VS.

March 15, 2009

NEW ISSUE!

Ducks Digest 3

LEGEND AND PHENOM: Bobby Ryan(left) and Teemu Selanne celebrateSelanne’s goal in the first period ofAnaheim’s 3-2 victory over the BuffaloSabres on February 24.

FEATURES

8 HARD COREY, WITH A SOFT SIDEDespite an edgy style on the ice, Corey Perry has a charitable side off it

12 LEADER OF MASKED MEN As a preeminent goalie coach, Francois Allaire has a major impact on the Ducks

41 DUCKS BY TRADEA flurry of trade deadline moves brought several new faces to Anaheim

47 RYAN’S HOPEHis trade to the Ducks came as a surprise, but now Ryan Whitney has great expectations in his new home

57 A CLOSER LOOKAndrew Ebbett

DEPARTMENTS19 Ducks Management26 Ducks Coaches33 Hockey IQ34 Ducks Speed Chart36 Ducks Roster39 Tonight’s Opponent52 Ducks in the Community66 Ducks Power Players69 Honda Center Information71 Honda Center Upcoming Events72 Ducks 2008-09 Schedule

EDITORIALWriter and Editor: Adam Brady

Associate Writer and Editor: Matt Vevoda

Contributing Photographers: Debora Robinson and Getty Images

Contributing Writers: Bobby Sponheimer, Alex Gilchrist, Merit Tully, Lauren O’Gorman

Design and Printing: PTS Marketing Group, Irvine, CA. Ph: 949.462.2067

Ducks Digest 7

The Ducks celebrate after Scott Niedermayerscores the game-winning goal in overtimeof 3-2 victory over the Calgary Flames onFebruary 11 at Honda Center.

The Ducks celebrate after Scott Niedermayerscores the game-winning goal in overtimeof 3-2 victory over the Calgary Flames onFebruary 11 at Honda Center.

8 Ducks Digest

You watch Corey Perrydrilling opponents

every chance he gets,scratching for loose pucksin front of the net and running over goaltenders, and the word “charitable” probably isn’tthe first thing that pops into your head.

Get him off the ice though, and the 23-year-old shows a soft and generous side thathas provided a much-needed helping hand for those in need.

In the offseason, the Ducks right wing holds the Corey Perry A Round for a Cure golftournament in his former home of London, Ontario. Proceeds from the event go toWellspring London, a non-profit walk-in cancer support center with a membership near1,800. There have been four installments of the tournament, but the 2008 version wasthe first with Perry’s name attached. Held at Forest City National, one of the top-rankedgolf courses in Southwestern Ontario, last year’s event set a new record with 160 golfersand more than $23,000 in donations.

“It’s been really fantastic seeing what he’s done for Wellspring,” says Rob Matic, anevent organizer for the tournament. “Last year’s event was awesome and better than wecould have ever dreamed.”

Ducks fans have grown accustomed to seeing the gritty on-ice version of Perry the lastfour seasons, the player who barrels to the netand willingly fights for pucks in tough areas,unafraid to put his body on the line. It’s a com-bination of that style and a gifted set of handsthat have made the right wing one of theleague’s top players. An All-Star selection for thefirst time last season, Perry has followed up witha 2008-09 campaign that already saw a second-straight year of 20-plus goals and a new careerhigh in points (55) in his first 61 games played.

“He plays with an edge for sure and is a littlebit reckless with his body,” says longtime line-mate and good friend Ryan Getzlaf. “You knowhe’s going to take the puck to the net as much aspossible. He battles for everything.”

But long before his star would rise in theNHL, Perry made a decision he would do whathe could to help others while always remember-ing his roots, no matter where his playing careertook him. “You move on and away from home,but you can never forget about where you camefrom,” Perry says. “When you can help out anorganization or even a single person, it doesn’tmatter what it is, anything helps.”

When Perry and the London Knights (his

“Someone like Corey, who has been sogenerous with his time and financialcontributions, it makes such atremendous difference for theorganization,” Lockwood says. “He is committed to us and we are sofortunate that he continues to do so.”

Ducks Digest 9

B Y M A T T V E V O D A

Despite an edgy style on the ice, Corey Perryhas a charitable trait

away from it

Ducks Digest 11

junior team) won theMemorial Cup in 2005,Wellspring launched A Roundfor a Cure to coincide withthe event. In that inauguralyear, 32 golfers turned outand raised approximately$1,500. One year later, Perryattended for the first time and the field (100 participants) and donations ($5,000-$6,000)increased. After he missed the 2007 outing because he was busy playing in the StanleyCup Final, Perry returned last year to the event that began bearing his name. The FifthAnnual Corey Perry A Round for a Cure will be held on June 12 this year.

