Rebuilding Ducks are already trade deadline winners

The 2022 NHL Trade Deadline hasn’t passed, yet it’s already safe to call the Anaheim Ducks one of its biggest winners.

Where the Flyers and Sharks remain in rebuild denial, the Ducks pulled off the Band-Aid. Painful or not, they traded players who are unlikely to be part of potential future successes, and have already squeezed out a ton of value.

As with any rebuild, the Ducks need to “win” more than just a trade deadline move or three. They’ll need to draft the right players, develop them, sign value contracts, and do all the other things that propel a team to success.

The point is to stack up wise decisions until that process adds up to wins — and ideally, championships.

With the 2022 NHL Trade Deadline on Monday, the Ducks have time to stack up a few more of those wins, too.

No doubt, the Hampus Lindholm trade is the headliner of the Ducks’ deadline haul. The Ducks also traded Josh Manson and Nicolas Deslauriers, though. Combine those trades and the Ducks’ work looks that much more impressive:

In trading Josh Manson, Hampus Lindholm and Nicolas Deslauriers this week, the Anaheim Ducks have added:

2022 1st2023 2nd 2023 2nd2023 3rd2024 2ndDrew HellesonUrho VaakanainenJohn Moore

They've still get pending UFA Rickard Rakell on the trade block, too.

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) March 19, 2022

While some prospect-watchers have higher or lower hopes about Drew Helleson and Urho Vaakanainen, both young defensemen have a shot at helping the Ducks. That’s promising, especially considering that the draft picks are the most exciting parts of those deals.

(Some of that is the power of daydreaming about “potential.” A vague pick could turn out to be almost anything.)

Overall, these moves add more fuel to the fire for a Ducks