Player Review: Troy Terry

The end of the 2019-20 Ducks season was made official when the NHL announced its Return to Play Plan on May 26. Anaheim concluded the season with a 29-33-9 record and 67 points, having played 71 games until the regular season was paused March 12 and eventually deemed completed May 26 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Over this offseason we're featuring a different Ducks player in numerical order in our annual player review series highlighting key stats and moments from the past season. You can find published pieces and a full schedule on this landing page.

You could see it at times when Troy Terry had the puck on his stick. A subtle deke to find space, a quick cut to a scoring lane or a seeing-eye pass through traffic. The ability to create something seemingly out of nothing. He has all the tools. Now, it's just a matter of harnessing them and delivering on a regular basis.

He knows this, and he'd be the first to tell you it's something he's constantly working on. Still just 22 years of age, the Denver native is on the cusp of breaking out in a huge way. He took strides during the 2019-20 season, setting career highs in assists (11), points (15) and games played (47), while tying a personal best in goals (4).

Terry is part of a young nucleus of players in the organization who have grown over the course of the past two seasons. Others in the group include fellow 22-year-olds Max Jones, Sam Steel and Josh Mahura, and 21-year-old Max Comtois. All are products of the NHL Draft, and in Terry's case, a fifth-round gem in 2015.

The fact of the matter is Terry has just 81 games of NHL experience under his belt. With time comes experience. From experience comes wisdom.

"This year, I knew I was going to be looked upon to be a main guy and produce," said Terry, in this interview with SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. "The year before, I finished the year with Anaheim and was able to produce some numbers and be a main guy. At that point, we were out of the playoffs and it was kind of pressure-free. I learned pretty quickly that it's a different animal when you're playing in the NHL and looked upon to be one of the main sources of offense on a team trying to compete for a playoff spot.

"It's no secret how good the league is. It's tough. As much as we all want to be ready, us young guys, it's a process. It might take a little longer than some people wanted it to, but I think we're all heading in the right direction."

Terry's end-to-end rush on Nov. 27 at Arizona was a glimpse into what he's capable of doing. That wasn't a ho-hum defenseman he backed off, either. It was Coyotes captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Peep the speed through the neutral zone and the shot shortside just inside the nearside post. Strong.

Here's his goal from Oct. 18 vs. Carolina, a play that starts with him gaining the zone with speed. A quick chip pass to Steel at the blueline allows separation from himself and Hurricanes forward Nino Niederreiter, and gives him time to set up shop in the slot. A tip-in goal off a Cam Fowler point shot is the result.

If you want to see his playmaking ability, look no further than this superb pass through a seam onto Adam Henrique's blade for a power-play goal on Feb. 16 at Vancouver.

This was the final year of a three-year entry-level contract he signed back on March 26, 2018. On July 14, it was announced the Ducks signed him to a three-year extension through the 2022-23 NHL season.

Tweet from @AnaheimDucks: New contract.New puppy.@troyterry1997 is living his best life. #LetsGoDucks pic.twitter.com/j2w4UzHL12

"The contract was on my mind," said Terry. "It's nice to have it done. Now I've got a lot of time before I put a jersey back on. It's nice to have it done and focus on my training, and now I have another three years in Anaheim. I'm really excited."

Blessed with a fresh new deal, Terry wants to be a go-to guy. A player that can deliver on a regular basis and be a difference maker. "It's really a question of us core young guys," he said. "If we can get more comfortable and getting comfortable producing at the National Hockey League level. We're all very motivated. I like where our team is at. There were a lot of games this year where we were right there, but just couldn't finish.

"It's easy to look at our record. We struggled to score goals this year. That was our biggest downfall. It was one of these years where we'd play these top-end teams like Boston and Tampa Bay, and it would almost feel like we were playing right with them. Or we had the puck more. We were a team that forechecked and played in their end. These teams that have the high-end ability to finish on the rush and on these chances, and then you end up losing. You feel like you had the puck more and you outplayed them. I know our team has that capability. We've got some young guys who have that ability to score goals. That's going to come with being more confident."