“It’s a great organization that does a lot of wonderful things,” says Perry, who alongwith sponsoring the tournament doubled his donation to $10,000 in 2008. “The eventhas come a long way. Everybody is chipping in and helping out.”

Says Matic, “He has spent a lot of time here in London over the years and we built arapport with him. It seemed like a natural fit for him to come on board. He witnessedwhat we do firsthand and really wanted to throw his support behind the charity.”

Wellspring is a group of more than 10 cancer support centers (including London’s) inCanada that invite anyone free of charge to participate in their programs and services.Receiving no government financial support, the program relies solely on donations.Wellspring London covers an Ontario region from Windsor to Owen Sound. Throughspecial events (like Perry’s A Round for a Cure) and donations, an operating budget is cre-ated for the staff of four and 85 volunteers at the program.

An example of a service offered through Wellspring is an eight-week support group,which 10 people attend at a cost of $480 to the organization. In four years, A Round fora Cure has donated more than $50,000 to the organization, providing support for morethan 1,040 cancer patients and their families.

“Someone like Corey, who has been so generous with his time and financial contribu-tions, it makes such a tremendous difference for the organization,” Wellspring LondonProgram Director Daniel Lockwood says. “He is committed to us and we are so fortunatethat he continues to do so.”

Perry readily interacts with the participants during the tournament and festivities,which include an auction with items up for bid that have included signed jerseys and around of golf with the Ducks winger himself. “Having him front and center at the tour-nament is really good,” Matic says. “He makes himself very approachable to all the othergolfers. He just wants to be involved as much as possible.”

Whether he’s battling it out in the trenches or never thinking twice about truly back-ing a charity that brings help to those who need it most, Perry continues to be the sameperson he always was – on and off the ice.

“He has an incredible heart,” Lockwood says. “You certainly hear the public accoladesthat he has and I guess you naturally assume that this person is on a different level thanyou. That is the farthest thing from the case with Corey. It’s like he could be your bestfriend.” #

For more information on Corey Perry’s A Round for a Cure, visit www.aroundforacure.com

Perry (back row in orangeshirt) helps put on the annual

Corey Perry A Round for aCure golf tournament, withproceeds going to Wellspring

London, a non-profit walk-incancer support center.

12 Ducks Digest

One of the first steps in the Anaheim Ducks becoming a championship franchise wasactually taken way back in 1996, when the team was still in its infancy stage and 11

years away from winning its first Stanley Cup.That is the year Francois Allaire was hired as the team’s goaltender coach, a positioned

he helped pioneer in the mid-1980s while working with the Montreal Canadiens. Themove certainly didn’t make headlines at the time, but it is now regarded as a significantnote in club history, as it brought one of the most influential minds in the game perma-nently to Orange County.

Guiding Anaheim’s netminders the last 13 seasons, Allaire has developed some of theleague’s top goaltenders – most notably Jean-Sebastien Giguere – a significant step in theteam becoming a playoff regular, culminating with the 2007 Stanley Cup title.

“I don’t think there is a better goalie coach in the league,” Giguere says. “He’s meanta lot to my career. Goalie coaches are why goaltending has gotten so good in the last 10,15 years. I think it’s the position that’s improved the most in the league.”

The position of goaltender coach can be traced back to 1980 and the famed U.S.Olympic team. Warren Strelow, a close friend of U.S. head coach Herb Brooks, was giventhe responsibility then of working with goalie Jim Craig. When that group performed a“Miracle on Ice” in beating Russia en route to a gold medal, the position of goaltendercoach became a trend.

“They are immersed in the aspect of goaltending,” says Ducks head coach Randy

Ducks Digest 13

Carlyle of goalie coaches. “They give a perspective from a goaltender’s point of view. Youalways have to accept that they see things a little differently.”

Just one year after Strelow became the NHL’s first goaltender coach with theWashington Capitals in 1983, Quebec native Allaire (a goalie with the University ofSherbrooke in the mid-1970s before he started teaching the craft to a handful of studentsin the summer of 1978 at a rink in the city of Sainte Therese) joined the MontrealCanadiens in the same capacity in 1984. Soon he began working with future Hall-of-Famer Patrick Roy.

