The Hockey News' Derek Lee previews the Ducks' matchup against the Calgary Flames.
ANAHEIM, Calif. - The Ducks are preparing for their final home game of the 2023-24 season, facing off against the Calgary Flames. It will be the final NHL home game for Jakob Silfverberg, who announced his retirement on Thursday.
"I think the guys all listen to (Silfverberg), they respect him," head coach Greg Cronin said. "There's a lot of experience that he has that I think gives him the credibility to be a role model and a messenger, and they listen."
While Silfverberg is calling it a career, Sam Colangelo is just beginning his. The 22-year-old signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Ducks on Thursday and is set to make his NHL debut against the Flames.
"It's a dream come true," Colangelo said. "It's something that I've worked for my whole life and I'm really excited to be here. Really excited for this moment for not only myself but also my family and a lot of people back home who have helped me get to this day."
"He's taller than I thought," said Cronin of Colangelo. "He's a thick-bodied kid, but I noticed he was making some really poised plays with the puck (during practice) in those 3-on-3 battles and he wasn't just chucking it away or dumping it. He was trying to make plays."
Fast Facts:
-Olen Zellweger had three points in the Ducks' last matchup against the Flames on Apr. 2, the first multi-point game of his NHL career.
-Jakob Silfverberg has 22 points in 38 career games against the Flames. He is six assists away from 200 as a Duck.
-Leo Carlsson is one goal away from having the most goals scored by a teenager (single season) in franchise history (13).
Ducks Projected Lines
Alex Killorn - Leo Carlsson - Troy Terry
Frank Vatrano - Trevor Zegras - Ryan Strome
Jakob Silfverberg - Isac Lundeström - Sam Colangelo
Ross Johnston - Ben Meyers - Brett Leason
Cam Fowler - Olen Zellweger
Jackson LaCombe - Radko Gudas
Urho Vaakanainen - Gustav Lindström
John Gibson
Flames Projected Lines
Yegor Sharangovich - Mikael Backlund - Matt Coronato
Martin Pospíšil - Nazem Kadri - Andrei Kuzmenko
Jonathan Huberdeau - Connor Zary - Andrew Mangiapane
A.J. Greer - Kevin Rooney - Walker Duehr
MacKenzie Weegar - Daniil Miromanov
Ilya Solovyov - Rasmus Andersson
Oliver Kylington - Brayden Pachal
Dustin Wolf