This past week, I’ve engaged in an exercise of ranking former members of the Anaheim Ducks who now play for teams currently competing or that formerly competed in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. As we can see so far, there are quite a few players who fit that description. So far, we’ve ranked numbers 15-6, including some honorable mentions. Now it’s time for the top five. Let’s discuss, shall we?
5. Adam Henrique, Edmonton Oilers
Adam Henrique spent six seasons with the Ducks beginning with an early-season trade during the 2017-18 campaign and ending with a trade deadline deal this past season. Unfortunately, his tenure coincided with the Ducks’ fall from perennial contender to Pacific Division basement dweller. Fortunately for him, though, his situation reversed overnight and currently finds himself in the enviable position of competing for a Stanley Cup with the Edmonton Oilers.
Acquired originally to provide support down the middle to an aging Ryan Getzlaf and oft-hurt Ryan Kesler, Henrique quickly became one of the Ducks’ most skilled and important forwards. He was one of the main focal points of an offense that was in precipitous decline from 2018-23. Even still, he managed four 40-plus point seasons in a Ducks uniform, including three 20-goal seasons. That’s good, but not nearly what you need from a top-line player if you want to be any good offensively as a team, which the Ducks have not been for some time.
Now with the Oilers, Henrique no longer needs to be a primary source of offense, and can use the good speed and shot that he still possesses to provide supplementary scoring to Connor McDavid, Zach Hyman, Leon Draisatl and company. He comes in at number five on the list of former Ducks competing for a Stanley Cup this season.
4. Frederik Andersen, Carolina Hurricanes
Frederik Andersen comes in next at number four. The Danish netminder joined a crowded Ducks crease to begin his career, as it already included Jonas Hiller and a young, up-and-coming John Gibson. After Hiller departed in free agency in 2014, Andersen and Gibson split time until the former beat out the latter and assumed starting duties for two seasons until Andersen was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2016 offseason.
Andersen has gone on to do his best work in his post-Ducks career. He spent five seasons in Toronto, where he had three 30-win seasons, and moved on to the Carolina Hurricanes where he delivered a 35-win season in his first with the franchise in 2021-22. Blood-clotting issues limited his 2023-24 campaign, but he has looked stellar in his return as the Hurricanes’ starter. He was instrumental in the first-round series win over the New York Islanders with a .912 save percentage (SV%) and 2.25 goals-against average (GAA).
3. Hampus Lindholm, Boston Bruins
Hampus Lindholm never quite lived up to his billing in Anaheim as a sixth-overall draft pick, but his 2022 Trade Deadline trade netted the Ducks a first-round pick (which became Nathan Gaucher) and Urho Vakaanainen.
Lindholm, alongside Cam Fowler, should have developed into the top-pairing defenseman that the Ducks have sorely needed in the years since Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger, and Francois Beauchemin roamed the blue line. While he was a smooth skater with decent skill, he never delivered a 40-point or 30-assist season. Neither he nor Fowler became the powerplay quarterback that the Ducks needed either. That’s not to say he wasn’t one of the Ducks’ better defensemen during his time there; he was, but just never reached the heights that management had for him, and he was shipped to Boston.
Lindholm has settled nicely into his second-pairing role with the Bruins. He had a career-year in 2022-23, when he set career highs in assists (43) and points (53), and finished fourth in Norris Trophy voting. He hasn’t followed it up with as good a season in 2023-24, and his Bruins are now heading for a Game 7 do-or-die against the Maple Leafs after being up three games to one just a week ago.
2. Brandon Montour, Florida Panthers
Onto our final two, and these should be fairly obvious. Let’s begin with Brandon Montour, the Florida Panthers offensive catalyst from the blue line.
During his 169 games with the Ducks, Montour flashed some of the offensive brilliance that he now displays regularly for the Panthers. While his defensive abilities leave a bit to be desired, his offensive abilities are certainly not up for debate. His career year in 2022-23 (16 goals, 57 assists) was a large reason the Panthers made a run to the Stanley Cup Final last season. He had 33 points in 66 regular season games and delivered another three in the Panthers first round series win over the Lightning. Montour and the Panthers look primed for another deep run. Expect him to be a major part of it.
1. Shea Theodore, Vegas Golden Knights
Rounding out our list of former Ducks competing in the 2024 Playoffs is none other than Shea Theodore, the well-rounded defenseman who started paying dividends for the Vegas Golden Knights the moment they acquired him during the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft. We’ve seen this mostly in the playoffs, where he has 60 points in 92 games and played a major role in multiple runs to the Western Conference Final or Stanley Cup Final.
Theodore is a reliable all-situations player who can play offense and defense as a defenseman. He is a tall and long player with a good stick that can skate, make a great pass, get pucks to the net, quarterback a power play, and…you get the idea. You name it, he does it for the Golden Knights, and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon. Although, he and his teammates face an uphill battle in their first-round series with the Dallas Stars. If they are going to force a Game 7 with a win tonight, Theodore will need to be a major factor.
Stud Players All-Around in Final Five
So, we’re left with Henrique, Andersen, Lindholm, Montour, and Theodore. With the exception of Henrique, those are homegrown players that just never found their footing, or were never given a chance to find it in Anaheim. Why is that? Well, that answer lies in an article for another day. One thing for sure is, the Ducks have seen a lot of talent move on to greener pastures in recent seasons. Will one of them win the Stanley Cup this year?
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