Anaheim Ducks Trade Deadline Preview and Some Thoughts from Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman
Friday's noon PST trade deadline is fast approaching and the Ducks are a team receiving a lot of interest league-wide
Anaheim Ducks Trade Deadline Preview and Some Thoughts from Sportsnet's Elliotte FriedmanThe NHL’s trade deadline is Friday, March 8 at noon PST. The Anaheim Ducks are in the midst of their sixth consecutive losing season and are firmly in the “seller” column again at this year’s trade deadline season. They have a handful of names circulating within the rumor mill.
Monday morning, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet and Hockey Night in Canada offered updates on every team heading into the week of the trade deadline and had some interesting tidbits between his “32 Thoughts” article and accompanying podcast on the state of the Anaheim Ducks heading into this crucial week.
Here are the names out of Anaheim garnering interest from opposing teams and a few of Friedman’s thoughts:
Frank Vatrano
Vatrano (29) is in the second year of his three-year contract with an AAV of $3.65 million. He’s scoring at a near-40-goal pace (29 goals in 61 games) in 2023-24 and plays with tenacity and a high compete level. The all-star forward could provide a depth scoring role on any contending team in need (which is nearly all of them). If the Ducks are willing to retain 50% of Vatrano’s contract, his AAV would decrease to $1.825 million.
“Teams have looked into (Vatrano) and I’ve been told the price is very high,” Friedman reported on the 32 Thoughts podcast. “If he gets traded, we’re going to look at the return and we’re going to understand why he gets moved. It’s going to be big.”
The substantial ask from Ducks GM Pat Verbeek is understandable. Vatrano has provided goal-scoring and a veteran presence to a roster in need of both. He isn’t a rental, if a team were to trade for him, they would acquire his services for potentially two playoff runs.
A near-identical comparable would be when the New Jersey Devils traded Blake Coleman to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2019-20 season in exchange for a first-round pick and a prospect (Nolan Foote, drafted 27th overall in 2019). Coleman had a year and a half left on his contract that carried an AAV of $1.8 million. One could assume Verbeek is asking for a similar price for Vatrano.
Adam Henrique
Adam Henrique (34) is in the final year of his five-year contract with an AAV of $5.825 million and includes a 10-team NTC. The versatile forward is scoring at the highest rate in his career with 18 goals and 24 assists in 60 games for the Ducks in 2023-24. Henrique plays a cerebral, 200-foot game, can provide depth scoring from any forward position, and plays positionally sound, disruptive defensive hockey. Elliotte Friedman has reported that the Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers (among others) have expressed interest.
“I’m expecting Henrique to move,” Friedman said. “There’s been a bunch of interest around him.”
The market for forwards who can play center is thin. There are several teams in need of a boost to their middle six at that position and the two most impactful targets have already been traded (Elias Lindholm and Sean Monaghan). Both those players cost the acquiring teams a first-round pick and then some. With the demand high and the supply low, a first-round pick isn’t an unreasonable ask from Pat Verbeek. However, Henrique’s hefty contract ($2.9125 million with 50% retention) may render that ask a bit lofty.
Sam Carrick
Sam Carrick (32) is in the final year of his two-year contract with an AAV of $850k. He’s scored eight goals and three assists in 61 games with the Ducks in 2023-24. He plays a gritty, high-energy brand of hockey and is diligent on the defensive side of the puck. He is a prototypical fourth-line forward who can play center and add a physical element to any contending team in need. Elliotte Friedman has reported the Edmonton Oilers have called inquiring about Carrick.
“I know there’s been some interest around Sam Carrick,” Friedman reported on the 32 Thoughts podcast.
Carrick plays a style built for playoffs where energy and grit have value. If he were to be moved, a mid-round pick could be seen as the expected return.
John Gibson
John Gibson (30) is in the fifth year of his eight-year contract with an AAV of $6.4 million and includes a 10-team NTC. Reports during the summer of 2023 indicated Gibson had requested a trade, but was willing to be patient. He is one of the most talented goaltenders in the league and has played behind some of the worst defensive teams in the modern era of the NHL. This season, his .898 SV% is hovering around the league average (.903) and he’s saving .056 goals above expected per 60 minutes.
“John Gibson is probably not going (anywhere),” Elliotte Friedman reported. “If he’s going, he’s going in the offseason.”
Gibson’s contract can be seen as the biggest deterrent from a contender acquiring his services. The goalie market is thin, but contending teams are mostly against the cap ceiling and likely view Gibson as a risky option given his numbers over the last handful of years as the Ducks have been rebuilding. The Ducks seem more than willing to display patience unless an offer comes in that blows them away.
Radko Gudas
Radko Gudas (33) was a surprising name to hear in trade deadline talks. The veteran RHD signed a three-year contract with an AAV of $4 million with the Ducks in the summer of 2023. He’s provided the team with a steady and disruptive presence on the blueline and has been an oasis as a defensive partner for some of the team’s younger LHDs navigating their way through an entire 82-game NHL season. He’s scored 15 points in 55 games in 2023-24.
“I’ve heard there have been teams that have asked a little bit about Gudas,” Elliotte Friedman reported on the 32 Thoughts podcast. “I’m under the impression the Ducks are saying ‘no way, we’re simply not doing it.’”
Gudas went to the Stanley Cup Final in 2022-23 as a member of the Florida Panthers and that experience coupled with his meat-and-potatoes style would be very attractive to a contending team. However, it’s also attractive to the Ducks who prefer to have veterans like Gudas on their roster. The cost for him would likely be astronomical.
Trevor Zegras
Zegras (22) has been the center of speculation-based rumors since the Ducks traded Jamie Drysdale and a second-round pick for Cutter Gauthier in January. The supremely talented young forward is in the first year of a three-year contract with an AAV of $5.75 million. After back-to-back 60-plus point seasons in his first two full years in the NHL, Zegras has sustained two lower-body injuries and only managed seven points in the 20 games he has played. To start the season and between his injuries, Zegras showed a willingness and eagerness to round out his game and make an impact on the defensive side of the puck. He was translating his anticipation skills and hockey IQ he typically uses to create offense to cause turnovers defensively.
“They’ve told teams they don’t have enough of what we want to do this,” Elliotte Friedman reported of the conversations between Pat Verbeek and opposing GMs. “They’re going to give Zegras the chance to prove that he can or can’t do what they’re asking him to do, which is bulking up and showing a two-way commitment.”
Unless blown away by an offer, Pat Verbeek and the Ducks don’t seem too inclined to entertain the idea of trading Trevor Zegras. The team has struggled to score goals consistently over the past handful of years. They traded for Cutter Gauthier to help remedy that issue in the years to come and potentially trading Trevor Zegras, one of the few players who’s managed to produce for the Ducks of late, seems counterintuitive to that thought process.
The Ducks traded Ilya Lyubushkin to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Feb. 29, but have been relatively quiet since. With the amount of negotiations and players receiving inquiries, this looks to be an extremely busy few days for Pat Verbeek and the Ducks front office. This team will almost certainly look a lot different come 12:01 PM PST on Friday.