Last week, we wrote about the latest good young d-man to debut for Anaheim -- Brandon Montour, the 22-year-old that’s starred for AHL San Diego this year.
Some thought Montour’s time with the Ducks would be brief, given his recall coincided with Sami Vatanen falling ill. But Vatanen is back, and Montour is still around -- rather than sending him back, Anaheim opted to send another good young d-man, ’13 first-rounder Shea Theodore, to the minors.
Why?
“We know [Theodore will] be back,” head coach Randy Carlyle said, per the O.C. Register. “It’s not a question of if, it’s just when. And it gives us an opportunity to take a longer look at Montour here, who was recalled. Given him a couple games so far, and we’ll have an opportunity for him to stay with our hockey club and practice with us.
“Kind of get more up to speed on where he’s at in his development.”
Montour played, albeit sparingly, in the first two games following his recall -- 17:54 in his debut against Calgary, and 10:06 in a shootout loss to Vancouver. The 55th overall pick in ’14 was then scratched for Sunday’s win over Philly, so it’s not as if he’s ready for a full-time role with the Ducks.
But the fact Anaheim wants an extended look at Montour could be telling. As mentioned above, he’s one of several Ducks d-men that are 25 or younger, along with Theodore, Fowler, Vatanen, Hampus Lindholm and Josh Manson. The latter three already established as full-time NHLers.
Beyond those, there’s also ’15 first-rounder Jacob Larsson (who made his NHL debut earlier this year) and Swedish blueliner Marcus Pettersson, who was taken 17 spots ahead of Montour in ’14.
Fowler’s name has been floated in trade rumors for a while. There was widespread speculation he’d be moved at the draft, to the point where even he expressed surprise that he wasn’t dealt.
“It’s been an interesting week or so, that’s for sure,” the 24-year-old Ducks defenseman told ESPN.com back in June. “You hear your name tossed out there. I’ve heard that before even at recent trade deadlines, but this time with the position the Ducks are in and some of the salaries, it just seemed like it was pretty real.
“I was 100 percent prepared for something to happen. And was honestly pretty surprised when it didn’t.”
Financially speaking, it seems inevitable Anaheim will have to eventually make some kind of move. The Ducks are pressed right up against the cap ceiling, and that’s with d-man Simon Despres’ $3.7 million cap hit on LTIR (concussion). Don’t forget GM Bob Murray waived veteran blueliner Clayton Stoner earlier this year, he of the $13 million contract.
(Stoner is currently on IR following abdominal surgery.)
The big question, it seems, is if Anaheim will make a move by next month’s trade deadline. Because there are a number of teams looking for good young defensemen, even if the acquisition price is sky-high.