With the NHL Entry Draft quickly approaching, there is much to be excited about if you are an Anaheim Ducks fan. One of the best prospect pools in the league is about to add nine draft picks that include a second overall pick (likely University of Michigan star Adam Fantili), three second-round picks (No. 33, No. 59, and No. 60), and two third-round picks (No. 65 and No. 85).
This draft has the potential to be one of the best drafts in Ducks history. Which got me thinking, what was the best draft in franchise history?
The previous five drafts will not be in consideration for this article because those players are still young, and it is tough to judge how some players will pan out.
While looking back at the previous drafts, there were a couple of factors that I considered: depth and longevity. It would be easy to say that 2003 is the best draft the Ducks have had because of franchise icons Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, but they had five other draft picks not make it to the NHL, and the majority of other teams hit big with their first-round picks that year as well so it makes it slightly less impressive to me.
The draft that caught my attention the most was the 2011 draft. One thing that impressed me the most about this draft was that every player that was selected made it to the NHL. There are no stars in this draft class like Getzlaf or Perry, but there are quality everyday players. Let’s take a look.
Rickard Rakell (1st Round 30th Overall)
Rakell made a home in the Ducks top six for the better half of a decade, from his debut in 2013 to when he was dealt at last year’s deadline. The 30-year-old winger has 651 games under his belt with 186 goals, 226 assists, and 412 points.
Rakell had back-to-back 30-goal seasons with the Ducks in the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 seasons but struggled to get back to his scoring ways a few seasons later. Things started to click again for Rakell in the 2021-2022 season, and he notched his first 20-goal campaign since he netted 34 in 2017-2018. In his first full season with the Pittsburgh Penguins this past season, Rakell scored 28 goals en route to his second 60-point season in his career.
Rakell also played a significant role in the Ducks run to the Western Conference Finals in the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs, where he had seven goals, six assists, and 13 points in 15 games. Ducks fans will forever remember Rakell’s game-tying goal with just 15 seconds left in Game 5 of the 2017 Western Conference Semi-Finals against the Edmonton Oilers in one of the most improbable comebacks in Ducks history.
John Gibson (2nd Round 39th Overall)
After winning the William M. Jennings Award with Frederik Anderson in 2015-2016, Gibson has been the Ducks starting goaltender since and has been a large part of any success that the team has had in the last eight seasons.
Gibson’s statistical peak was the three seasons where the Ducks made the playoffs from 2015-2017 to 2017-2018. In that span, Gibson sported a .924 SV%, a 2.26 GAA, and 45.2 goals saved above average in 152 games. The three-time All-Star used his elite athleticism to make highlight-reel saves and was able to steal wins for the Ducks when they were contenders.
The last five seasons have been challenging for Gibson, to say the least. The Ducks defense has done no favors for Gibson during their rebuild and has left him out to dry like forgotten laundry. Gibson’s stats have been subpar during the Ducks rebuild, but they do not tell the whole story. Despite having one of the worst blue lines in front of him this past season, Gibson showed he is still capable of being an All-Star caliber player. Gibson notched eleven 40+ save games and three 50+ save games and averaged 33 saves per game this past season.
Gibson will turn 30 this off-season and still has more good seasons left in him. Hopefully, with the Ducks rebuild nearing the end, a better team in front of Gibson will give him a chance to shine again.
William Karlsson (2nd Round 53th Overall)
Karlsson only played 18 games for the Ducks before getting traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets in his rookie season. After struggling to get on the scoresheet in the first few years of his career, Karlsson exploded after being selected by the Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft, scoring 43 goals, 35 assists, and 78 points in his first season in Vegas.
Although he has not matched his ludicrous first season in Vegas, Karlsson has been a staple in the Knights lineup and a prominent player in the playoffs. In 88 playoff games with the Knights, Karlsson notched 28 goals, 35 assists, and 63 points. Karlsson also helped Vegas win their first Stanley Cup just a few days ago with 11 goals, six assists, and 17 points in 22 playoff games.
Joseph Cramarossa (3rd Round 65th overall)
Cramarossa debuted in 2016-2017 and played 49 games with the Ducks before getting claimed off of waivers by the Vancouver Canucks. Cramarossa would spend the next four seasons in the AHL for the Calgary Flames, Pittsburgh Penguins, Chicago Blackhawks, and Minnesota Wild.
The next time that Cramarossa would appear in an NHL game would be in the 2020-2021 season, where he played four games, one game the following year, and four games this past season. Cramarossa was released by the Wild this past January and finished the year in the Deutsche Eishockey League in Germany.
Andy Welinski (3rd Round 83rd Overall)
Welisnki has just 46 NHL games under his belt, all with the Ducks spanning from the 2017-2018 to 2018-2019 seasons and the 2020-2021 season. The blue-liner has spent most of his professional career in the AHL and is currently with the Chicago Blackhawks. In those 46 NHL games, Welisnki has a goal, five assists, six points, 33 blocks, and 65 hits.
Max Friberg (5th Round 143rd Overall)
Friberg only has six NHL games to his name where he appeared in one game in the 2014-2015 season and five in the 2015-2016 with the Ducks. After spending most of his North American career in the AHL, Friberg returned to Sweden and has been playing for the Frolunda HC in the Swedish Hockey League since the 2017-2018 season.
Josh Manson (6th Round 160th Overall)
The Ducks hit big (literally) with their last pick in the draft in Manson. The 6-foot-3, 218-pound blue-liner was a staple on the Ducks defense from when he debuted in 2014-2015 to when he was traded at the 2022 trade deadline. Manson does not light up the scoresheet, but his physical presence is what makes him stand out. Manson has played in 502 games and counting career games and, barring major injuries, is poised to have a good career.
Manson is a quality stay-at-home defenseman with 1,210 hits and 566 blocks to his name. There is nothing fancy about his game; he simply does his job. You need someone to clear the front of the net? Manson is your guy. You need someone to finish checks and occasionally make opponents pay with a big hit? Manson can do that too.
The Ducks traded Manson at the 2022 trade deadline to the Colorado Avalanche for a second-round pick in the 2023 draft and Drew Helleson, who was ranked as the Avalanche’s No. 8 prospect. Not a bad return for a sixth-rounder.
Although he will not be known for goal scoring, Manson came up big with three goals in the Avalanche’s run to the Stanley Cup last year. Manson scored his first career playoff goal in overtime to win Game 1 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals against the St. Louis Blues. Manson would score again in a 4-0 victory in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals against the Edmonton Oilers and in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals to make it 2-0 early against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Recap
The 2011 Draft gets overlooked by Ducks fans because of the 2003 Draft, understandably so because of the lack of star power. But having all of the picks make it to the NHL means something, and having four out of seven picks be quality, everyday NHL players, with two of them being All-Star caliber players, means something.
The Ducks have a chance to have another stellar draft with their nine picks in this year’s loaded draft. Where will this draft stack up with the rest? Only time will tell.
