Last season, the Anaheim Ducks dealt with a slew of injuries, particularly to their veteran players. It’s looking like they won’t break that pattern in 2018-19.
The Ducks announced that pesky power forward Corey Perry is expected to miss five months (or 20 weeks) after undergoing knee surgery “to repair meniscus and MCL injuries.” The Athletic’s Eric Stephens reports that Perry’s knee “popped” during a recent warm-up session, aggravating previous issues.
While partner-in-crime Ryan Getzlaf remains one of the NHL’s most prolific passers despite entering the age range where decay is more or less expected, Perry’s noticeably slowed in recent years. The agitating 33-year-old failed to reach 20 goals in each of the last two seasons (17 in 2017-18; 19 in 2016-17).
Considering that Perry missed 11 regular-season games last season, there was likely some hope that he might regain some of his previous form during a healthier season. Instead, the Ducks are merely hoping to have the veteran winger back in the mix by the trade deadline.
The Ducks were already waddling limping into 2018-19 to begin with, as while there’s some uncertainty regarding Ryan Kesler’s being able to play, there’s an overarching concern that the cantankerous center won’t be anywhere near full-strength even if he does suit up.
Not that long ago, it seemed like the Ducks were building up a war chest of players who combined skill with “being tough to play against.” It wasn’t just Perry or Kesler, but also sandpaper types such as Kevin Bieksa.
Time caught up with Bieksa (even if he’s apparently in great shape?), and it seems like years of hard-fought battles and net-front trolling have caught up with Perry and Kesler, who’s even a bit older at 34.
About the only bright side is that, based on last season, the Ducks are at least accustomed to dealing with injuries.
This also opens the door for younger players to assert themselves. Perhaps speedy winger Ondrej Kase can prove that he deserves a more prominent role in the offense?
Top two right wings for Ducks on opening night looking like Troy Terry and Ondrej Kase, with Jakob Silfverberg now on the left side.
— Eric Stephens (@icemancometh) September 26, 2018
That said, the flip side is that Ducks GM Bob Murray may feel that much more inspired to “pivot” in 2018-19, possibly trying to shed some money and go toward more of a youth movement overall.
Consider these factors:
- Again, these veterans are banged-up. Kesler and Perry aren’t healthy, while Getzlaf’s approaching a phase of his career where it might be wise to strategically hand him more rest.
- We’ve seen the emergence of certain prime-age forwards, with Rickard Rakell standing out, in particular.
- There’s fantastic youth when it comes to the Ducks hopes of preventing goals, and transitioning the puck out of their own end. Hampus Lindholm and Brandon Montour are 24, while Cam Fowler and Josh Manson are 26. Meanwhile, John Gibson is a borderline-star goalie at 25.
- Anaheim is something of a “budget” team. If, like last season, they’re fighting to survive amid injuries, would it be wiser to shed some salary?
- After all, GM Bob Murray wasn’t really all that convinced to be a “buyer” during last year’s trade deadline. Maybe it’s time to hit the reset button?
- Let’s not forget that the massive gains made by other Pacific Division teams. The Sharks landed Erik Karlsson after already seemingly pulling away a bit from Anaheim last season. The Vegas Knights enjoyed a nice summer by bringing in Max Pacioretty and Paul Stastny. The Kings even got Ilya Kovalchuk. Maybe the Ducks should put their sights more on, say, 2019-20?
In all honesty, the window to move aging players for the best-possible assets was likely open wider earlier. Even so, Murray & Co. should at least ponder an uncomfortable question: are all these bodies breaking down a sign that it’s time to make some painful changes?
Either way, the Ducks could be in for another tough start to a season.
MORE: Your 2018-19 NHL on NBC TV schedule
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.