The Anaheim Ducks, perennial juggernauts in the mighty Western Conference, enter the 2016-17 in need of something new.
The Ducks have won four consecutive Pacific Division titles, but it has translated into no success when it really counts: The postseason.
While Anaheim gears up for another year in the hunt for the Stanley Cup, here are three questions facing a team under enormous pressure to take their play to the next level.
Can they erase haunting playoff memories?
Four consecutive seasons, four consecutive blown Game 7s on home ice.
In the last four series in which Anaheim has been eliminated from the playoffs, they've relinquished a 3-2 series lead, and the latest instance cost former head coach Bruce Boudreau his job.
It truly is tough to pinpoint why the Ducks can't make the leap, but general manager Bob Murray made it abundantly clear that Anaheim's core players need to be held responsible for the team's most recent postseason blunder: An unexpected elimination at the hands of the wildcard-seeded Nashville Predators.
It's evident a refresh is in order, and perhaps Anaheim would be wise to take a page out of the San Jose Sharks' book, a team that brought in a new coach to help erase the memory of recent failures, and wound up two wins shy of the Stanley Cup.
Is Randy Carlyle the answer?
Murray appointed Boudreau - a man who accumulated a record of 208-104-40 in four seasons - the team's sacrificial lamb after Anaheim's latest Game 7 failure, resulting in the return of Randy Carlyle.
Carlyle's last gig - bench boss of the Toronto Maple Leafs - ended in turmoil, but the Ducks are optimistic the man who delivered the franchise's lone Stanley Cup (2007) can bring them back to the promised land.
He inherits a team that ranked first league-wide in goals against per game (2.29), power-play efficiency (23.1%), and penalty kill (87.1%).
The building blocks to contend are there, and it's up to Carlyle to extrapolate all he can out of franchise linchpins Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry while their window among the NHL's elite is still open.
Will John Gibson deliver in his first chance as No. 1?
At last, John Gibson is alone in the Ducks' crease.
The 23-year-old All-Star has battled injuries in his brief tenure with Anaheim, as well as sharing starting duties with Frederik Andersen and Jonas Hiller in years' past.
Last season, Gibson and the departed Andersen split the William M. Jennings Trophy for fewest goals allowed. Individually, Gibson was strong, posting a 21-13-4 record with a 2.07 goals against average and .920 save percentage.
He has a sturdy defense in front of him, and numbers suggest he'll be more than capable to succeed in his first stint as a full-time starter.
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