Josh Manson

Anaheim Ducks Activate Josh Manson, Place Sam Steel On Injured Reserve

March 12, 2022 at 5:33 pm CDT | by John Gilroy 2 Comments

The Anaheim Ducks announced that they have activated defenseman Josh Manson off of injured reserve, and in a corresponding move, have placed forward Sam Steel on injured reserve. Manson will immediately draw back into the lineup as the Ducks play tonight at the New Jersey Devils.

Getting Manson back in the lineup is an important step for the Ducks, who are openly interested in either re-signing or trading the defenseman at the trade deadline. While an injured Manson is certainly not a barrier to an extension, getting him healthy and playing again allows the Ducks to show that he is fully healthy and ready to help another team, as well as an opportunity to showcase his talent once more before the deadline. The free-agent-to-be currently has seven points in 43 games for the Ducks while averaging 19:44 time-on-ice per game.

As for Steel, this will be his first stint on IR of the season. The 24-year-old forward is in the middle of what appears to be the best season of his career, totaling 17 points in 51 games, however this injury will force him to hold-off on his development for a little while.

Deadline Notes: Ducks Defensemen, Hagel, Giordano

March 8, 2022 at 9:01 pm CDT | by John Gilroy 15 Comments

Earlier today on TSN’s Insider Trading segment, Anaheim Ducks’ defensemen Hampus Lindholm and Josh Manson were hot topics. The Athletic writer and Insider for TSN, Pierre LeBrun, reported that Manson was nearing his return from injury and is being watched closely by teams around the league. LeBrun also noted that there have not been any contract talks yet between the Ducks and Manson, as the Ducks have been focusing on negotiations with Lindholm.

Speaking of those negotiations with Lindholm, word continues to be that Anaheim is unwilling to give out big-time term. The Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli notes the Ducks’ unwillingness to give out term to any of their pending UFAs, and mentions this might be in-line with the trends of Ducks’ GM Pat Verbeek’s previous boss, Detroit Red Wings’ GM Steve Yzerman. Not beginning extension talks just yet with Manson may not be a concern for the Ducks, who currently have many cards to play at the deadline. In fact, Anaheim does leave itself in a preferable position, having both Lindholm and Manson as potential extension candidates and trade chips. This could allow Anaheim to try to negotiate an extension to their liking on one or both, but if that contract does not materialize, there will almost certainly be a strong market for both defensemen.

Also during the Insider Trading segment, TSN’s Darren Dreger provided an update on Chicago Blackhawks’ forward Brandon Hagel. Dreger mentions that while Chicago would like to keep Hagel as part of their rebuild, they would not be opposed to moving him. However, the return would have to be at least a first-round draft pick and something else. Hagel has been one of the better producers for the Blackhawks this season, scoring 17 goals along with 14 assists in 51 games entering Tuesday night’s game against the Ducks. While the asking price on Hagel might seem a bit excessive to some, the 23-year-old Hagel is viewed as part of the long-term solution in Chicago, and carries just a $1.5MM cap hit through the 2023-24 season, where he will still be a RFA.
During the second-intermission of the Toronto Maple Leafs game, Dreger again gave his thoughts on several key trade deadline topics, including Seattle Kraken defensemen Mark Giordano. Dreger reported that the Kraken would like to explore the trade market for Giordano, but their asking price on the veteran is at least a first-round pick. While this price may be steep for a 38-year-old with a $6.75MM cap hit, Giordano still produces at a high level, putting up 23 points in 52 games this season for the struggling Kraken. Giordano is also a responsible defenseman who can provide veteran leadership that is always valuable on a team looking to make a long run in the postseason. If Seattle is willing to retain some of Giordano’s cap hit, which would seem likely as they will have $36.66M in cap space on trade deadline day, they may be able to sweeten the pot to acquire that first-round pick at least.

