The Ducks’ 2025-26 season has been over for just over a month and with the 2026 NHL Entry Draft just around the corner, it feels like a good time to start recapping this past season for each player in the organization.
Today’s edition of ‘By the Numbers’ will feature players who wore Nos. 21-30 this season.
Advertisement
If you missed the previous edition of ‘By the Numbers’, you can click here to read it.
2025-26 was a very mixed bag for McTavish. He missed the start of training camp due to a contract dispute, but got off to a hot start in October and November while playing on a line with fellow youngsters Cutter Gauthier and Beckett Sennecke.
However, the second half of his season was a bit more inconsistent. Some of that can be attributed to being split up from Gauthier and Sennecke, but McTavish was also given the opportunity to fill in as the top line center while Leo Carlsson was recovering from surgery to remove a Morel-Lavallée lesion and still wasn’t able to produce consistently, even with the increased ice time.
Advertisement
An upper-body injury in late January sidelined McTavish for six games, and things didn’t get much better for him upon his return as he managed just 11 points in the final 26 games of the regular season. A shift to the wing and a couple of healthy scratches in mid-March and twice during the playoffs have caused trade rumors to crop up this summer.
Anaheim Ducks Offseason Rumor Roundup: 6/19/26
With McTavish under contract for five more years, this situation feels much different from what transpired last June, when Trevor Zegras was dealt for the Philadelphia Flyers for Ryan Poehling. Moving on from McTavish now would signal that general manager Pat Verbeek does not believe McTavish is capable of being the Ducks’ 2C behind Leo Carlsson. 2025 10th overall pick Roger McQueen may get a look during training camp this fall, but it’s unfair to expect him to come in right away and have an immediate impact like Sennecke did last October.
Mikael Granlund is more than capable of acting as a second line center, but he is 33 and missed 24 games this past season due to various injuries. The aforementioned Poehling can also fill in in a pinch, but is more suited for a third line role on a perennial playoff contender, which the Ducks hope to be moving forward.
Advertisement
Improving his foot speed and defensive habits are two focus points that McTavish touched on during his exit interview in May. A faster, more defensively-inclined McTavish, while maintaining his offensive abilities, would dissuade any worries that have started.
When Harkins signed a two-year contract with the Ducks on the second day of Free Agent Frenzy in 2024, not much was made of it. It appeared to be a simple signing to strengthen the Ducks’ AHL depth. But just four games into the regular season, Harkins was recalled by the Ducks after Frank Vatrano returned home for the birth of his second child. After being sent down following that game, Harkins was again recalled 11 games later and remained on the NHL roster for the rest of the season.
Harkins likely would have been on the 2025-26 opening night roster if he hadn’t suffered an upper-body injury during a preseason game against the Los Angeles Kings. He missed a month with the injury before returning to the NHL roster and was a regular fixture in the bottom-6 up until December. He, along with Nikita Nesterenko, was a healthy scratch for almost the entire month.
Upon his re-insertion into the lineup on Dec. 22, Harkins once again became a regular in the bottom-6 before suffering a hand injury in late March. Hand surgery ruled him out for a minimum of four weeks and he didn’t return to game action until Game 2 against the Vegas Golden Knights.
Advertisement
Harkins is a pending UFA and, at his best, is a reliable depth forward who forechecks well, brings energy and can play on the penalty kill. He is also capable of playing all three forward positions. His price tag shouldn’t be too high in the event of a return, but there are also several players from AHL San Diego who need to get NHL action at some point or be moved on from (Ex: Nathan Gaucher).
As mentioned above, Poehling was acquired from the Flyers in the Trevor Zegras deal and demonstrated his ability to be a jack of all trades during his first season with the Ducks. He began the season as the team’s fourth line center, but was elevated to the third line after Granlund suffered a lower-body injury eight games into the season.
Granlund’s return in November ironically coincided with Poehling being sidelined due to a back injury. He missed seven games with the injury before returning, but continued to nurse it throughout the season. Poehling continued to provide secondary scoring in his role as a bottom-6 forward, even getting elevated to the second line for a bit in February. His stellar debut season with the Ducks was good enough to earn him a four-year contract extension, which was signed on Mar. 5. His contract carries an AAV of $3.75 million.
Advertisement
Depending on how things shake out with McTavish this summer, Poehling will likely be the Ducks’ third line center next season. He is a vital part of the penalty kill, forming a tandem with Alex Killorn on the top unit. His season came to a premature end after he was on the receiving end of a violent hit from defenseman Brayden McNabb in Game 5 of their playoff series against the Golden Knights. Poehling has a history of concussions, so there was concern about the after-effects. Fortunately, the Ducks announced in their season-ending injury report that Poehling did not have any lingering symptoms.
Another player whose addition to the roster initially received mixed reactions, Viel was acquired from the Boston Bruins on Jan. 16 for a 2026 fourth-round pick and made his Ducks debut the very next day against the Kings. He did his best to have an immediate impact, fighting Samuel Helenius in the first period. He would then have three points (two goals) in the next three games, quickly endearing himself to the Anaheim faithful.
A gritty forward, Viel found himself playing all over the lineup, with head coach Joel Quenneville finding plenty of ways to deploy him. But Viel saved his best for last. For the first round of the playoffs against the Edmonton Oilers, Quenneville chose to run a line of Viel, Tim Washe and defenseman-turned-forward Ian Moore against one of the NHL’s best players in Connor McDavid. Their job would be suppressing the Oilers star as best as they could, and they did quite well. Viel also had two big goals in Games 3 and 4, both of which the Ducks won. His impact wasn’t as profound in the Vegas series, but he did provide two assists, with both again coming in Anaheim victories.
Advertisement
Viel is also a pending UFA and finds himself in uncharted territory after setting a new career high in games played. His sandpaper style of play is attractive to many teams and his performance on the national stage surely will not go unnoticed. It’s possible that he prices himself out of the Ducks’ price range thanks to those performances.
Related articles:
Troy Terry to Miss 5-6 Months Following Surgery
The NHL Buyout Window is now Open, Anaheim Ducks May Need to Use It
Report: Defenseman John Carlson will not Re-Sign with Anaheim Ducks, Set to Hit UFA Market on July 1
Former Anaheim Ducks Goaltender Frederik Andersen is a Stanley Cup Champion
Read the full article here