Sexton elects arbitration.

Right wing Dan Sexton was one of 23 NHL players who elected arbitration today.

Sexton, 24, appeared in 47 games in his second NHL season, scoring four goals and 13 points while averaging 11:35 per game. His season was marked by frequent trips to and from Syracuse, where Sexton was a point-per-game player (9+8=17 in 17 games) for the Crunch.

Ultimately, 2010-11 could be termed a disappointment after Sexton scored nine goals in 41 games as a rookie out of Bowling Green in 2009-10.

The 5-foot-9, 165-pound right wing made $575,000 last season and was due to become a restricted free agent. He, Nick Bonino and Patrick Maroon all received qualifying offers last week.

Schultz opts for the patient route.

It’s not always easy being a bona fide NHL prospect.

It’s not easy when you have chosen the NCAA route over the junior route, reducing your options to the all-or-nothing proposition of staying in school or turning pro.

It’s not easy when your best friend and defense partner in college was drafted in your same class by the same NHL team -then traded two years later, prohibiting you from continuing your journey together side-by-side into the pro ranks.

This was the scenario facing Ducks prospect Justin Schultz, who had to watch from the University of Wisconsin, Madison while Jake Gardiner was traded from Anaheim to Toronto, then signed an entry-level contract this year.

While Schultz was named one of 10 Hobey Baker finalists, Gardiner went on to impress observers during a 10-game stint with the Maple Leafs’ AHL affiliate at the end of the season.

For Schultz, staying in school might not have been an easy choice. But it’s choice, and he’s sticking to it.

“Yeah, I think definitely I believe I could do it if I wanted,” he said of turning pro. “But I really feel like I want to play in the AHL next year and get ready so I can make the jump right to the big club.”
Continue reading “Schultz opts for the patient route.” »

Ducks invest in Gordon.

Andrew Gordon is a prolific Twitter user, part-time blogger, and on Saturday became the first player signed by the Ducks since free agency began at 9 a.m. Monday.

The 25-year-old right wing has had success scoring at the American Hockey League level and will get a shot to make the NHL leap in Anaheim. Gordon’s contract is a two-way deal in the first year that will pay $525,000 in the NHL and $250,000 in the minors; the second year is a one-way deal that pays $550,000 in the NHL.

Gordon played in nine games for the Washington Capitals last season, logging a goal, an assist and a minus-2 rating. He spent most of the season with the AHL’s Hershey Bears, scoring 28 goals and 57 points in 50 games. He missed almost six weeks between February and March with an upper-body injury, returned to play the final 10 regular-season games, but was limited to two postseason games with a lower-body injury.

The 5-foot-11 Nova Scotia native has been an AHL regular for four straight seasons, all in Hershey, since being drafted by the Capitals in the seventh round of the 2004 draft. He appeared in two games with the Caps in 2009-10 and made his NHL debut on Dec. 23, 2008 before being sent back to Hershey.

Gordon told the Patriot-News of Harrisburg, Penn. “I felt like right away, they were the best option for me. Anaheim was speaking very highly of me and where I fit in the system and where I fit in the future. I’m going to try to go in there and earn things like anybody else does.”

Ducks acquire Foster from Edmonton for Sutton.

The Ducks’ first move on the first day of free agency was not a free-agent signing but a trade. Veteran defenseman Kurtis Foster arrives from Edmonton in exchange for Andy Sutton, whose disappointing tenure in Anaheim ends after one season.

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Foster is similar in size to Sutton (6-6, 245) but the two play different games. The 29-year-old Foster can help on the power play and has a booming shot that is effective when accurate. He scored eight goals each of the last two seasons, with Edmonton and Tampa Bay, and scored a career-high 10 goals in 58 games for the Minnesota Wild in 2005-06.

Foster also had 14 assists, 45 penalty minutes and a minus-12 rating last season in 74 games. In 331 career NHL games, Foster has 37 goals and 104 assists.

The Ducks lost Andreas Lilja to free agency when the Flyers gave the 35-year-old defenseman a three-year contract worth a reported $1.7 million. Including Foster, the Ducks have seven defensemen under contract.

Sutton was due to earn $2.25 million with a $2.125 million cap hit. Foster will earn $1.8 million in the final year of his contract.

