Five hundred thirty-nine goals, 572 assists, seven-time NHL All-Star appearances, two-time Rocket Richard Trophy winner, and two-time Stanley Cup champion—that’s the resume of pending unrestricted free agent Steven Stamkos. The Lightning’s leading point and goal scorer in franchise history is set to become a free agent over the offseason, but it leaves me wondering why nobody is talking about that. Let’s discuss why Stamkos could be the perfect addition to the 2024-25 Anaheim Ducks lineup.
Anaheim Ducks GM Pat Verbeek wants a top 6 right-handed shot
Pat Verbeek was recently at a Ducks season ticket holder event, called ‘Ducks Migration’. At this event, he was asked a series of questions revolving around the team, their players, prospects, and the future of the Ducks. Verbeek made it known during this interview that he believes the Ducks are done selling, ready to begin taking steps to make the playoffs, looking to add more veterans, and in particular, he wants to add a top 6 right-handed shot to the lineup over the offseason.
This objective presents several options for the Ducks, including pursuing players like Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Sam Reinhart, high-caliber wingers from the upcoming draft, or exploring trade opportunities. Among these options, Stamkos stands out as a compelling choice. But why?
Does Steven Stamkos want to ride off into the sun with a nice contract, similar to Alex Killorn?
Steven Stamkos would obviously not come to Anaheim expected to win another Stanley Cup, the main reason he’d come to Anaheim is for a large contract. Because of how much Anaheim has struggled the past 5 years, they would have to offer Stamkos the largest offer, and GM Verbeek has already shown he’s willing to do that with veterans to change the culture in Anaheim. Examples of that would be the Radko Gudas deal (3 years, 4 million per), Alex Killorn (4 years, 6.25 million per), Ryan Strome (5 years, 5 million per, and you can even throw Frank Vatrano into that mix (3 years, 3.65 million per). All of these players went to Anaheim because their offers were well over what their predicted contracts would look like, and the market value at the time. I think it’s safe to say that these players were all good enough to have multiple NHL teams offering them contracts, it’s not like they willing wanted to a rebuilding Anaheim Ducks team, they most likely went there because that’s where the money is at.
With that being said I’m sure Stamkos’ good buddy Alex Killorn, will do some convincing to get the duo back together, but this time of the west coast, rather than the east coast.
Why this deal work perfectly for the Anaheim Ducks
As previously mentioned Steven Stamkos is a veteran player, he was drafted first overall in 2008. Since he’s currently 34 years old, it’s hard to think many teams, if any at all, would be willing to give him a 6+ year deal. Overpaying for a vet like Steven Stamkos, on a 4-5 year deal seems like the exact type of move that Pat Verbeek would do, but it also fits Anaheim’s timeline perfectly. If you sign a guy like Sam Reinhart, you’re most likely going to have to give him a max-length contract due to his age. So if you’re giving Reinhart a long deal it’s going to be very expensive, considering he’s currently making 6.5 million per and he’s way outperforming even that contract price. By giving a player like that such a massive deal, you’re setting yourself up for a contract that’ll have a big say on the upcoming young guys’ deals in the Anaheim Ducks system, that being Mason McTavish, Trevor Zegras, Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier, and others. If you sign Stamkos to the 4-5 year deal, you’ll be getting away from that contract right around the time when these younger players will be due for their big paydays.
The Ducks currently have the second most cap space available, and they will be off the hooks of large contracts as well during this upcoming offseason, that being Jakob Silfverberg’s 5.25 Million per season deal and a combined 4.7 million from retaining Adam Henrique Ilya Lyubushkin, and Sam Carrick. When you look 2 years in advance, you’ll still only have one player in need of a big re-sign deal, and that’s Mason McTavish. If you’re Pat Verbeek you have all the cap space in the world to spend on players right now, you might as well continue to add in veteran presences, who have a track record of winning, to show the young talent exactly what it takes. The Ducks aren’t trying to be a good NHL team, they’re trying to grow this franchise into a dynasty that wins in the playoffs, similar to that of what Pat Verbeek’s previous team, the Tampa Bay Lightning did.