Allaire preached the butterfly technique, as well as the importance of taking up asmuch of the net as possible while having sound positioning. Roy flourished under Allaire’sdirection. In 12 total seasons working with the coach, Roy was selected to the All-Starteam six times, won three Vezina Trophies (league’s top goaltender) and was a major rea-son the Canadiens won the Stanley Cup in 1986 and 1993 (Roy won the Conn SmytheTrophy as playoff MVP both years).

“I was the first full-time guy in Montreal and I think because Patrick was such a greatstory, goalie coaches became a little more prevalent around the league at that time,” saysAllaire, who is now among a full league (either part-time of full-time, including his broth-er Benoit with the New York Rangers) of goalie coaches. “We do a lot of teaching andmaking sure our guys understand their roles. It doesn't matter if you are working with aveteran or a rookie, you have to make sure the wall is solid and the house is solid.”

Goalie coach Francois Allaire(middle) with two of his prize

students, Jonas Hiller and All-Star J.S. Giguere.

14 Ducks Digest

By 1996, Allaire was looking to move on from the team in his home province and theDucks were quick to snap up his services. His impact was immediately felt by the franchisein their third season of existence in 1996-97, as Allaire helped Guy Hebert become a first-time All-Star and the Ducks made their first-ever playoff appearance.

“At that time, the Ducks were basically still an expansion team,” Allaire says. “We madethe playoffs the first year I was here and it was very exciting. Then, I got the chance toget a young kid coming up in the organization in Jiggy.”

Giguere had been a first roundpick (13th overall) of theHartford Whalers (a team hewould only play in eight gamesfor) in the 1995 NHL EntryDraft. He was dealt to Calgary onAug. 25, 1997, but the Montrealnative did not find success duringthree seasons with the Flamesorganization. Giguere was tradedagain, this time to Anaheim (for asecond round pick on June 10,2000) where his career wouldfinally come to fruition under thewatchful eye of Allaire, who hefirst met at the age of 12 whileattending one of his hockeyschools in Quebec.

“When I first got here inAnaheim, my career wasn’t goinganywhere,” Giguere says. “I was aminor leaguer and a bit of a disap-pointment. I think technically Iwas pretty weak. Frankie gave methe tools to be able to do the job.You have to be willing to workwith his system and I have neverhad a hard time working. Thathas always been a trait of mine.”

Utilizing the style Allaire says is “still the best movement to stop the puck today in theNHL,” Giguere has become one of the elite goalies in the league the last several seasons.The netminder has set numerous Ducks team records, including career wins (won his200th game in an Anaheim uniform on Feb. 28 at Dallas).

But what people may know Giguere most for are his brilliant performances duringpostseason play. That mystique started in the 2003 playoffs when his 15-6 record, fiveshutouts, 1.62 GAA and .945 save percentage brought Giguere a Conn Smythe Trophyand brought the Ducks within one game of a title. His playoff aura continued four yearslater in the Cup run with a 13-4 record and a 1.97 GAA.

“His stats are incredible and his work ethic is excellent,” Allaire says of Giguere. “Hetook the No. 1 goalie spot back then and he still has it nine years later. That is the sign ofa great athlete.”

“I don’t think there is a better goalie coach in theleague,” Giguere says of Allaire. “He’s meant a lot tomy career.”

Ducks Digest 17

There is more to Allaire – who was named one of the “Top 100 People of Power andInfluence” inside the hockey industry by The Hockey News in 2003 – than just coachinghis craft in the NHL. He also has published four books on goaltending, physical prepara-tion and sports psychology and he runs hockey schools worldwide. It is at his school inSwitzerland where he met a young Jonas Hiller.

“I met him at that goalie camp in Switzerland in the summer time and I still go thereevery year,” says Hiller, who signed with the Ducks on May 25, 2007. “It’s awesomepreparation. He saw me there and was the first guy to promote my name. He has a lot todo with me playing in this league at all.”

After playing in 23 games (10-7-1 record) as a rookie in 2007-08and compiling a 2.06 goals-againstaverage, Hiller has developed evenfurther this season with the first fourshutouts of his career, a 2.33 GAAand a new high in wins (14)through the beginning of March.With Hiller’s maturation andGiguere’s continued steadying pres-ence on the Ducks, Allaire considersthe tandem one of his best yet in his25 years in the league.

“They are fantastic,” says Allaire,who has worked with more than 40goaltenders that have gone on tosign or play with NHL clubs. “Theyare two guys you can send on theroad or have at home and know thatyou have a good team.”

