The Anaheim Ducks have given their fans real reason to feel optimistic again. They’re coming off their first playoff series win since 2017, and the young talent in the organization is still the kind that turns heads around the league. But even after that step forward, this offseason has already thrown a few ugly punches.
The biggest one landed in early July, when the Philadelphia Flyers signed 21-year-old center Leo Carlsson to a five-year offer sheet with an $18 million cap hit. Anaheim had no choice but to match it, keeping its franchise centerpiece but also jamming up the team’s salary structure in the process. That move doesn’t just affect Carlsson’s own future - it likely pushes the price tag higher for 22-year-old winger Cutter Gauthier, who remains a restricted free agent after a 40-goal season.
That tension was the focus on Thursday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, where host Tyler Yaremchuk laid out why the Ducks still have some real question marks despite the encouraging big picture.
“Let’s live in a glass-half-full world. Cutter Gauthier signs for $9.5 million on a one-year deal and you’re good for a year.
Does that blueline scream confidence? (Jackson) LaCombe is unbelievable, he’ll win a Norris at some point.
(Pavel) Mintyukov at $7.2 million, you’re certainly hoping that’s a guy that can handle second-pairing minutes. Nick Jensen is 35 years old, top-four minutes for Nick Jensen?
Ian Moore was playing forward in the playoffs last year. Drew Helleson, Tyson Hinds, Tristan Luneau, they’re all fine pieces, but that’s not a group of seven that inspires a ton of confidence in me.”
Yaremchuk also pointed to the goaltending as something that looks workable, even if it comes with its own workload concerns.
“Lukas Dostal with the duo of (Ville) Husso or (Laurent) Brossoit in net is probably fine. Dostal is great, can he give you 55 games next year?
I would be hesitant to lean on him that hard because if you want to be a playoff team, you probably want to keep him fresh, but maybe Dostal’s ready for that. Goaltending’s probably fine.”
Up front, his read was that the Ducks could be okay - but only if the Gauthier situation doesn’t drag on and become a standoff with Pat Verbeek’s front office.
“The forward group could be fine depending on how this Gauthier situation plays out. The fact that it’s Gauthier negotiating against this Pat Verbeek front office leads me to wonder; are they just going to sit there and butt heads, and is he going to miss the first month of the season over this? I don’t know.”
For all the upside in Anaheim, Yaremchuk closed with a warning for Ducks fans: the blueline, the cap mess, and the unresolved Gauthier deal leave plenty to worry about.
“Ducks fans. For a handful of reasons, the blueline, the cap situation, Gauthier being unsigned, you should be a little bit on edge.”
In Other News...
Yegor Sidorov Still Has Work To Do In The Ducks Pipeline
Yegor Sidorovs second straight season with the San Diego Gulls offered a reminder that the path from prospect to NHL regular is rarely linear. After being drafted by the Ducks, the winger stayed in the AHL and saw his offensive production dip from his rookie year, even as he continued to get a taste of power-play duty and flashes of the role Anaheim eventually wants him to fill.
For now, the bigger picture is unchanged: Sidorov still has a year left on his entry-level contract, and the Ducks can afford to keep letting the game catch up to his tools in San Diego. He has not locked down a permanent top-six spot yet, but there is still a lane for him to push toward an NHL debut if his next step comes quickly enough. [Read more 🡒]