Anaheim Ducks Prefer To Re-Sign UFAs

March 5, 2022 at 6:41 pm CDT | by John Gilroy 7 Comments

9:15 pm: In his 32 Thoughts segment on Hockey Night in Canada Saturday evening, Elliotte Friedman reiterated the Anaheim Ducks desire to extend Hampus Lindholm if possible. However, he notes that the organization has expressed concern regarding the potential term of a Lindholm extension.

6:41 pm: With the trade deadline soon approaching, and the Anaheim Ducks on the outside looking in of the Western Conference playoff picture, speculation about the Ducks trade chips has started to heat up. Elliott Teaford of The Orange County Register reports that Ducks’ General Manager Pat Verbeek made clear to season ticket holders yesterday that his primary intention was to re-sign his impending unrestricted free agents, including defensemen Hampus Lindholm and Josh Manson, and forward Rickard Rakell.

Verbeek had stated at an event for season-ticket holders that while he is working on extending those players, he would look to trade them if he did not believe he could extend them. Verbeek’s primary concern, he said, would be allowing those players to leave in free agency, not having gotten something back for them, or of course re-signing them. Teaford also added that while Verbeek mentioned having ongoing discussions with Lindholm on an extension, he did not mention any of the Ducks’ other unrestricted free agents by name.

If the Ducks do choose to re-sign the trio of Lindholm, Manson, or Rakell, it could come at a high cost. Lindholm is currently in the final year of a six-year, $31.5MM contract he signed with the Ducks in 2016, carrying a cap hit just north of $5.2MM. Lindholm has been one of the Ducks’ best defensemen the past few seasons, even during some lean years in Anaheim. This season, Lindholm has put up 20 points in 53 games, and is second on the team to Cam Fowler in average time-on-ice at 22:43 per game. Lindholm is expected to received a fairly significant raise over his $5.2M cap hit, however if he is dealt, the price for the 27-year-old could be rather significant as well.

Manson is in the final year of a four year, $16.4MM contract he signed with the Ducks in 2017, a contract which has seen Manson emerge as a sturdy, reliable defender for the Ducks through their rebuild. Manson could expect a similar contract this offseason, however a veteran, right-handed, shutdown defenseman like Manson could certainly be a valuable asset to sell on the trade deadline market.

Rakell has been a name mentioned in recent rumors and by Teaford here as well. The forward could be an intriguing name on the deadline market, as a proven point-producer carrying a cap hit just below $3.8MM. However, he may be a player the Ducks could look to extend at a reasonable cost. Rakell is in the final year of a six-year, $22.8MM contract he signed in the fall of 2016, before he began to truly break-out for Anaheim. However, Rakell’s production has dissipated since his stellar 34 goal, 35 assist 2017-18 season. While Rakell is almost certainly due a raise this time around, he may be a player the Ducks could keep at a fair price for a proven scoring touch.

In addition to this trio, the Ducks unrestricted free agents also include Ryan Getzlaf, Sam Carrick, and Nicolas Deslauriers.

Trade Deadline Primer: Anaheim Ducks

March 3, 2022 at 5:10 pm CDT | by Josh Erickson 2 Comments

As the calendar turns to March, the trade deadline is inching closer. Where does each team stand and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Anaheim Ducks.

The youth is here in Southern California, perhaps a bit earlier than planned. Jamie Drysdale, Trevor Zegras, and Troy Terry are just part of the young core that’s helped to spearhead the Ducks into the playoff conversation early in the season, although things have begun to fade recently. Sonny Milano and Isac Lundestrom have also made sizable contributions to the Anaheim lineup this year.

But Anaheim has stuttered in recent weeks, now under .500 in their last ten games and two points out of a playoff spot despite playing more games than everyone else. Now in battle with more experienced teams like Nashville, Dallas, and Edmonton, the Ducks simply aren’t in a position anymore to consider selling assets for a playoff run, if they ever were. How the Ducks and new general manager Pat Verbeek navigate the Trade Deadline in this stepping stone season could have big dividends for their future.

