Photo: SD Gulls
By Thomas Harrington
It’s time for one of my favorite things to write for DucksNPucks: Anaheim’s top 10 rookies, though this was the hardest top 10 list I’ve ever had to put together. As I’ve done previously, I will only be including players who are eligible to win the Calder Memorial Trophy this season. To be eligible to win this award, a player has to have played less than 25 games in the NHL in any single season. Additionally, they cannot have played more than six games in each of the two preceding seasons.
I used three sets of criteria to create this list. The first is: what is the player’s ceiling? Are they a top six scorer or a grinder? Can they play 30 minutes a night and shut down the opposition or are they destined to be a seventh defenseman? The second question I ask is: how likely are they to reach that potential? A player may have the potential to be a top six forward, but will they actually make it that far, or be relegated to the AHL or European leagues for most of their career? Players with bad injury histories most often fall into this category, as injuries can really hamper a young player’s career. Nicolas Kerdiles is an unfortunate example of this. He was a second round pick with promise but injuries essentially ended his career. Finally, I look at how close I think they are to reaching their potential and making it to the NHL soon. As an example, I once had Chris Wagner in the top 10 because even though he projected as a bottom six player, he looked like he was pretty much NHL ready, so he was placed ahead of some other prospects who had a higher ceiling. He was so close to being an NHL player, I felt safe putting him in the top 10.
Also, just because a player doesn’t appear on this list doesn’t mean they won’t have a successful career in Anaheim or the NHL, or that they won’t appear in the NHL this season. I didn’t have Josh Manson and Kiefer Sherwood on this list. Manson has become a top four defenseman, and while Sherwood hasn’t become a full-time NHL player, he did play in 50 NHL games in his rookie season. If I had known that Sherwood would play that many games, there’s no question he would have been on this list before his rookie season.
Before I get to the top 10 rookies, here are the players who just missed the cut: Nikita Nesterenko, Drew Helleson, Nico Myatovic, Jacob Perreault, and Tyson Hinds. Nesterenko was the final player cut from this list and was acquired from Minnesota at the trade deadline. He played in nine NHL games with the Ducks and scored a goal, but was a healthy scratch a few times as well. Helleson was on the list last year after being acquired from Colorado, but a rough first half of the season is what ultimately keeps him off. He almost made it back on based on his play in the second half of the year and making his NHL debut. If he can play like that for the entire season, he’ll be back on this list next year. Myatovic was Anaheim’s second pick at the 2023 NHL Entry Draft and I’m very excited about his future. A great post draft season in the WHL could put him on this list a year from now. Perreault had a rough season in San Diego, causing him to drop off the list entirely, but I still think he has a high level of skill. If he can show that last year was an aberration, he’ll be back on this list a year from now. There are few prospects who improved as much as Hinds did last year, and he was named the QMJHL Best Defensive Defenseman. If he had a little more offense to his game he’d probably be on this list. A great first season in San Diego could have him on it a year from now.
Mason McTavish (graduated), Henry Thrun (traded), Perreault, and Helleson were the four players from last year’s top 10 list who do not appear on this year’s. Previous year’s rankings will be shown in parentheses and NR means not ranked the previous year. Now, on to the top 10!
10. (7) Benoit-Olivier Groulx – Groulx was San Diego’s most consistent skater throughout the season but drops because he only played in two NHL games. Despite that, I’m still hoping he sees a lot of time in Anaheim this year. A strong training camp will hopefully be the start to a great season.
9. (NR) Pavol Regenda – He wasn’t on the list last year, but after playing in 14 NHL games, he’s certainly earned himself a spot on it. Hopefully he’s able to spend more time in Anaheim and less time in San Diego this year. If he’d been able to stick in Anaheim longer or be called up again later in the season, he might have jumped up the list even further.
8. (10) Sasha Patujov – Since being drafted, Pastujov has shown he’s a highly skilled forward, and never more than when he joined the Sarnia Sting partway through last season, where he scored over 1.71 points per game. His production will drop as he turns pro and joins the Gulls, but I’m excited to see what he can do in the AHL.
7. (NR) Tristan Luneau – By winning the QMJHL Defenseman of the Year Award, Luneau pretty much guaranteed himself a spot on this list. The only reason he’s not higher on it is every player ahead of him will be playing pro hockey this year. If he has another dominant season in the QMJHL, he could move up the list significantly.
6. (NR) Jackson LaCombe – LaCombe has been on this list in previous years but missed it last year, because I felt every player on it was closer to the NHL than he was or had a significantly higher ceiling. I figured if he had a great senior year of college and then made his NHL debut he’d probably be back on it, and that’s exactly what he did. I’m hoping to see a lot of him in Anaheim this year.
5. (6) Nathan Gaucher – Anaheim’s second first round pick from the 2022 NHL Draft had a great season that saw him win gold at the World Juniors, as well as help his team win the QMJHL Championship and then the Memorial Cup, while also being named the QMJHL’s top defensive forward. This year he’s turning pro and will bring his game to the San Diego Gulls. I’m hoping he can carve out a spot in the team’s top six and see time on their penalty kill unit.
4. (4) Lukas Dostal – He’s held this position for the last few years and may see some serious NHL time this season. The biggest question isn’t will he play in the NHL this year, but rather how many games will he play in the NHL this year?
3. (3) Pavel Mintyukov – Anaheim’s top pick from 2022 had another dominant season and was named the OHL Defenseman of the Year and was the OHL Defenseman of the Month for three straight months to start the season. He’ll be turning pro this year and joining several first year players in San Diego.
2. (2) Olen Zellweger – I feel like either Zellweger or Mintyukov could be second, but Zellweger hangs on to it after winning the CHL Defenseman of the Year over Mintyukov. Both of them will be one of the main reasons to watch as much Gulls hockey as possible this season.
1. (NR) Leo Carlsson – The second overall pick from the 2023 NHL Entry Draft is Anaheim’s top prospect heading into the 2023-2024 season. While it wouldn’t surprise me if he made his NHL debut this season, it also wouldn’t surprise me if he spent most of the year in the AHL or SHL. It all depends on how he looks at training camp and how his season progresses.
Up next will be the final offseason prospect article: the prospects most likely to see time in Anaheim this season. You can expect a number of prospects from the above list to make an appearance.
Related Article:
Ranking Anaheim’s Prospect Positions
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September 21st, 2023
DucksNPucks 