In his lone season in Anaheim, Sutton had four assists, a plus-1 rating, and 87 penalty minutes in 39 games. The 36-year-old never found his place in the lineup after breaking his thumb in the first game of the regular season. Even when healthy Sutton was a regular in the press box, and also got caught in a couple minor skirmishes with teammates in practice.

Some other notable transactions Friday involved former Ducks:

James Wisniewski signed for six years and $33 million with Columbus.
Drew Miller re-signed for two years, $1.65 million with Detroit.
Sean O’Donnell signed for one year and $850,000 with Chicago.
Jean-Sebastien Giguere is expected to sign with the Colorado Avalanche, although a formal deal hasn’t been announced.

Free agency live chat.

Since news breaks before it can be blogged, I invite you to keep your browser glued to this chat room beginning at 9 a.m. today. What I know about NHL free agents, trades and buyouts will go here, so feel free to ask me some questions in real time:

Notes from rookie scrimmage.

It was tempting to leave Anaheim Ice on Thursday with a broad set of generalizations, but the Ducks’ rookie scrimmage amounted to a one-hour snapshot of a portion of the organization’s prospect pool.

Twenty-two players have been invited to the six-day camp that began Thursday. All but one was at the rink Thursday morning — a team spokesperson said that goalie Igor Bobkov’s flight into California was delayed. Maybe Bobkov knew something the other 21 didn’t: Of the players on the ice for the intrasquad scrimmage, the goalies had the least fun.

The final score was 9-6, apropos for the 4-on-4 game of river hockey that featured no hitting and plenty of uncoordinated improvisation. John Gibson, the 39th overall pick at last week’s Entry Draft, and Iiro Tarkki, whom the Ducks lured from Finland this summer, absorbed all of the burden.

Tarkki gave up the nine-spot, but faced more shots than Gibson (by my unofficial estimate) and made the more impressive saves. The 6-foot-3 netminder, who turns 26 today, is not ready for the NHL, and the Ducks will be happy if he and Bobkov can upgrade the goaltending picture in Syracuse. Gibson struggled early but seemed to settle down. He’ll have up to four seasons at the University of Michigan to iron out the kinks before he ever plays a game in Anaheim.

Goals were scored by Chris Wagner (4), Emerson Etem (2), Joseph Cramarossa (2), Devante Smith-Pelly (2), Andy Welinski, Tim Heed, Andreas Dahlstrom, Brett Perlini and Radoslav Illo. Rickard Rakell was at the rink but didn’t scrimmage because his equipment hadn’t arrived. Neither did Jake Newton, who is battling illness.

Those are the facts. They can be overestimated. I did longer interviews with Justin Schultz and Rakell, and will save their stories for a later post.

Since it was the only scrimmage that will be open to the public, here’s a few snap judgments:
Continue reading “Notes from rookie scrimmage.” »

Goalie John Gibson highlights Ducks’ Day 2 haul.

John Gibson, a goaltender from the U.S. National Development Program, was the first of six picks by the Ducks on Day 2 of the NHL Entry Draft.

Initially projected to be the first goalie selected in the draft, Gibson went to the Ducks with the 39th overall pick – one slot after 6-foot-5 Swedish goalie Magnus Hellberg, who went to Nashville. The 18-year-old told reporters in St. Paul that “my goal at the beginning of the season was to be the first goalie taken but that’s the way it worked out.”

Gibson, a 6-foot-3 native of Pittsburgh, backstopped Team USA to a gold medal at the 2011 Under-18 World Championships in Germany. He posted a 2.34 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage along the way to earn Best Goaltender of the tournament honors.

The Ducks’ AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, struggled with a goalie tandem of Jean-Phillippe Levasseur and Timo Pielmeier last season. Igor Bobkov, a 2009 draft pick, could turn pro next season (he’ll be 20) and Finnish free agent Iiro Tarkki was also signed to help shore up the position, but Gibson probably won’t join the pro ranks for another two seasons at least.

“I’ve just got to see how the next couple years play out,” Gibson said. “When you’re
ready, you’ll be there. I’ve got to see what they need, the best
development for yourself, so I’ll take it one step at a time.

“It’s definitely a great organization. I’m really happy to be there. I’m really thankful they drafted me. I’m thankful they have a lot of good young talent coming up so hopefully in the near future I can be there and help the team out.”

