2019 Anaheim Ducks Odds to win Stanley Cup with Expert Predictions

The Anaheim Ducks are not very good right now. Not very good at all. And we just aren't used to that. After missing the playoffs last year, the Ducks are in real danger of missing the playoffs for consecutive seasons for the first time since 2001. Stability is what we expect from this team. But they seem to be lost. Randy Carlyle's second stint as head coach of this team ended midseason last year. Bob Murray took over on an interim basis for the final 26 games. They played better under him, but not well enough to keep the job - which he, as GM, would not have wanted to do anyway. The team is now in full rebuilding mode, and it appears that they have embraced it. Not that they can avoid it at this point.

Anaheim Ducks Offseason Moves

The first thing, and the most important, that the team had to deal with was finding a head coach. They didn't look beyond their comfort zone, bringing in Dallas Eakins, who had been coaching Anaheim's AHL team through four successful seasons. Elevating an AHL coach makes sense in a rebuild, because he knows the young players who will be the new core of this team well. And Eakins has prior NHL experience. He coached Edmonton for a year and a half. He was fired midseason, but being fired in Edmonton is more of a positive than a negative for a coach - they have gotten rid of several good ones too soon. He's a good choice.

But instead of giving him free rein to do what needs to be done, the Ducks made another move that raises a few flags in my eyes. In August the team hired Darryl Sutter as an advisor to the coaching staff. The two-time Cup winner has been out of the game for two years. He has an ego the size of Montana and is not exactly the most collaborative guy. It is tough to believe that he can be happy just sitting on the sidelines offering tidbits of advice. It's hard enough for a coach to lead through a rebuild. But if he has to fight off a challenge to his position from within, that only complicates things.

Signaling the end of an era, the team bought out the final two years of Corey Perry's contract this summer, which freed up well over $8 million in cap space each year. Perry, along with Ryan Getzlaf, has been the heart of this team for more than a decade. And he has a Hart Trophy as MVP to his credit. But he's 34, and his production had fallen off a cliff last year, so it was time to make a move. As much as anything, a move like this is symbolic - an indication of the end of an era, and the full acceptance of a rebuild.

Beyond that, the team didn't do a lot of adding to this roster. The closest thing to a blockbuster was the addition of Michael Del Zotto, who is a familiar face. The depth defender was with the team last year. Briefly. He was acquired from Vancouver on January 16 but was then traded to St. Louis on February 23. He watched every playoff game from the press box but still has his name on the Cup.

The team had two first-round picks in last year's draft. At ninth they added center Trevor Zegras from the U.S. National Team Development Program, and at 29th they picked winger Brayden Tracy from the WHL. Both guys have plenty of upside, but Zegras will be at Boston University, and Tracy will be in Moose Jaw for another year, so it will require some patience.

Anaheim Ducks NHL Outlook

The best hope here is that the team really leans into giving the young talent experience and finding out what they have. Up front, youngsters like Sam Steel, Maxime Comtois, and Max Jones are all youngsters who had a little taste of NHL life last year. All have played for Eaves in San Diego and all have major upside. The more time they get in the lineup this year, the better. And on the back end, guys like Jacob Larsson, Josh Mahura, and Brendan Guhle played in both the AHL and NHL last year and need time. The team needs to resist the temptation to try to be competitive and really lean in to getting these guys experience. Luckily for them, it's not like they have a lot of other options.

Anaheim Ducks Schedule

Starting on October 29, the team starts a season-long seven game road trip, and five of those games are against squads that are not at all likely to be playoff contenders. If this team wants to have any chance at a respectable record, they will have to take advantage of this stretch of games.

Anaheim Ducks NHL Futures Odds

At +6600 to win the Stanley Cup , the Ducks are tied with their nearest neighbors, the Kings, as the third longest shot on the board. At +3300 to win the Western Conference, they are tied with the Kings as the longest shots in the group, and they are the seventh choice to win the Pacific Division - also at +3300. The season point total sits at 82.5, with neither the "over" nor the "under" drawing an uneven amount of action. They are at +230 to make the playoffs and -270 to miss them.

2019-20 Anaheim Ducks Predictions

This team is going to be lousy. And that isn't a bad thing, necessarily. The worse they are, the better their draft pick next year. They have some young talent, and they need more. Their priority, aside from getting experience for the youngsters, should be making some select veterans look as good as they can - so they can move them out at the deadline for more assets. Adam Henrique, Cam Fowler, Ryan Miller, and maybe even Ryan Getzlaf could all fit into that category.

Get $60 worth of member's NHL picks absolutely free - no obligation, no sales people - you don't even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit any way you please on any of our top hockey handicappers. Get $60 worth of premium members' picks free ! Also, for a limited time get three hockey handicappers for the price of one! Click here for our 3-for-1 NHL picks offer . Also, get free NHL picks every day on Doc's Sports NHL predictions page.

Read more articles by Trevor Whenham