game wore on. He ended the game with a shot on goal in the boxscore.

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Moore’s skating was the separating factor in this game. It allowed him to recover effortlessly on the occasions when he overcommitted, close gaps swiftly on attackers, and angle opponents into chipping pucks low on the rush.

One would like to see him come away from some of his board battles with possession more often, but when he did, he neatly zipped quality stretch passes to forwards for easy exits. His lateral mobility and long reach allowed him to disrupt attacks on entry and open lanes in the offensive zone.

As Moore adjusts to the professional game, he can evolve into a modern-day shutdown defenseman, using his elite mobility to eliminate time and space before cleanly and quickly getting pucks up ice to teammates.

The Gulls will be back in action to take on the Silver Knights again on Saturday at 1 pm PST in Henderson.

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