John Klingberg is a Perfect Fit for the Anaheim Ducks

The Anaheim Ducks are on the upswing, and they just made another great move.

Defenseman John Klingberg has been the biggest name on the open market, in terms of defensemen, since the free agency period opened two weeks ago. After plenty of speculation and uncertainty, he is signing with the upstart Ducks.

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Anaheim had nearly $26 million in cap space, according to CapFriendly, prior to this deal with the former Dallas Stars blueliner, so this is something that makes a lot of sense for the team.

With a young core in place and a couple of key pieces signing in Anaheim already this offseason, the Ducks are making major strides toward returning to the playoffs. Having so much cap space and a player like Klingberg available makes this a no-brainer for Pat Verbeek and company.

John Klingberg is a great fit for the Ducks.

The deal is only for one year, making it a very low-risk move for the Ducks. I would have liked them to lock him up long-term to make him a part of their future for years to come, but nothing says that can’t still happen.

For now, it’ll be a one-year partnership that will pay Klingberg $7 million. He will join Kevin Shattenkirk and Jamie Drysdale on the right side of the Ducks’ defense.

He’ll attempt to help a club that conceded 3.2 goals per game last season, while also using his offensive prowess to help the team score more frequently. Last season with the Stars, Klingberg scored six goals and 41 assists for 47 points.

In his career, he has played in 553 contests, scoring 374 points (71 goals and 303 assists). His best season came in 2017-2018 when he played a full 82 games and notched eight goals and 59 assists for 67 points to go with a plus-10 rating.

The summer of 2023 will be big for the Ducks, as several key players will be in need of new contracts. This deal with Klingberg allows the team to aggressively pursue a playoff spot this season while still giving it financial flexibility heading into next year.

There will be plenty of questions to answer when it comes to Klingberg and the Ducks as the season goes on, but one thing is for sure right now: this deal is a great fit for Anaheim.