Record

26-21-9, (.545), fifth in Pacific Division

Deadline Status

Seller

Deadline Cap Space

$38,364,807 today, $55,628,970 in full-season space, 0/3 retention slots used, 45/50 contracts used per CapFriendly

Upcoming Draft Picks

2022: ANA 1st, ANA 2nd, ANA 4th, ANA 5th, TOR 5th, NSH 6th
2023: ANA 1st, ANA 2nd, ANA 3rd, ANA 4th, ANA 5th, ANA 6th

Trade Chips

The name that likely jumps off the page for many NHL fans is defenseman Hampus Lindholm, who’s in the final season of a $5.21MM AAV deal and is a pending UFA. However, the Ducks do hope to extend Lindholm, so unless it becomes apparent in the next few weeks that an extension isn’t possible, he likely won’t be moved.

One forward who could likely get shipped out of town after many years of speculation is Rickard Rakell. He’s also a pending UFA with a cap hit of $3.79MM, an extremely reasonable hit for Rakell, who has 15 goals and 26 points in 46 games this season. He would provide great middle-six depth for any team looking to add another scoring winger to their lineup, and with Anaheim’s breadth of forward prospects, he may not really fit into their long-term plan at this point.

There’s also Nicolas Deslauriers, who was nearly a Pittsburgh Penguin at last year’s trade deadline. Now a pending UFA as well with a $1MM cap hit, the gritty fourth-line checking winger is the type of player playoff teams salivate over to complete their lineup. He has nine points in 53 games this season.

There’s also the question of captain Ryan Getzlaf, who’s again a pending UFA after signing a one-year deal to remain in Orange County. He’ll likely control his own destiny, but if he wants to chase another Stanley Cup in what could be his last season, Anaheim would likely oblige.

Defenseman Josh Manson is definitely another trade candidate and another pending UFA. One of the better defensive defensemen in the league, he can handle top-four minutes with ease and can play a bruising game. But he’s on the shelf right now with an injury, and it’s uncertain whether he’ll be healthy before the Trade Deadline. If he’s not, he can’t be moved while on injured reserve.

Team Needs

1) Defense Prospects — Anaheim’s starting to get good things out of their young defensemen like Drysdale and Josh Mahura. But the team’s prospect pool remains top-heavy as players like Jacob Larsson begin to flame out. The team’s best defensive prospect right now is likely Jackson LaCombe out of the University of Minnesota, and while he’s solid, they could use another piece or two like him to help round out their list of prospects. If teams are willing to part with players instead of draft picks in any deadline deals Anaheim makes, they’d do best to shoot for a ’D’.

2) More Draft Picks — The Ducks only have six selections in each of the next two drafts, trading away their 2022 3rd for an additional 2021 3rd last year and trading away their 2023 7th for Alexander Volkov, who has since departed the organization. The team should definitely be in a contending position in three or four years at this trajectory, and they’ll need more players from these upcoming drafts to step into the lineup on cheap, entry-level deals as they begin to spend to the salary cap again.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Morning Notes: Manson, Daws, Lorito

February 4, 2022 at 12:00 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

New Anaheim Ducks general manager has some big decisions to come in the next few weeks, as the team holds several players who would be top rental options at the trade deadline should they be put on the market. One of those names is Josh Manson, who has seemingly been linked to the Toronto Maple Leafs since the moment he entered the league. Well, if the Maple Leafs ever did want to pry Manson out of Anaheim, there’s another roadblock in the way. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet notes on the latest 32 Thoughts podcast that Toronto is one of the teams on Manson’s no-trade list.

The 30-year-old can block trades to 12 teams as part of his modified no-trade clause, which gives him at least a little bit of power over where he’ll end up if the Ducks do decide to move him in the coming weeks. Rickard Rakell and Hampus Lindholm are the other big names for the Ducks, who sit third in the Pacific Division but have played a league-high 48 games already.