For the most part, Allaire’s workis done behind the scenes with theDucks goaltenders and the coachingstaff either in practices or in pre andpostgame routines. He goes overstrategy and reports with Carlylewhile grouping together withGiguere and Hiller to do the same.“The responsibility is to give andteach the goaltender to play up totheir level most of the time,” Allairesays. “For that, we have to provideadvice and offer some quality infor-

mation to the goalie to make sure he is getting close to his potential.”The end product is a stable goaltending style and unit formulated by Allaire that main-

tains no matter who the Ducks put between the pipes. “The good thing about Frankie iswhatever goalie is in net, you should expect about the same thing,” Giguere says. It’s thesame technique and way of making saves. There is no element of surprise there.” #

“We do a lot of teaching and making sure our guysunderstand their roles,” says Allaire, holding theStanley Cup the Ducks won in 2007. “It doesn'tmatter if you are working with a veteran or arookie, you have to make sure the wall is solid andthe house is solid.”

Ducks Digest 19

TEAM MANAGEMENT

Bob Murray was named Executive VicePresident and General Manager of the Ducks

on Nov. 12, 2008 after 31⁄2 years as Senior VicePresident of Hockey Operations. He was namedto that original position on July 14, 2005.

Murray’s astute judgment of hockey talent andplayer evaluation have been instrumental in sev-eral trades and acquisitions the Ducks made overthe last four seasons, highlighted by a Stanley Cupchampionship in 2007.

Murray’s responsibilities include overseeing allaspects of player development, playing a key rolein the club’s professional scouting efforts, contractnegotiations and all matters relating to theNational Hockey League.

Murray has been instrumental in the organiza-tion’s success at both the NHL and AHL level overthe last four seasons. In addition to the StanleyCup championship, the Ducks won the 2007Pacific Division title, setting club records in nearlyall major statistical categories. Both the Ducks andPirates made Conference Final appearances in2006, making Anaheim the only organization tohave both their NHL and AHL teams advance totheir league’s respective Conference Finals.

Prior to joining the Ducks, Murray worked as aProfessional Scout with the Vancouver Canucksfrom 1999 to 2005 under then-General ManagerBrian Burke (1998-2004). Murray’s scoutingexpertise helped to build teams that recorded100+ point season two years in a row (2002-03and 2003-04) and advanced to the Stanley CupPlayoffs four seasons in a row (2001-04). Before

his stint in Vancouver, he served as a ScoutingConsultant for Anaheim during the 1998-99 season.

Murray was a member of the ChicagoBlackhawks organization for 25 years, serving asGeneral Manager from 1997-99. He was namedthe sixth General Manager in team history on July3, 1997. He was promoted to the post after serv-ing as Assistant General Manager under BobPulford for two seasons. Before joining upper-man-agement, Murray was named the Director of PlayerPersonnel in 1991 and was largely responsible forthe club’s entry draft selections over eight seasons.

Drafted by the Blackhawks in 1974, Murrayspent his entire 1,008-game, 15-year career in aChicago uniform. He became just the fourth play-er in Blackhawks history to reach the 1,000-gameplateau. In addition, he became the first defense-man in club history to appear in 100 postseasoncontests, reaching the mark during the 1990Stanley Cup Playoffs. In all, Murray scored 132-382=514 points, and currently ranks second inall-time points among Blackhawk defensemen(13th overall in club history). He was named toboth the 1981 and 1983 NHL All-Star Games.Murray retired at the conclusion of the 1989-90season. Known for his work ethic, intelligence anddetermination as a player, Murray remained withthe organization as a Professional Scout followinghis retirement in 1990.

Bob and his wife Betsy have four children(Kevin, Andrew, Amanda and Katie), and a grand-daughter, Mikayla. #

Bob MurrayExecutive Vice President and General Manager

Ducks Digest 21

Michael Schulman serves as Chairman of theBoard of Anaheim Arena Management

(AAM), Chief Executive Officer of Anaheim DucksHockey Club (ADHC), Chairman of the Board ofthe Anaheim Ducks Foundation and serves on theboard of NHL Enterprises. In addition, he isManaging Director of H&S Ventures, the entity thatmanages the Samueli Family Office, AAM andADHC. Schulman reports directly to owners Dr.Henry Samueli and Susan Samueli, and is respon-sible for managing and long-term planning of theirprofit and nonprofit entities.

