GDT: #82 ⋅ ANA @ VGK ⋅ 7:00 PM PDT

[Smirnov2Chistov]

Very bittersweet. Love the Ducks, but thankful it’s over.

It sucks that the season came down like this. Unfortunately barring major personnel changes or roster changes, we may be in for more of the same next year.

I go back and forth with the assistant coaches debate. If the guys that they deploy out on the PP/PK aren’t getting it done, what makes you think the next hires will?

Here’s to next year

 

[Terry Yake]

this truly was a season from f***ing hell

 

[JAHV]

I know a lot of people have expressed sentiments otherwise, and I get it, but I've enjoyed this season FAR more than last. By the final game last year, I didn't even care. The only thing that mattered was getting the best odds at Bedard and securing a top three pick. Rooting for your team to lose sucks.

Mostly, I'm encouraged by the young players. Even in games that were otherwise miserable, Carlsson, Mintyukov, Zellweger, and others give me hope for the future. And now Gauthier is in the mix.

I'm excited to watch this game tonight. Hopefully next year we'll be watching some meaningful games in April.

 

[Henrique Iglesias]

Hate to say it….but a Vegas win would mean they play the Oilers in the first round. I think Vegas has a better chance to beat out Edmonton than LA, potentially making our EDM 1st rounder a higher pick. It’s a small thing but worth noting.

 

[slippingsloth]

One of these days would like both of them to make the playoffs. My goal is to go to a Ducks playoff game and Rangers playoff game in the same week. Lol.

id say at the same time

 

[Leonardo87]

NHL at least giving Cutter some attention...

 

[lwvs84]

Hate to say it….but a Vegas win would mean they play the Oilers in the first round. I think Vegas has a better chance to beat out Edmonton than LA, potentially making our EDM 1st rounder a higher pick. It’s a small thing but worth noting.

LA loss does the same thing... basically Vegas needs the same result as LA. We can hope both teams lose.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Record
Last year: 23-47-12 (58 pts)
This year: 26-50-5 (57 pts) with one more game left

Can the Ducks tie or surpass last year's team with respect to points? Gives us another reason to watch.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Well he says things, he asserts them really, and they're all we have to go on. And maybe they're offhanded or meant to be taken as rules of thumb rather than actual rules. Or maybe we're just in a phase where lineup things like that are going to be suboptimal until the rebuild is further along. But yeah, his words aren't a great match for reality. PV's defenders defend him by saying that you can't actually take him at his word on anything, which is both a hilarious defense and also a convenient way to superimpose your own logic onto PV's illogic.

So who knows.

I'm thinking that this year was a reality check for Verbeek. Last year, Verbeek didn't even take his time to get rid of Eakins because Verbeek was expecting to come out at .500 to start the season with the shit roster he gave us. This year with a far better roster, especially on defense, Verbeek is in love with Cronin's work despite currently possessing one less point than last year's team.

Although, it's sad knowing we have a GM going through reality checks in year 2 because all that time training as a assistant GM seems all for naught.

 

[duckaroosky]

NHL at least giving Cutter some attention...

I'm sure the comment section is going well with nothing but support for Cutter

 

[CrazyDuck4u]

Can we leave Newell Brown behind somewhere on the Vegas Strip? lol

Nah more like the desert ..

 

[FiveTacos]

I know a lot of people have expressed sentiments otherwise, and I get it, but I've enjoyed this season FAR more than last. By the final game last year, I didn't even care. The only thing that mattered was getting the best odds at Bedard and securing a top three pick. Rooting for your team to lose sucks.

I agree, last year was a slog. This year there's been more general competitiveness (as goal differential suggests) and more flashes from more future core guys. The season felt like it went by a lot faster.

It has been frustrating to constantly have injuries though. We never really even got a glimpse of what everyone together could look like. What's the final total for games with all of Leo, Zegras, McT, and Minty all healthy? Feels like about a dozen.

Last year it was really just Mason and Trevor who we knew were going to be key pieces moving forward, and a whole lot of junk/stopgaps ... Besides that we only got a cup of coffee from Lacombe. This year we've gotten a chance to see many more pipeline guys, and what we've seen from those individuals has mostly been promising:

Leo: despite some lulls looks like a great pick and future 1c
Minty: exceeded most expectations, future core Dman, maybe even 1d?
McT: still needs work but flashed higher offensive potential than last year when healthy
Zell: progressed nicely from camp, potentially dynamic OFD
Zegras: slow start, injuries, but now playing at a higher level than ever before
Lacombe: mixed bag in a tough role, but is at least NHL capable
Luneau: made progress in a short time before getting leprosy or whatever
Colangelo: he looks NHL ready already, will help bottom 6 next year
Gauthier: blue chip addition, and we get to see the trailer tonight

That's a lot for one season.