The Ducks finished their draft day by selecting center William Karlsson (second round, 53rd overall), center Joseph Cramarossa (third round, 65th overall), defenseman Andy Welinski (third round, 83rd overall), left wing Max Friberg (fifth round, 143rd overall), and defenseman Josh Manson (sixth round, 160th overall).

Rakell goes to Ducks at No. 30.

The Ducks selected Rickard Rakell, a Swedish-born forward from the Ontario Hockey League, with their lone first-round draft pick Friday after trading down to No. 30.

The Ducks also acquired the 30th and the 39th overall picks from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for the 22nd overall pick.

“He’s very intelligent and he plays more of a North American
game than a European game,” Ducks general manager Bob Murray said. “He’s a good
two-way player and a smart player. He can play center or wing. We’re very happy
he was still there at 30.”

Rakell had 19 goals, 43 points and 12 penalty minutes in 49
games for the Plymouth Whalers of the Ontario Hockey League last season, his
first in North America. The 18-year-old played for Sweden at the World Junior
Championships and had three assists in five games at the tournament in Buffalo,
N.Y.

“I had a lot of meetings at the combine and they went really
well, especially with the Ducks,” Rakell told reporters in Minnesota.

Listed at 6-foot-1, 193 pounds, Rickard is “two or three
years” away from the NHL according to NHL Central Scouting’s Al Jensen.

Murray also said that he hasn’t received a decision from
star right wing Teemu Selanne, who is contemplating retirement.

“His knee acted up a little bit. Doctors looked at it,”
Murray said. “I think he wants to play hockey again. We’re just trying to see
how the knee goes.”

Live draft chat.

Who will the Ducks take with their first-round pick? Join me (and a bunch of other hockey wonks) for a live draft chat beginning around 4 p.m.:

  

Perry’s Hart Trophy highlights Ducks’ haul on awards night.

Corey Perry gave the Ducks the franchise’s first Hart Trophy on Wednesday, edging out Vancouver’s Daniel Sedin for the NHL’s most valuable player award.

Perry’s 50-goal season earned him 67 first-place votes, 47 second-place votes and 1,043 points. Sedin collected 960 points — 51 first-place votes and 56 second-place votes; only eight other first-place votes were cast. Martin St. Louis of Tampa Bay finished a distant third.

Perry’s credentials gained steam late in the season. The right wing tied for the league lead in game-winning goals (11) and ranked third in points (98); his 21 third-period goals also led the league.

Perry also received the Rocket Richard Trophy for leading the league in goal scoring.

Two other Ducks received Hart votes — Ryan Getzlaf tied Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang for 20th, and Lubomir Visnovsky tied Chris Pronger for 23rd.

Visnovsky was rewarded for his career year with a fourth-place finish in the race for the Norris Trophy. Visnovsky received 20 first-place votes; fifth-place finisher Keith Yandle of Phoenix received five first-place votes. Detroit’s Nicklas Lidstrom won the award for the seventh time. Ducks defenseman Toni Lydman received a single fourth-place vote to finish 13th in the Norris voting.

Defenseman Cam Fowler finished eighth in the Calder Trophy voting for the league’s top rookie. Fowler received seven fourth-place votes and six fifth-place votes. He can take solace in finishing ahead of ninth-place Taylor Hall of the Edmonton Oilers, the first overall pick at the 2010 entry draft.

Ducks GM Bob Murray finished fourth in the General Manager of the Year award race, behind winner Mike Gillis, Tampa Bay’s Steve Yzerman and Nashville’s David Poile. Murray collected four first-place votes, three second-place votes and six third-place votes.

Ray Emery finished second in voting for the Bill Masterton Trophy, which went to Philadelphia Flyers forward Ian Laperriere. The award, created by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association, is given to the player who “best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.”

Teemu Selanne collected nine first-place votes but finished sixth in the voting for the Lady Byng Trophy, awarded for “sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct.” Visnovsky finished 13th.

Randy Carlyle collected one second-place vote and two third-place votes to finish tied for 11th (with Peter Laviolette of Philadelphia) in the Jack Adams Award voting.

Among Wednesday’s other winners, Vancouver’s Ryan Kesler won the Selke Trophy; former Mighty Ducks forward Dan Bylsma won the Adams; Canucks goalies Roberto Luongo and Cory Schneider shared the Ken Jennings Award for allowing the fewest goals in the regular season; Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara won the Mark Messier Leadership Award; Kings forward Dustin Brown won the NHL Foundation Award.