Subj : Ducks Commitment to Backes Leaves No Room for Sherwood
To : All
From : The Hockey Writers - Main
Date : Fri Sep 25 2020 12:26 pm
When Derek Grant was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers at the trade deadline,
it left a hole in the middle of the Anaheim Ducks' fourth line between Nicolas
Deslauriers and Carter Rowney. Rowney is capable of playing center, as he has
in the past, but he's best utilized as a winger.
Enter David Backes, who had been acquired by the Ducks from the Boston Bruins
just a few days earlier in a trade that saw Ondrej Kase head east.Related: Top
5 Paul Kariya Moments With the Ducks
The Ducks have recently committed to keeping Backes and his $6 million cap hit
($1.5 million of it is being retained by Boston) and they expect him to be a
regular in the lineup during the 2020-21 season, which could be Backes' last.
However, this essentially ensures that no player is likely to make an
appearance on the fourth line beside the trio of Deslauriers, Backes and
Rowney, barring injury, of course.
What does that mean for someone like Kiefer Sherwood, who played in 55 games as
a rookie in 2018-19 but only played in 10 games during the 2019-20 season?
Sherwood is currently a restricted free agent and it has been quiet on all
fronts between Sherwood and the Ducks, even though Anaheim has taken care of
other RFAs like Jacob Larsson and Christian Djoos.Full House
As it stands, the Ducks currently have enough NHL-caliber forwards to fill out
an entire lineup without Sherwood. That's without taking into account players
like Maxime Comtois, Isac Lundeström and Trevor Zegras as well. Sherwood is no
stranger to immense competition, having surprised many in 2018 by making the
NHL roster out of training camp. The former Miami RedHawk posted 12 points
during the 2018-19 season and his strong work ethic and relentlessness on the
forecheck is reminiscent of the style of play that late-2000s Ducks teams
employed.
Come for the goal 🏒 stay for the celly 😎
Congrats to Kiefer Sherwood (@KSherwood44) on his first career NHL
goal!@AnaheimDucks lead 2-0 after a period, are you joining us on #PrimeTicket
and the FOX Sports App? pic.twitter.com/G9VfoVzlBD- FOX Sports West
(@FoxSportsWest) October 14, 2018
While offense is by no means Sherwood's forte, the winger did take a step back
at the NHL level during the 2019-20 season, registering only one assist and
zero goals during his short stint in Anaheim. While some of the blame can be
attributed to the Ducks'; team-wide level of play deteriorating for a second
consecutive season, it's possible that Sherwood also regressed to the mean
after performing above expectations during his rookie season.Flat-Cap Era
Financial constraints due to COVID-19 are impacting sports teams around the
world and the Ducks are no different. They currently have just under $500,000
in cap space, but that should rise to just over $7 million once Ryan Kesler is
placed on LTIR.
The Ducks have already locked up their most important RFAs this offseason in
Brendan Guhle, Troy Terry and Sonny Milano along with Larsson and Djoos. Once
they have freed up more cap space, it's possible that they'll re-visit
discussions with Sherwood and their other RFAs in Chase De Leo, Alex Dostie,
Joel Persson and Deven Sideroff. They also still need to address their backup
goalie situation with Ryan Miller currently an unrestricted free
agent.Experience Over Youth
The decision to involve Backes makes sense. No team likely wants to pick up his
salary without some added incentive, something the Ducks probably don't want
to do given that Backes's contract expires a year from now. They might as well
play him as long as he';s healthy. Eight months off will have given the
36-year-old plenty of time to rest and recover.David Backes, Anaheim Ducks
(Photo by Debora Robinson/NHLI via Getty Images)
It doesn't hurt to have another veteran leader in the locker room, either,
especially when general manager Bob Murray has cited a lack of leadership on
the team (from ‘‘Enough' - Ducks GM Bob Murray demands better from Dallas
Eakins and players', The Athletic, 06/03/20). A player who possesses as much
experience as Backes is even more valuable.
While Backes is far from his Selke candidate days, the former Blues captain is
still a force on faceoffs and chipped in three points in six games with the
Ducks after being acquired.Related: Top 5 Teemu Selanne Moments With the Ducks
When it comes down to it, deciding between playing Backes and Sherwood in a
limited fourth-line role probably isn't a hard decision for Ducks head coach
Dallas Eakins. He knows what he's going to get from Backes and while Sherwood
is the younger (and quicker) option, a combination of Deslauriers, Backes and
Rowney is likely to be what Ducks fans see on the fourth line during this
upcoming season.
The post Ducks'; Commitment to Backes Leaves No Room for Sherwood appeared
first on The Hockey Writers.
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