During his end-of-season interview, GM Pat Verbeek said, “I think we’ll name a captain at some point this summer.” The offseason is winding down, with rookie camp starting this week and training camp beginning next week. No captain has been named yet, but technically summer doesn’t end until September 22, two days before the Ducks’ first preseason game.
The Ducks have several candidates to choose from when naming their next captain. Whoever is selected will be responsible for replacing Ryan Geztlaf, the Ducks’ previous captain.
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Getzlaf’s NHL career spanned 17 seasons, all with the Ducks. He played in 1,157 games and scored 1,019 points. He is the only player in franchise history to play 1,000 games for them and the only player in franchise history to also collect 1,000 points for them.
He was named captain before the 2010–11 season after previous captain Scott Niedermayer announced his retirement, and remained captain until his own retirement after the 2021–22 season.
Getzlaf is considered one of the best players in Ducks history, if not the best, and is the franchise leader in games played, assists, and points. He is also in the top five in goals and game-winning goals, and is the franchise leader in playoff points with 120.
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Getzlaf was 25 when he was named captain. The selection of candidates for the next Ducks captain is above and below that range with Troy Terry, Mason McTavish, Leo Carlsson and Radko Gudas.
Gudas joined the Ducks in July 2023 after signing a three-year, $12 million contract on the free agent market. A solid presence on the blue line in his first season with the Ducks, Gudas became a fan favorite for his physicality and booming hip checksHis experienced leadership helped players like Urho Vaakanainen and Jackson LaCombe become regulars.
Gudas has been a regular at postgame media scrums following tough losses and performances this past season, and has represented the Ducks during the NHL media tour in Las Vegas, fueling speculation from insiders like Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman that Gudas will be the Ducks’ next captain.
“I think (Radko) Gudas will be the captain there.”
-Elliotte Friedman, NHL Insider, on 32 thoughts
Terry, who just turned 27 on Wednesday, has taken on a bigger leadership role this past season. After signing a seven-year deal last season, he’s now firmly established as part of the Ducks’ core. He speaks well to the media and was previously a leader in college when he played for Denver. With Cam Fowler’s future uncertain, Terry will be seen as one of the leaders.
McTavish and Carlsson are part of the next generation of Ducks poised to thrive. McTavish is coming off back-to-back 40+ point seasons and would have surpassed the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career had it not been for a couple of nagging injuries in the 2023-24 season.
Several Ducks players and head coach Greg Cronin have highlighted McTavish’s leadership qualities. McTavish previously captained Canada’s World Junior Championship team.
Carlsson is entering his second season after his rookie campaign was interrupted by both a game management plan and a couple of injuries (MCL sprain, concussion). He’s only managed 29 points in 55 games, but it’s clear he’s just getting started. At 19, Carlsson is the youngest of the potential captain candidates and is already looking forward to taking on a lofty role.
“Not really, points-wise. I’m just trying to be a leader,” Carlsson told Ducks Stream’s Alexis Downie last month when asked about his goals for his sophomore season. “I’m trying to play a bigger role. (I feel) more comfortable this year going into camp, knowing all the guys, knowing what’s going to happen in camp, what’s going to happen during the season. I’m more prepared this season.”
In an interview on the Missin’ Curfew podcast this summer, former Duck Max Jones discussed how the locker room dynamic had changed since Getzlaf retired.
“Getzy was such a leader and then you lose that captaincy, it’s been a bit of a free game the last couple of years since he’s been gone. If he was in the room, a lot of guidance would be better throughout the season, especially with the ups and downs of the year. He could control it and help us out a little bit. Especially when you get someone between the team, the GM, the owners, you get a guy like that, I think that can only help. How can that hurt?
“He was with the boys for so long, it’s like, well, when Getzy says, ‘You guys need to pick it up a little bit in training, lean on each other a little bit more,’ it’s like, yeah, okay, we’ll do that. Because there was no captain after he left. There was no leader, so it was kind of a free game.”
It’s been two seasons without a captain for the Ducks. Those two seasons were two of the worst in franchise history. It’s clear that things need to change and appointing a leader within the group could help with that.
