Ducks Make Second Round Of Roster Cuts

By Thomas Harrington

Earlier today, the Anaheim Ducks announced their second round of roster cuts. Defensemen Matt Basgall and Konnor Smith, forwards Coulson Pitre, Ethan Procyszyn, Yegor Sidorov, and Herman Traff, and goaltender Damian Clara were assigned to San Diego. Defenseman Jayden Kurtz was assigned to the Chicago Steel of the USHL. Also, it wasn’t announced with this group, but goaltender Tomas Suchanek was assigned to San Diego as well at some point over the past couple days. San Diego’s training camp has already begun, so it wasn’t a surprise to see several players assigned to the Gulls. The Ducks now have 38 players left on their roster: 23 forwards, 12 defensemen, and three goaltenders.

Basgall was a late addition to Anaheim’s training camp roster, but given that he is on an AHL-only contract, there was no question of him going to San Diego. He didn’t appear in any preseason games, and this will be his first full professional season after getting four games with the Gulls last year.

A fourth round pick from 2023, Smith played in one preseason game and was scoreless. His six hits did lead the team against Los Angeles, but the better sign was him taking no penalties while being a physical presence on the ice. Smith has had a habit of taking bad penalties, but if he can clean up his game, he could become a force on the ice. He played on Anaheim’s third line in his lone preseason game, and he’ll likely spend time in both the AHL and ECHL again this season.

A third round pick from 2023, Pitre played in one preseason game and picked up an assist on Anaheim’s lone goal against the Kings. He played on the Ducks’ third line. Injuries really derailed Pitre’s season last year. Hopefully a healthier year out of him will lead to him being a more effective player for San Diego, though it wouldn’t surprise me if he spent some time in the ECHL again as well.

A third round pick from 2024, Procyszyn scored a goal in his lone preseason game while centering Anaheim’s third line. This will be his first professional season, and he’ll hopefully be able to carve out a spot for himself in San Diego’s bottom six.

A third round pick from 2023, Sidorov played in one preseason game and was scoreless. He played on the top line next to a couple of NHL veterans in Frank Vatrano and Ryan Poehling. Sidorov is one of the more skilled prospects that the Ducks have, but he needs to become a much more consistent player if he wants to get to the NHL. He’ll hopefully be among San Diego’s leading point getters this season.

The Ducks acquired Traff from the New Jersey Devils as part of the Brian Dumoulin deal back in 2025. Traff was scoreless in his lone preseason appearance, skating on the team’s fourth line. This will be his first full season playing in North America, though he did get a taste of it last year with three games in San Diego to end the season. Hopefully Traff can find a home on San Diego’s second or third line and time on their penalty killing unit.

A second round pick from this past summer, Kurtz played in one preseason game on the team’s top defensive pair, next to Pavel Mintyukov. He was scoreless, but many were impressed with how well he played. He’s heading back to the USHL, and this will actually be the last time he’s at training camp for the foreseeable future. After a year in the USHL, Kurtz will head to the NCAA and play for the University of Wisconsin, so he won’t be able to attend training camp again until his college career is finished.

Clara was a second round pick from 2023 while Suchanek was an undrafted free agent signing. Both will be fighting for playing time in San Diego, likely as the team’s backup behind Laurent Brossoit. I expect both to get some time in with the Gulls, but it also wouldn’t surprise me to see both of them get some games in the ECHL as well.

With 38 players left at training camp, Anaheim needs to cut 15 more players before the season begins next week.  Many of the players like Noah Warren, Judd Caulfield, and Lucas Pettersson are guaranteed to be heading back to San Diego. But other players like Nikita Klepov, Roger McQueen, and Anton Wahlberg have a chance to crack the opening night roster.

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September 24th, 2026