The California NHL trio’s less-than-golden moment
This has never happened before in the NHL.
The NHL has never had a season where all three California-based teams finished in the bottom three spots of the Western Conference.
It almost happened before. In 1995-96, the Kings (12th) and Sharks (13th) were at the bottom of the conference, but the Ducks were ninth. The Kings and Sharks were in the basement again the following season, but the Ducks were fourth.
But we’ve never had all three teams suffering through horrific seasons simultaneously. Unless one of these teams makes a miraculous move up the standings in the next two months, it’s going to happen this season.
For the moment, the shine is off Golden State hockey.
Follow our celebration of United States hockey and the 40th anniversary of the Miracle on Ice:
• Inside the miracle: How USA won »
• Bucci’s top 20 American-born players »
• America’s top hockey hotbeds »
• How Seattle is bringing hockey to all »
• Finding the next star in Arizona »
• How VGK will keep Vegas hockey mad »
What a run it has been, though.
The Ducks broke through first, winning the Stanley Cup in 2007, and then making the conference final twice more in the next 10 years. The Kings would win their first Stanley Cup in 2012, and follow with another in 2014, with a trip to the conference final sandwiched in between. While the Sharks infamously have never won the Cup, they’ve been a bridesmaid more than Katherine Heigl: five trips to the conference final since 2004, with that Stanley Cup Final loss to the Penguins in 2016. But hey, Metallica played the national anthem, so it wasn’t a total loss.
Is this California bummer a one-year anomaly? Has the sun set on West Coast hockey for a bit?
Here’s a look at the present and future for the NHL’s Golden State teams:
Record: 24-29-7 (55 points), 14th in the West
Last made playoffs: 2018
Current status: The Ducks hired Dallas Eakins as their head coach last summer while buying out Corey Perry, signaling a shift toward a youth movement on the roster. This season has been a combination of injuries and ineffectiveness from players like Ondrej Kase (23 points in 49 games), Josh Manson (six points in 41 games) and previously reliable late line of defense John Gibson (17-23-4, minus-6.59 goals saved above average, per Hockey Reference). They’re 29th in goals per game (2.52). It has been bad.
Future status: We had the Ducks ranked eighth in our September 2019 prospect rankings, with potential future star forward Trevor Zegras leading the way. Anaheim has 10 players that are 26 and under on their roster, with players like Sam Steel and Troy Terry still maturing into NHL talents. Gibson’s better than this — and he’d better be, having been signed through 2027 — and general manager Bob Murray appears to want his veteran defense corps to remain intact as a foundational part of the team. There’s something here that can develop in the next few seasons, but not without some tough decisions on players like franchise legend Ryan Getzlaf (a free agent in 2021).
Outlook: Good, if there’s a sweet spot to be found between vets in their prime (Rickard Rakell, Jakob Silfverberg, Cam Fowler) and the kids. Oh, and as long as Gibson returns to form.
Record: 21-34-5 (47 points), 15th in the West
Last made playoffs: 2018
Current status: The Kings added coach Todd McLellan last summer but didn’t jettison too many veteran players. That’s because GM Rob Blake needed some placeholders until the next waves of Kings talent arrived — and because he had some frankly untradeable assets on the roster. Anyway, while Los Angeles has been a tough out this season, they’re also the worst team in the conference and the second-worst offensive team in the NHL (2.47). But at least Tyler Toffoli, Alec Martinez and Ilya Kovalchuk found good homes.
Future status: Depending on whom you ask, the Kings have either the best or second-best prospect pool in the NHL. Many rank them first because of the depth of that pool, which only got deeper with the addition of Tyler Madden from the Canucks in the Toffoli trade. Others, like our Chris Peters, rank them second because the Rangers have more clear-cut potential stars on their runway. Either way, this group led by Alex Turcotte and Rasmus Kupari has the chance to be something special, and with 11 picks in the first three rounds of the next two drafts, more help is on the way.
Outlook: The brightest future of any of the California teams, but we’re wondering how this youth movement ultimately fits into the timelines of Anze Kopitar (32, signed through 2024 at $10 million average annual) and Drew Doughty (30, signed through 2027 at $11 million AAV).
Record: 26-29-4 (56 points), 13th in the West
Last made playoffs: 2019
Current status: One of the biggest disappointments in the league this season. The Sharks followed their conference final appearance by signing Erik Karlsson to an eight-year contract with full no-move protection that was rich enough to start a chain reaction through their cap. Gone were Joe Pavelski, Joonas Donskoi, Gustav Nyquist and Justin Braun. The young, cheap reinforcements weren’t ready for prime time. That, combined with sub-replacement goaltending early in the season, cost coach Pete DeBoer his job. The goaltending has gotten better under Bob Boughner. Not much else has, thanks to injuries — Logan Couture was out since Jan. 7, Karlsson’s out for the year — and ineptitude.
Future status: Yeah, not great. The Sharks were 24th in Peters’ prospect pool rankings, and lack any high-impact players in the system. Trading away early-round picks frequently will have that effect.
Outlook: The Sharks might as well load up for another run next season, considering the age of their core: Brent Burns (34), Marc-Edouard Vlasic (32), Couture (30), Karlsson (turning 30) and Evander Kane (turning 29). They’re going to have over $17 million in cap space; alas, they only have 11 players under contract for next season. But the real necessity to go for another run at the Cup in the near future is that their farm system is ranked 24th in the NHL and lacks impact players. Like, for example, the one the Ottawa Senators are going to draft with the Sharks’ first-round pick they acquired in the Karlsson deal. (The Ducks and Kings, for the record, own their own lottery picks this summer.)
That’s the NHL picture. But the state of California hockey goes beyond these three teams. As they linger in the basement, burgeoning hockey hotbeds have taken root around them.
According to USA Hockey, the total number of participants in local hockey in Anaheim — meaning youth and adult players, as well as officials and coaches — was 19,282 within a 50-mile radius of the Ducks’ arena in 2018-19. That’s a 27.4% increase from five years previous. The gorgeous new practice facility the team built in Irvine will only grew that community further.
Los Angeles had a total number of participants of 15,337, or 24.2% higher than five years ago. That includes a 29.7% in youth hockey alone.
San Jose had a total number of participants of 8,908, which was 13.6% higher than in 2014. That includes a 58.4% increase in girls hockey.
The state of California’s teams isn’t strong this season. But the state of California hockey is stronger than it has ever been.
From the Centre of the Hockey Universe: