Troy Terry saw his production take a hit in 2023-24. How will he respond and ensure a repeat performance is avoided?
Troy Terry saw his production take a hit in 2023-24. How will he respond and ensure a repeat performance is avoided?
Troy Terry's seen a lot of change in his life over the past 12 months. Nearly a year ago, he and his wife welcomed their son into the world. Four months later, Terry signed a seven-year, $49 million contract, narrowly avoiding an arbitration hearing and securing his future in Anaheim for the better part of the next decade.
Between those two life milestones for Terry, the Ducks hired Greg Cronin to take the reigns behind the bench as the team's head coach. Another adjustment was required from the Ducks 26-year-old forward.
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The 2023-24 season was riddled with injuries to key pieces of the Ducks lineup from the opening puck drop in October to the final buzzer in April. Consistency was hard to come by. That, compounded with a new head coach attempting to instill a new standard and culture, resulted in the team narrowly improving upon their points total in the standings. They finished 2022-23 with 58 points and 2023-24 with 59.
Terry saw his production drop from 23 goals, 38 assists, and 61 points in 70 games in 2022-23 to 20 goals, 34 assists, and 54 points in 76 games in 2023-24.
"I still expect a lot from myself, but I’m able to turn the page easier and not let it define me," Terry said when asked about how he's grown and challenging, yet not being too hard on himself. "There’s been times where it’s hard to do that. You care so much about hockey and when things aren’t going your way, its tough. The recipe isn’t the same for everyone.”
When asked what in his game he wanted to work on going into the 2024-25 season, Terry responded by saying, "I probably won't go on the ice for at least the first half of summer. My focus is in the gym. Once I go on the ice, I think shooting. I kind of got away from being a shooter this year sometimes and tried to pass the puck too much. So maybe just working on my shooting overall and maybe recalibrate myself as a shooter.”
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Having not been gifted with elite size or other obvious physical attributes, Terry's (6-foot, 185-pounds) best asset is his brain. He has figured out how to succeed and make a positive impact at every level in which he's played and in any circumstance.
In his Freshman season at the University of Denver, Terry was just over a half-point-per-game player (22 points in 41 games). His Sophomore and Junior seasons saw jumps in production and he tallied 93 points in 64 games throughout those two years.
After turning pro following his Junior year, Terry had the AHL figured out (57 points in 55 games), but took over three seasons to break through at the NHL level. He finally broke out in 2021-22 with 37 goals and 67 points in 75 games.
Many will attribute Terry's breakout to increased confidence, and while that may have been a considerable factor, he also put in the effort to get physically stronger and decipher how to get pucks to more dangerous areas of the ice.
“If you looked at where I was, physically, when I first came to the NHL. That’s been my biggest focus and I’ve come a long way," Terry said. "Strength has always been my focus."
Terry is at his best when he has the puck on his stick and he's dissecting individual defenders and often entire defenses. He has an underrated tenacious quality when he's working to create a shot for himself. He manipulates angles and baits defenders into leaning one way or another in order to create enough space to release his shot.
Terry has always displayed a high hockey IQ on both ends of the ice. He translates his ability to read defenders and tendencies to disrupting opposing attacks with his stick.
Though the offensive production and generation may have left something to be desired, he continued to take strides on the other side of the puck.
"I think my defensive game has come a long way," Terry said of his two-way ability. "(Greg Cronin) is really detailed and good with (that). He’s a very good teacher of that side of the game."
Several aspects may have led to Terry's production decrease in 2023-24, including a new coach deploying a new brand of hockey, playing with more puck-dominant players, changes to his personal life, etc. One thing is apparent, Terry will do whatever he can to diagnose, calculate, and execute the necessary steps to positively impact the offensive end of the ice with greater frequency in 2024-25 like he always has.
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