The New Jersey Devils have recalled Nico Daws to the NHL roster today despite the All-Star break already being underway, sending Akira Schmid back to Utica in his place. While the Comets have a back-to-back starting tonight against the Laval Rocket and could be using it as a way to keep Schmid sharp, it will be interesting to see if Daws gets another look with the Devils down the stretch. The 21-year-old goaltender played twice in October, but with MacKenzie Blackwood’s season still up in the air perhaps he’ll get another shot to try and show what he can do at the NHL level. Daws, a third-round pick in 2020, has a .917 save percentage in 17 games for Utica this season.
Matt Lorito has signed a new one-year AHL contract with the Hartford Wolf Pack, returning to the AHL after spending this season in the KHL and SHL. The 31-year-old forward is an experienced hand in the minor leagues and won a Calder Cup in 2017 with the Grand Rapids Griffins. In his last AHL appearance, he had 11 points in 27 games for the San Diego Gulls.

West Notes: Stars, Martinez, Manson

January 29, 2022 at 4:00 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

With the Stars having a particularly inconsistent season and being in a battle for a Wild Card spot, some have wondered about the futures of head coach Rick Bowness and GM Jim Nill. Speaking with Saad Yousuf of The Athletic (subscription link), team owner Tom Gaglardi suggested that no firm decisions have been made either way:

“I think we went into this season and we thought we had a really good team and really expect this team to be solid in the playoffs. If that happens, Rick’s probably somebody we want to continue to build around. Past that, we don’t talk about those things. Summer will come when summer comes. We’ve just decided, we’re not talking about these things right now.

“We’re not talking about anybody’s contract. Let’s focus on the now and getting everything we can out of this season. The summer will come. There will be lots of time to take stock and decide which way we go. If there are changes to be made, we’ll make them then.”

A decision will need to be made on Bowness one way or the other as he’s in the final year of his contract while Nill is signed through the end of next season. It appears that the way Dallas performs over the next few months will go a long way towards determining what direction they’ll go.

Injury Notes: Stars, Ducks, Golden Knights, Devils

January 27, 2022 at 6:01 pm CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

Dallas Stars digital manager Kyle Shohara reports from team practice that defenseman John Klingberg and center Radek Faksa took the ice today after missing time with an upper-body injury and non-COVID-related illness, respectively. Klingberg missed the team’s last game, a 5-1 win against the New Jersey Devils, while Faksa missed that game and the night prior against the Philadelphia Flyers. Both would be huge returns to the Stars lineup, especially Klingberg. With the Swedish defenseman reportedly requesting a trade out of Dallas, every game (and every good play) matters for Dallas to recoup as much value as possible if a trade occurs.

A busy night in the NHL yields more injury news:

The Anaheim Ducks get two key contributors back tonight versus Montreal, activating center Adam Henrique from injured reserve and defenseman Josh Manson from COVID-19 protocol. Both return to prominent roles in the lineup, with Henrique’s 16 points in 24 games likely to help boost a stagnating Ducks offense as of late. To make room on the active roster, the team reassigned defensemen Jacob Larsson and Greg Pateryn to the taxi squad and Brendan Guhle to the AHL’s San Diego Gulls.
Two gigantic contributors are returning to the Vegas Golden Knights lineup, as wingers Max Pacioretty and Reilly Smith make their returns tonight, per the Las Vegas Sun’s Justin Emerson. Pacioretty’s rarely been healthy this year, but when he has, he’s scored at a torrid pace, netting 12 goals and 21 points in 16 games. Smith, coming off COVID protocol, has a respectable 29 points in 41 games.
The New Jersey Devils got some good news with defenseman Ty Smith coming off injured reserve today, but he’s been replaced on the list by center Michael McLeod. Despite Smith’s strong rookie campaign last season, he’s having a serious sophomore slump with poor defensive numbers and just 10 points in 33 games to show for it. Hopefully, a reset can help jumpstart an improvement in play for the 21-year-old. The Devils will miss McLeod and his 11 points and 41 games in a depth role.

