Since July 1, the Ducks have had a handful of players eligible to sign contract extensions. Frank Vatrano is one of those players.
The 30-year-old winger is coming off a career season in which he scored 37 goals and had 60 points. Vatrano was a fixture on both the power play and penalty kill, averaging 18:21 of time on ice, the second-highest amount among Ducks forwards behind Alex Killorn.
It’s expected that Vatrano will see a pay bump from his current $3.65 million cap hit. A deal similar to what Tyler Bertuzzi got this summer from the Chicago Blackhawks could be in the cards if Vatrano can maintain his 20+ goals pace from the last two seasons.
Whether the Ducks will extend Vatrano or not is still unknown. The player is a popular figure in the locker room and general manager Pat Verbeek had glowing words for his team’s top goalscorer in his post-trade deadline presser.
Related: GM Pat Verbeek discusses the Ducks’ 2024 trade deadline moves
“I don’t want to play anywhere else,” Vatrano said to NHL.com’s Jon Lane at the 2024 Shoulder Check Showcase last month. “It’s where I want to be. I see the bigger picture. I see how good we’re going to be next year and the years to come, so I want to be part of the solution.”
While Vatrano isn’t the most vocal leader, his play on the ice is indicative of his leadership, says Ryan Strome, who is good friends with Vatrano and played with him previously when the pair were on the New York Rangers.
“Everyone talks about the 37 goals and 60 points, (but) he led (our forwards) in hits and blocked shots,” Strome said. “Those are two very unselfish stats that I think he takes pride in. He’s a huge part of this team.
“To be his best buddy and to get to see it first-hand for a majority of the season is awesome. He cares so much and he puts so much into it. I think he’s a great role model for a ton of guys on our team from where his career path has kind of gone. Hopefully he can replicate it.”
Vatrano has always been quick to credit his teammates as the reason behind his success this past season. He did so after being named an NHL All-Star for the first time in his career and he did it again during his exit interview after the Ducks’ season had concluded.
“I think (my success this season) had to do with an opportunity and playing with great players,” Vatrano said. “Playing with guys like Stromer (Strome), Z (Trevor Zegras), Mac-T (Mason McTavish), Killer (Killorn) and all those guys.
“Those guys like to make plays and they made the game a lot easier on me. For me, I was just trying to get them the puck and get in the right place at the right time. A lot of my success came from the players I played with this season.”
The Ducks found it difficult as a whole to have sustained success in 2023-24, with Vatrano’s career year one of the bright spots during a season in which they finished third from the bottom in the league standings. This comes after a season in 2022-23 where they finished dead-last in the league standings and had the worst points total in franchise history.
Vatrano is entering his thirties and players typically began to drop off in production once they start heading north of 30. His next contract could be his last big payday. Would his desire to remain change with another basement-dwelling season in 2024-25?
“It’s obviously awesome (to be named an All-Star),” Vatrano said in January. “But if you look at guys around the league, those guys are All-Stars and winners. My biggest key in my career is winning and I want to win a Stanley Cup one day.
“So, if you can be an All-Star, that’s great. But being an All-Star doesn’t matter if you’re not winning at the same time. It’s an honor to be an All-Star, but you also want to be a winner too.”
“We’ve got a great group in here,” Vatrano said during his exit interview in April. “Everyone gets along and everyone’s pushing for each other to get better, and I think it’s going to come from us inside the room to push each other every single day.
“Now we know what the expectations are. We want to win now, we don’t want to go through this again and I think just everyone coming in being prepared and excited is going to help us.”
Vatrano will have a lot of responsibilities again next season with the Ducks also relying on their young players to take a big step after failing to add a top-6 forward via free agency.
“He’ll do anything,” said Ducks head coach Greg Cronin. “Power play, penalty killing, he’s on the ice in critical minutes. It’s guys like him that I love watching grow because they’re kind of nobodies (because they went undrafted). Those guys that just have that engine like, ‘I’m going to make it no matter what.’”
“I killed (penalties) a little bit in Florida and I liked doing it,” Vatrano said. “It’s fun. You can actually create a lot of offense (on the kill) but at the end of the day, your goal is to keep the puck out of the net. I like killing penalties. I want to help the team win in any way possible, so for me to use my speed and try to break up plays on the PK, that’s what I try to do and hopefully get better at it next year.”
Improving his skating and becoming a better possession player were two items on Vatrano’s offseason list of things he wanted to improve on. His desire to continue working on his shooting even after a 37-goal season showcases his hunger for improvement.
“For me, I think skating is everything. I think when you’re moving your legs and you’re the best skater you can possibly be, that’s how you create your success offensively and defensively.
“Doesn’t matter how good you’re doing or how good you did the year before. You’ve got to keep working on little things. For me, that’s skating, shooting pucks, and being a better possession player. That’s what I want to get better at.”
