Ducks Qualify Eight Players

By Thomas Harrington

The Anaheim Ducks had 12 restricted free agents this summer: Nikita Nesterenko, Lukas Dostal, Mason McTavish, Drew Helleson, Sam Colangelo, Isac Lundestrom, Brett Leason, Tim Washe, Calle Clang, Jan Mysak, Josh Lopina, and Judd Caulfield. Earlier this month Nesterenko signed a two-year extension.

Today, Anaheim gave qualifying offers to Caulfield, Clang, Colangelo, Dostal, Helleson, McTavish, Mysak, and Washe. They did not give qualifying offers to Lundstrom, Leason, and Lopina. When the Ducks and other teams extend qualifying offers to their restricted free agents, they are essentially signaling that they are planning on retaining that player’s rights. Depending on how much the player made the previous season, the team must offer a contract that pays at least a certain percentage of the previous contract. If there is no qualifying offer made, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent and can sign where they want, including back with the team that failed to qualify them. Sometimes teams will not qualify a player in the hopes of re-signing them to less than they would have made with the qualifying offer. This happened last year when the Ducks did not offer a qualifying offer to Leason and then signed him at a cheaper price. Once a qualifying offer has been made, the two sides can work out a longer deal, or the player can take the qualifying offer as a one-year deal.

Caulfield was originally acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins for prospect Thimo Nickl. After graduating from the University of North Dakota, he’s spent the past couple of seasons in the AHL, becoming a solid bottom six player for the San Diego Gulls. He scored a career high 11 goals this past season. I expect him to sign a two-way contract for one or two years.

Of the eight players the Ducks qualified, I was mildly surprised to see Clang in that group. He struggled with the Gulls last season and the re-signing of Ville Husso could have meant his time with the Ducks was over. However, given that Tomas Suchanek missed all of last season with an injury and Damian Clara may not be in San Diego next year, Clang was likely kept to make sure the Ducks had enough goaltending depth in the organization. Clang was originally acquired from Pittsburgh in the Rickard Rakell trade. Clang has spent the last couple of seasons playing primarily in the AHL but has played a couple of games in the ECHL as well. He’ll likely be signed to a two-way one-year deal.

Sam Colangelo

Colangelo was a second round pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft and split this past season between the Ducks and Gulls. With the Gulls, he was one of their most dangerous forwards. With the Ducks, he scored 10 goals in 32 games, and seemed to find a home next to McTavish in the latter part of the season. Despite a solid rookie season, a spot in Anaheim isn’t guaranteed for him, especially if the Ducks make any big moves in the next few days. I don’t think he’ll get a long-term deal, but a one-way contract is definitely possible for him.

Lukas Dostal

A third round pick from the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, Dostal will enter this season in uncharted territory. With John Gibson traded, Dostal will be Anaheim’s undisputed starter this season. He’s gotten better every season he’s been in the NHL and is now being given a chance to prove that he can be a full time starter in the NHL. His contract is the hardest to predict. Teams often don’t want to give goaltenders long-term deals, and I think the Ducks especially won’t be after they finally traded out of Gibson’s eight-year deal. However, a number of goaltenders in recent years have signed some big-money deals for the max duration. While Dostal hasn’t done enough to earn that kind of money, the Ducks may consider a longer deal for him if they think he’ll be their starter for the next 10+ years.

Drew Helleson

Helleson was arguably the most pleasant surprise in Anaheim this past season. Originally acquired from the Colorado Avalanche in the Josh Manson trade, he played in three NHL games in the 2022-2023 season but spent all of the following year in the AHL. This past season, Helleson started out in San Diego, but was recalled to Anaheim after only 12 AHL games. He never went back to the Gulls, playing in 56 games and scoring four goals and 13 points with the Ducks. Helleson won’t get a long-term deal, but he’s probably in line for a one-way contract. Similar to Colangelo, his spot in Anaheim isn’t assured, but he’ll likely be in the lineup most nights.

Mason McTavish

The third overall pick from the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, McTavish eclipsed the 20 goal and 50 point marks for the first time in his career this past season. He struggled with consistency early on but got better as the season progressed. With Trevor Zegras traded, McTavish is now guaranteed to be one of the team’s top two centers. He’s the one player who might command a long-term deal, but Pat Verbeek has traditionally opted for bridge deals with younger players during his time in Anaheim. So McTavish will probably sign a three- or four-year deal. The bigger question is how much money he’s earned on his second contract.

Jan Mysak 

Mysak was originally acquired from the Montreal Canadiens for Jacob Perreault. He had a difficult end to the 2023-2024 season after the Ducks acquired him, but was great this past season for the San Diego Gulls. He and Sasha Pastujov developed some nice chemistry in the second half of the season, and he set career highs with 18 goals and 42 points. He’ll get a two-way contract for probably one or two years.

Tim Washe

The Ducks just signed Washe to an entry-level deal towards the end of the season after he helped lead Western Michigan University to the national championship. He was named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team and was named the NCAA Best Defensive Forward. After signing with the Ducks, Washe played in two NHL games to end the season and was scoreless. Depending on what happens in free agency, Washe will likely be one of the favorites to be Anaheim’s fourth line center this coming season, but the Ducks may also decide he needs time in the AHL before getting a longer shot with the Ducks. He’ll probably be signed to a two-way contract for one or two years, but there’s an outside chance the Ducks decide to sign him to a one-way contract and try to get him signed for three or four years.

Brett Leason

This is the second season in a row that Leason was not qualified by the Ducks; we’ll see if they still decide to sign him. Personally, I think he’ll leave as a free agent and sign elsewhere. He’s a useful fourth line player, but his offensive numbers fell this past season and he played in six fewer games. I think the Ducks will likely prefer to either bring in a veteran for this spot with a better overall game, or have one of their young players fill it.

Josh Lopina

A fourth round pick from the 2021 NHL Entry draft, Lopina has spent the last few years in San Diego. After a relatively quiet rookie season, his sophomore campaign was much stronger with 14 goals and 23 points. However, his numbers this past year saw a big drop, as he only scored three goals and 13 points. Lopina was the one player who seemed the least likely to be qualified by Anaheim. It will be interesting to see if San Diego considers bringing him back on an AHL-only deal, but I don’t think that will happen.

Isac Lundestrom

Lundestrom was drafted 23rd overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. He’s been a full time NHL player for the past five seasons, but after scoring 16 goals in the 2021-2022 season, he’s only totaled 13 goals in the three seasons since. Lundestrom is a useful bottom six center, but the signing of Washe and acquisition of Ryan Poehling in the Zegras trade made me think he was unlikely to be given a qualifying offer. The Ducks could surprise me and try to sign him at a cheaper rate, but I think he’ll sign elsewhere this summer.

Both Dostal and McTavish could and should command some serious raises from the Ducks. However, none of the rest of the players Anaheim qualified will sign large deals, meaning the Ducks will have ample cap space when free agency opens tomorrow. It will be interesting and exciting to see if Anaheim is able to reel in any of the big free agency prizes.

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June 30th, 2025