Trade Rumors: Ducks, Senators, DeMelo, Duclair

January 26, 2020 at 10:34 am CDT | by Zach Leach 5 Comments

When action resumes following the All-Star break, it is the unofficial start of NHL Trade Deadline season. In fact, with a relatively early deadline day of February 24th this year, things should pick up sooner rather than later. The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch came prepared to handle the transition from All-Star exit to trade mania, reporting on a number of situations in his latest “Insider Trading” column. Garrioch begins with the further shift in the status quo of the Anaheim Ducks. Anaheim began the season hoping to return to being contenders with a talented mix of veterans and youngsters. However, it has not played out that way on the ice, as the Ducks hold the second-worst record in the Western Conference. Recently, a report came out that the team was willing to use their cap space to take on bad contracts if it meant that they could add prospects and picks in return. Garrioch now reports that the team is taking it one step further, perhaps in response to winning just three of their past 15 games. He hears from multiple league sources that the Ducks are preparing for a full rebuild and are at least willing to listen on just about every player. For a team with so few valuable impending free agents – Michael Del Zotto and Derek Grant lead the way – this shift in the status quo could make for a much bigger deadline in Anaheim. Ondrej Kase, who has previously been rumored to have fallen out of favor with the team, could be one possible casualty, as could defenseman Josh Manson, who has recently been linked to a few other teams. What about Rickard Rakell, one of the best value contracts in the league and a player that any contender would like to get their hands on? Or long-term players like Cam Fowler, Adam Henrique, and Jakob Silfverberg? Franchise faces Ryan Getzlaf and John Gibson and top defender Hampus Lindholm are likely off the table, but nearly anyone else in Anaheim over the age of 24 appears to be a candidate to move at the right price.

Garrioch mentions a number of available players, many of whom won’t comes as much of a surprise, including L.A.’s Tyler Toffoli and Alec Martinez, San Jose’s Brenden Dillon, and the Rangers’ Chris Kreider (if the team can’t re-sign him). However, he states definitively that the New Jersey Devils’ impending UFA’s are also up for grabs. This means Andy Greene, Sami Vatanen, and Wayne Simmonds, three players who many were unsure the Devils would part with, could very well be on new teams in a month’s time. As for teams in the mix, Garrioch claims that the Islanders and Jets are leading the search for defense, while the Bruins, Blues, Flames, and Coyotes are the most eager to add forwards.
The Ottawa Senators have ten impending UFA’s on the roster, but not all of them will survive the trade deadline. Garrioch reports that GM Pierre Dorion plans to sit down with each one before the deadline and discuss the possibility of an extension before putting them on the block. At this point in their rebuild, the Senators cannot afford to let valuable players walk away as free agents, meaning the likes of Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Vladislav Namestnikov, Ron Hainsey, Mark Borowiecki, and Dylan DeMelo and more need to have made a decision on their commitment to Ottawa soon or they could be sent packing.
On the DeMelo front in particular, Garrioch reports that the Florid Panthers are the leading suitor for the 26-year-old defenseman, should Ottawa opt to move him. He mentions that that the Carolina Hurricanes are another team with definite interest. Garrioch adds that Florida is also looking for a backup goalie, which could potentially put former Panther Craig Anderson on their radar.
As for one player who has made up his mind on his future with Ottawa, All-Star Anthony Duclair tells Sportsnet’s Luke Fox that he hopes to re-sign long-term with the Senators. The 24-year-old has excelled since arriving in Ottawa late last season and wants to continue to play a central role for the team through their rebuild:

I just want to focus and really end the season on a positive note like I did last year, and really make a statement to the management and the coaching staff that I want to be a big part of this rebuild. I’m still a young guy. When the change is gonna happen, when Ottawa’s gonna become a contender, I want to be part of that. So I’m working as hard as I can.

Injury Notes: Tarasenko, Kase, Archibald

October 25, 2019 at 3:44 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 2 Comments

The St. Louis Blues will be without sniper Vladimir Tarasenko for at least their next two games, as he isn’t traveling with the team on their latest road trip. Tarasenko suffered an upper-body injury last night and will be re-evaluated on Monday.

