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Ducks off-season review: Anaheim’s messy summer sees already weak defence core get worse

Edmonton Oilers Matt Savoie Anaheim Ducks

Photo credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

By Ryley Delaney

Sep 10, 2026, 08:00 EDTUpdated: Sep 10, 2026, 00:43 EDT

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The Anaheim Ducks were one of the busiest teams this past off-season.

Busy doesn’t always mean good, though. After snapping a lengthy playoff drought and defeating the Edmonton Oilers in round one, the Ducks’ defence core has been decimated, as has their salary cap.

After looking like a potential threat in the Pacific Division, the Ducks suffered setback after setback and are a worse team than they were at the end of last season.

Let’s take a look at what the Ducks were up to this off-season.

What major acquisitions did the Ducks make this off-season?

The Ducks are a mess this season, and the reason for it is that the Ducks matched Leo Carlsson’s offer sheet. Early in the off-season, the Philadelphia Flyers gave Carlsson a five-year deal worth $18 million, with the Ducks electing to match.

It was a tough spot to be placed in, because had the Ducks declined to match, they would have received four draft picks while losing their first-line centre.

Carlsson is a fine hockey player, drafted second overall in 2023 and scoring 29 goals and 67 points in 70 games last season, with a strong postseason. However, he’s set to be the highest-paid player on an AAV basis. By matching, the Ducks’ cap structure is all messed up.

That’s bad news for the California-based team, as they still have to pay restricted free agent Cutter Gauthier, who broke out with 41 goals and 69 points in 2025-26. The Ducks freed up an additional $6.5 million in cap space by mutually terminating Chris Kreider’s contract, meaning they have over $15 million to get a deal done.

The Ducks also managed to extend or re-sign a handful of players, most notably Pavel Mintyukov. He agreed to a five-year deal worth $7.2 million annually. Ian Moore and Jeff Malott also re-signed with the Ducks.

Joining the team’s defence core is veteran Nick Jensen. A prototypical stay-at-home defenceman, the right-shot defenceman scored four goals and 17 points in 61 games with the Ottawa Senators in 2025-26.

Of the free agents they signed, the most notable of the bunch is A.J. Greer. His rights were acquired in a trade with the Florida Panthers, with the bottom-six forward signing a four-year deal with a cap hit of $4.25 million after a career-best season.

The Ducks also signed former Oilers James Hamblin and Laurent Brossoit, as well as a few other players who’ll fill out their American Hockey League team.

Which key players departed the Ducks this off-season?

Many of the Ducks’ veterans departed this off-season. On the day of writing, Kreider and the Ducks mutually terminated his contract, freeing up some more cap space for Gauthier’s extension. Kreider was part of the New York Rangers leadership core before joining the Ducks, as was Jacob Trouba.

Well, Trouba signed a long-term extension with the San Jose Sharks, who themselves had a rather wild off-season. Trouba was one of three right-shot defencemen to depart in free agency, as John Carlson departed for the Tampa Bay Lightning and Radko Gudas for the Florida Panthers.

Before signing with the Panthers, Gudas’ rights were traded to the 2024 and 2025 Stanley Cup champions for Greer’s rights, so at least the Ducks got something. That was one of a handful of trades that Ducks made around the draft. Another loss on their back end was Olen Zellweger, who scored seven goals and 22 points in 76 games for the Ducks last season.

Another departure was Mason McTavish, as the third overall pick in 2021 was traded to the St. Louis Blues for a pair of first-round picks. One was used to select Nikita Klepov; the other was traded down so the Ducks could select Marcus Nordmark. Neither player will make an impact on the Ducks for at least a couple of years.

The Ducks’ 2026-27 outlook

The Ducks’ forward core is fine, headlined by Carlsson, Gauthier, and Beckett Sennecke. They have some productive veterans in Alex Killorn, Frank Vatrano, Ryan Poehling, and Greer, but that defence core is one of the worst in the National Hockey League.

According to Daily Faceoff’s line combinations, Jackson LaCombe and Mintyukov will be their first and second pairing left-shot defencemen. After that, there aren’t many bright spots, as Tristan Luneau, Moore, Tyson Hinds, and Jensen are the four other projected defencemen.

The defence core is so much worse than it was in 2025-26, and even then they allowed 288 goals, fourth-worst in the league. There’s a solid chance that the Ducks are a one-and-done playoff team, at least for the next few years.

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Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for DFOEdmonton, DFOCalgary, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on X at @Ryley__Delaney.

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