We’re back with another Anaheim Ducks prospect update! Axel Andersson made his professional debut with the San Diego Gulls after his season in the HockeyAllsvenskan ended. Trevor Zegras made his return to the American Hockey League to start his transition to center ice. Brayden Tracey continued his hot start with six points over four games last week. It’s time to recap and analyze their performances. Welcome back to our series updating you on some of the Ducks’ top prospects and picks from the NHL Entry Draft.
Zegras Returns to San Diego Lineup
The Gulls’ seven-game winning streak came to an end last week as they dropped two of their three games starting with a 4-2 loss to the Ontario Reign last Wednesday. Their only win of the week came in a 8-6 barnburner against the Tucson Roadrunners. Axel Andersson made his Gulls debut after coming over from Sweden and picked up an assist in his first two games of professional hockey.
Josh Mahura and Brendan Guhle continued to produce from the blue line as both recorded two goals and one assist on the week. Mahura now has five goals and seven assists for 12 points in 17 games played, while Guhle has two goals and 10 assists for 12 points in 22 games played. As for the forwards, Trevor Zegras made his anticipated return to the team. He didn’t waste any time getting back on the scoresheet as he recorded one goal and one assist in three games. Jacob Perreault continued his impressive run since returning from injury, as he picked up three assists last week.
Olle Eriksson Ek also saw his five-game winning streak come to an end as he lost both games he started in last week. He now has a 6-3-0 record with a 2.47 goals-against average (GAA) and a .916 save percentage (SV%). Lukas Dostal picked up the other start of the week and extended his winning streak to three games. He stopped 46 of 52 shots on goal in the Ducks’ 8-6 victory over Tucson and now has an 8-7-0 record with a 3.28 GAA and a .910 SV%.
Upcoming Games: April 13/15 vs. Ontario, April 17 vs. Bakersfield
Albin Sundsvik, Artyom Galimov & Thimo Nickl
Sunsvik started as the extra forward in Skellefteå AIK’s Swedish Hockey League quarterfinal opener against Luleå. He only played 5:57 time on ice and failed to register a point in their 3-2 overtime victory. Even though he hasn’t been an impact player for Skellefteå this season, it’s still surprising to see him use so sparingly in game one.
Upcoming Games: April 12/14/15/17 vs. Luleå
Artyom Galimov and Ak Bars Kazan lost their first game of the week to Avangard and went down 2-0 in there conference finals series. However, they rebounded in their next two games, winning both by a score of 2-1 and Galimov played a big part in each by getting the primary assist on the game-winning goals. They ended up losing on Sunday, so they trail their series 3-2 with a potential series-deciding game on Tuesday.
Upcoming Games: April 13 vs. Avangard
It’s been a trend all season, but Thimo Nickl did not feature in any of Rögle’s SHL quarterfinal games last week. Once their season is over, it will be interesting to see what the plan is for Nickl, because he’s been used sparingly throughout the entire season.
Upcoming Games: April 13/14/16/18 vs. Frölunda
Henry Thrun & Ian Moore
Henry Thrun played in all three games for the Dubuque Fighting Saints last week. He was held pointless in their first two games, but broke out in a big way on Saturday with two goals and one assist. Thrun has exploded offensively over his last nine games, amassing six goals and seven assists for 13 points. He now has eight goals and nine assists for 17 points in 18 games on the season. His points-per-game total of .94 ranks second in the entire league and only trails Boston Bruins prospect Mason Lohrei (1.34).
Upcoming Games: April 14 vs. Dubuque, April 17 vs. Team USA
Ian Moore picked up two assists and four shots on goal across three games played for the Steel last week. He now has nine goals and 12 assists for 21 points in 41 games played this season. Not a bad rookie season in the USHL for the Concord, Massachusetts-native. He ranks third among Steel defensemen in scoring.
Upcoming Games: April 15 vs. Youngstown, April 17 vs. Green Bay
Brayden Tracey & Ethan Bowen
Brayden Tracey continued his impressive start to the 2020-21 Western Hockey League (WHL) season. The Victoria Royals forward recorded four goals and two assists for six points across four games last week. That brings his season totals to five goals and six assists for 11 points in seven games played. He is playing as the first-line left winger in the Royals’ lineup and leads the team in scoring. He only had seven goals in 24 games with the Royals last season, so this is a great start to proving that he was worth the first-round selection that Anaheim used on him.
Upcoming Games: April 15 vs. Vancouver, April 16 vs. Prince George
Ethan Bowen and the Chilliwack Chiefs returned to action on April 2 and he got off to a hot start with four points in his first two games played. It wasn’t quite as an impressive stretch last week as he only managed to record two assist over three games. He still leads the Chiefs in scoring with two goals and four assists for six points in five games. He had 12 goals and 19 assists for 31 points in 41 games played for the Chiefs during the 2019-20 season. He is committed to the University of North Dakota for the 2021-22 season.
Upcoming Games: April 12 vs. Prince George, April 14 vs. Merritt, April 15 vs. Prince George, April 17 vs. Merritt, April 18 vs. Prince George
Thanks for checking out our latest prospects update of the 2020-21 season. Stay tuned for a fresh update on Ducks prospects from major junior, NCAA, Europe, and around the world!
In the meantime, if you want to hear my thoughts on the team’s prospects and current affairs, check out The Forever Mighty Podcast for all the latest Anaheim Ducks talk and analysis.
Fan of the Anaheim Ducks for my whole life. I’m a die hard fan living in London, Ontario. Excited to be writing about the team I love. Talking all things Ducks on the Forever Mighty Podcast!