Here’s some more injury news from around the league:

The Anaheim Ducks acquired Erik Gudbranson today from the Pittsburgh Penguins, perhaps in part due to the fact that Josh Manson has been placed on injured reserve. He’ll be joined there by Ondrej Kase, with both players out for at least the next two games. The Ducks say a further update will be given next week, but those are two very important players to lose for a pair of weekend tilts against the Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights.
The New Jersey Devils have activated Will Butcher from injured reserve, though he is still not expected to play tonight when they take on the Arizona Coyotes. In his place, Connor Carrick has been moved to IR with an upper-body injury suffered yesterday in practice.
Josh Archibald hasn’t scored a point yet for the Edmonton Oilers, and won’t get one anytime soon. That’s because he’s been placed on injured reserve with a right foot fracture and will miss two to four weeks.

Anaheim Ducks’ Randy Carlyle On The Hot Seat

January 12, 2019 at 9:31 am CDT | by Zach Leach 5 Comments

Mired in a nine-game losing streak, The Athletic’s Eric Duhatschek wrote yesterday that this is a “critical time” for the Anaheim Ducks. While he notes that the Ducks have the unfortunate designation of leading the NHL in man-games lost this season, they were set to finally add top-pair defenseman Cam Fowler and first-line forward Rickard Rakell back into the lineup last night. The team hoped that the duo’s return would finally spark a win for a team that is as close to full health now as they have been all year.

It didn’t work out that way. Despite taking a 3-0 first period lead on the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, the Ducks ended up losing 7-4 behind four unanswered Penguins goals in the third period in one of the more disheartening defeats that any team has faced this year.

Despite the optimism that injuries were the cause of their slump and a return to health would right the ship, Anaheim lost again last night for their tenth straight game without a win. The team has plummeted down the standings, now a whopping 12 points back of the final Pacific Division seed, held by the surging Vegas Golden Knights, and a point behind Minnesota for the final wild card spot, with the Wild holding two games in hand. The Ducks are one more loss away from being a .500 team and have slipped to a -27 in goal differential, not quite the numbers of a playoff-bound team. Anaheim is second-to-last in goals for per game, fueled by the fewest shots per game in the league on average, have an anemic 14.3% power play, and – despite the best efforts of starter John Gibson playing behind a porous defense of late – are a middle of the road goals against team.

Nothing seems to be working out for the Ducks and the early indications are that injuries are not entirely to blame. With a roster that has ample talent on paper, the blame then rationally falls onto the head coach, Randy Carlyle. Carlyle, in his third year of his second stint with Anaheim, has been unable to find the cure for what ails them this season. The team has struggled to score goals as well as prevent them, has not had success on special teams, and allows far too many shots, especially in light of how few they take themselves. The Ducks have lost three games in overtime during this stretch, as well as several more one-goal and two-goal games, as Carlyle has been unable to turn any game situation in his favor. Given the talent available for Anaheim – even accounting for the absences of Corey Perry and Patrick Eaves – the fact that Carlyle has not been able to get more out of the likes of Rakell, Ryan Getzlaf, Jakob Silfverberg, Hampus Lindholm, Josh Manson, and more is alarming – and it may just cost him his job.

Duhatschek noted, even before last night’s embarrassing collapse, that change would be coming if the team could not get it together. He specifically refers to trades, as the team trends in the direction of “deadline seller” territory. Certainly, GM Bob Murray will need to consider moving impending free agent Silfverberg, as well as deal from his depth in goaltending and defense in the minors, but a roster move seems less likely to be the next big decision. Carlyle is absolutely on the hot seat and if he can’t find a way to motivate his players, solve his situational struggles, and string together some wins, he will likely be fired long before the Ducks begin making trades. As the team begins a five-game road trip, it begs the question whether Ducks fans will see Carlyle behind the home bench again this season.

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