The Anaheim Ducks may have the type of veteran leadership most clubs crave, but they also have the young guns required to compete in a league that gets younger with each passing season.
Anaheim executive vice president and general manager Bob Murray acknowledged the youth his team has added while speaking with reporters Thursday.
"I think what's happened here over the last year-and-a-half, and it's starting to be recognized, is we've added some youth to our lineup," Murray said Thursday, according to Adam Brady of NHL.com. "And there is the emergence of Ricky (Rickard Rakell) and Silfvy (Jakob Silfverberg)."
Both Rakell, 24, and Silfverberg, 26, have the youth and talent to contribute for some time and they've already played themselves into top-six roles.
Related: Ducks' Silfverberg proving he belongs in Anaheim, not Vegas
The pair are coming off banner years in which they each posted career highs in points and goals. Silfverberg notched 23 goals and 49 total points, while Rakell finished with 33 and 51.
Don't get it twisted, the Ducks still live and die with veteran All-Stars Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf. But, as Murray pointed out, Anaheim has some young players that will soon make their names known in the NHL.
"Everyone says we're an old team. We've got some veteran players, yes. But we've got some really good young kids and more kids coming," said Murray. "So we're in a good spot to move forward."
In addition to Perry, Getzlaf, Silfverberg, and Rakell, the Ducks boast some talented lesser-known prospects who are eager for a full-time shot in an NHL lineup.
| Player | Age | 2016-17 games played | 2016-17 points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Ritchie (F) | 21 | 77 | 28 |
| Ondrej Kase (F) | 21 | 53 | 15 |
| Brandon Montour (D) | 23 | 27 | 6 |
| Shea Theodore (D) | 21 | 34 | 9 |
Theodore, Kase, Montour, and Ritchie are just a few of the young names on Anaheim's roster to keep an eye on next season and beyond.
Montour and Theodore are two under-the-radar players who have top-four potential, Kase and Ritchie both have a nose for the net with never-say-die work ethics, and all four played major roles in carrying the Ducks to the third round this postseason.
All four players are under the age of 24.
Mix in 23-year-old goaltender John Gibson, and Anaheim's stacked back end, and you have a young core that will have the team competing for a Western Conference crown year in and year out.
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