Anaheim Ducks Cap Space: Examining the Ducks' salary in the off-season

The Anaheim Ducks are rebuilding and thus, have tons of cap space available. The Ducks are a young team, with most of their key players still on entry-level deals. But the likes of Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale, Troy Terry and Lukas Dostal are RFAs, and all will be getting paid. Currently, the Ducks have just over $28 million in cap space - a sizeable chunk of that will be going to those three players.

Outside of that, Anaheim still needs to sign a backup goalie, while starting goaltender John Gibson could also be traded this summer.

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Anaheim Ducks' off-season moves

Anaheim started the off-season by drafting Leo Carlsson second-overall who projects as a top-six forward in the NHL. Then, in free agency, the Ducks signed Alex Killorn to a four-year deal worth $6.25 million per year and defenseman Radko Gudas to a three-year deal worth $4 million per year.

Although some fans were critical of those signings by calling them overpays, the Ducks had cap space and wanted leaders like Killorn and Gudas in the locker room.

Alex Killorn signed a multi-year deal with the Ducks

"We're really excited to get both of these players," Ducks GM Pat Verbeek said. "They were at the top of our list when we began this process. We held our meetings a couple weeks ago and these were two guys we really wanted to target."

Verbeek added:

"Alex Killorn brings an incredible repertoire of Stanley Cups, finals, semi-finals, leadership and competitiveness. Radko Gudas, well if you've watched the playoffs, you saw how hard he is to play against, very physical and tough. So we are looking to add that element to our blue line and we're excited for these players.

"It's important for our young guys to understand what compete is all about, what paying the price is all about - in the weight room and [being] a complete professional, doing things the right way every minute of the day when they're at the rink. So it was vital."

Anaheim also signed defenseman Robert Hagg to a one-year deal to add depth to the position. Outside of signing the RFAs, the Ducks still need to sign a backup goalie if they don't think Dostal is a backup.

But, with tons of cap space, the Ducks could still add another free agent or trade a player from other teams. Ultimately, the Ducks won't be a playoff team next year, but their future looks bright.