Ducks arrive ahead of schedule, ready to challenge the Western order

The Anaheim Ducks arrived ahead of schedule. After years of rebuilding, Anaheim made its first playoff appearance since 2018 and advanced to the second round for the first time since 2017 — knocking off the two-time defending Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers along the way. The Ducks are now among the teams ready to challenge the power structure in the West, perhaps sooner than anyone expected.

A breakthrough season

Anaheim's rise is built on a roster that blends a young, homegrown core with veterans who have won elsewhere, and in 2025-26 that mix took a significant step forward. Upsetting the mighty Oilers in the first round announced the Ducks as a legitimate team on the rise, not just a hopeful rebuild. The playoff run ended in the second round against one of the NHL's most dangerous teams, but the experience gained and the statement made were invaluable for a young group learning how to win.

A young core to build on

The Ducks' future runs through their ascending young talent, headlined by center Leo Carlsson, whom Anaheim committed to by matching an offer sheet this offseason — a clear signal of how highly the franchise values him. With Carlsson and fellow young talents like Cutter Gauthier, plus goaltender Lukas Dostal, the Ducks have a foundation built to grow. The offseason was about retaining that core and continuing to develop it, the priority for a team on the upswing.

Season outlook

Anaheim enters 2026-27 as a rising team with real momentum in a competitive Pacific Division. Having broken through to the playoffs and won a round, the Ducks have shown they're ahead of schedule, and the young core gives them a bright future. The goals now are to build on the breakthrough, avoid regression, and establish themselves as a consistent playoff team. In a Western Conference full of contenders, Anaheim has announced itself as a team to watch — younger and hungrier than most, and perhaps ready to challenge the established order faster than anyone anticipated.