 

[duxfan1101]

One of the more inflammatory posts I've seen our social media team make.

 

[MCB]

One of the more inflammatory posts I've seen our social media team make.

Shots fired. Love it hahaha

 

[FiveTacos]

One of the more inflammatory posts I've seen our social media team make.

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

One of the more inflammatory posts I've seen our social media team make.

That's some good shit.

 

[Rybread86]

I know a lot of people have expressed sentiments otherwise, and I get it, but I've enjoyed this season FAR more than last. By the final game last year, I didn't even care. The only thing that mattered was getting the best odds at Bedard and securing a top three pick. Rooting for your team to lose sucks.

Mostly, I'm encouraged by the young players. Even in games that were otherwise miserable, Carlsson, Mintyukov, Zellweger, and others give me hope for the future. And now Gauthier is in the mix.

I'm excited to watch this game tonight. Hopefully next year we'll be watching some meaningful games in April.

Agreed. Regardless of results I feel like we've actually seen progress with the roster this season. We're seeing guys we know will be here for a while, getting better talent surrounding the youth.

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

One of the more inflammatory posts I've seen our social media team make.

This needs to go in the main board thread.

 

[duxfan1101]

I agree with Felix’s thoughts here. Zegras can be dangerous with his shot on his strong side, but it also allows him to make skilled passes across to Gauthier, who should easily have the best one timer on that unit. Terry had a tendency to overthink and over handle the puck on the half wall, so hopefully playing in front of the net forces him to simplify his game. Carlsson might have to figure out how to play a new role, but he is smart enough to be a roamer and go where he’s needed.

 

[Rybread86]

I agree with Felix’s thoughts here. Zegras can be dangerous with his shot on his strong side, but it also allows him to make skilled passes across to Gauthier, who should easily have the best one timer on that unit. Terry had a tendency to overthink and over handle the puck on the half wall, so hopefully playing in front of the net forces him to simplify his game. Carlsson might have to figure out how to play a new role, but he is smart enough to be a roamer and go where he’s needed.

Thinking out loud a bit but is Terry suited for that role? I feel like Killer is better for net front

 

[duxfan1101]

Thinking out loud a bit but is Terry suited for that role? I feel like Killer is better for net front

I was literally just about to come back and say that if I were to make one swap it would be Killorn for Terry. One issue with that is then that unit would be 5 lefties, which isn’t ideal. I wouldn’t even be against trying Strome there. I think at this point, Terry doesn’t seem suited for a spot on the half wall, so we might as well try him either on the goal line or as the bumper.

 

[Rybread86]

I was literally just about to come back and say that if I were to make one swap it would be Killorn for Terry. One issue with that is then that unit would be 5 lefties, which isn’t ideal. I think at this point, Terry doesn’t seem suited for a spot on the half wall, so we might as well try him either on the goal line or as the bumper.

Bumper seems like a good spot for Terry, gives him some room. but if they are trying to simplify his game then I guess net front makes sense, I just feel Killer is a better option. Maybe they are just trying a youngster unit and seeing what it can do. I dont mind trying things out

 

[WhatTheDuck]

Keep it below six goals against, and we can avoid joining SJ and Columbus as the only teams to allow 300.

Avoid losing by six or more, and our goal differential stays out of triple digits (currently -94).

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

Keep it below six goals against, and we can avoid joining SJ and Columbus as the only teams to allow 300.

Avoid losing by six or more, and our goal differential stays out of triple digits (currently -94).

Really playing for lower-case p pride.

 

[FiveTacos]

Keep it below six goals against, and we can avoid joining SJ and Columbus as the only teams to allow 300.

Avoid losing by six or more, and our goal differential stays out of triple digits (currently -94).

I know points wise there hasn't been improvement, but I can only imagine how awful last year's team would have been had Zegras, McTavish, Terry, Fowler, etc all taken extended turns on the IR the way our most talented guys have this year. We wouldn't have had to sweat at all about having the best lottery odds, it would have been locked up with a month and a half left.