Schulman’s role with Honda Center began longbefore he was appointed Chairman of AAM inDecember of 2003. Schulman was the leadnegotiator on behalf of the Samueli family in theacquisition of the management agreement fromthe bankruptcy court and the City of Anaheim. Heacts as liaison between the Samueli family andAAM management and supervises all financial,legal and charitable decisions of the arena. Healso acts as liaison with the other partners of AAMand the City of Anaheim. In addition, Schulmanoversees all long-term capital projects includingthe new 57 Freeway Marquee, two new 360° LEDrings, revamping of the video room and remodel-ing of the company offices.

Schulman’s role at AAM includes overseeing allbusiness and hockey operations. He was the leadnegotiator on behalf of the Samueli family in work-ing with Disney on the purchase of the AnaheimDucks and also with the NHL in qualifying theSamueli family for the purchase of the team. He isresponsible for developing additional ice and rollerrinks in the Orange County area and was instru-mental in the purchase of the Anaheim RollerHockey Club and the Huntington Beach Coast 2Coast rinks. Schulman was also involved with thefamily in changing the team name and logo, andforming the Anaheim Ducks Foundation.

Schulman’s role at H&S Ventures is multi-faceted. He is the Managing Director of the fami-ly office which oversees all the family’s profit andnonprofit operations. H&S Ventures serves as themanager of AAM and ADHC as well as a numberof other business entities in which the Samuelisare involved.

Schulman serves on the boards of AnaheimArena Management, Anaheim Ducks HockeyClub, Anaheim Sports Holdings, Anaheim DucksFoundation and HS Hockey Development.Previously, he served on the boards ofCommercial Capital Bank Corp., a public companylisted on the NASDAQ Exchange, and currentlyserves on the boards of Telluride Ski and GolfCompany and KDOC Television.

Schulman also serves on many nonprofitboards. He has been a member of the Universityof California, Irvine Foundation Board since 1991and serves on the Stewardship Committee. Hewas one of the founding members and past chairof the UCI Planned Giving Leadership Council.Schulman serves on the boards of the SamueliFoundation, Samueli Institute for InformationBiology, the Orange County Jewish Campus andAnaheim Ducks Foundation.

After earning his Bachelor of Arts in Economicsfrom University of California, Berkeley, Michaelwent on to the University of Santa Clara LawSchool. In addition, Michael studied economicsfor one year at the University of Leeds in Leeds,England.

After law school, he was hired as a full-time lawprofessor at the University of Southern California,after which he was a practicing attorney for anumber of years and a partner with the law firmof McDermott, Will & Emery.

A native of California, Michael and his wifeSherry currently reside in Laguna Beach with twoof their four children. #

Michael SchulmanChairman of the Board, Anaheim Arena Management, LLCChief Executive Officer, Anaheim Ducks Hockey Club, LLCManaging Director, H&S Ventures, LLC

Ducks Digest 23

An original member of the Ducks, David McNabwas named Senior Vice President of Hockey

Operations on Nov. 18, 2008 after 13 seasons asAnaheim’s Assistant General Manager.

In his 30th year overall in the NHL, McNab alsoserves as the GM of the Iowa Chops. His otherduties include having an expertise on the CollectiveBargaining Agreement and its relationship new salarycap in the NHL, contract and arbitration negotiation,player evaluation and scouting.

McNab’s impact on the Ducks is significant.Anaheim has appeared in Stanley Cup Final twice(2003 & 2007) in the last five NHL seasons, includ-ing a championship in 2007. The club has won nineplayoff rounds since 2003, the most in the NHL(Detroit is second with seven). In recent years,McNab scouted and signed collegiate free agentsAndy McDonald, Chris Kunitz, Dustin Penner, RyanShannon, Ryan Carter and Curtis Glencross.

Prior to being named as the Ducks’ AssistantGeneral Manager in December of 1995, the 52-year-old McNab was the club’s first Director of PlayerPersonnel, and was largely responsible for theteam’s selections in the 1994-96 NHL Entry andSupplemental Drafts. McNab has also held the posi-tion as General Manager of the Ducks’ top farmteam in the American Hockey League for six seasons- the Baltimore Bandits during the 1996-97 seasonand the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks from 1997-2002,while also working on the AHL’s competition com-mittee for many of those years.

Considered to be one of the hardest working andknowledgeable scouts in the National HockeyLeague, McNab began his professional scoutingcareer in 1978 with the Washington Capitals, wherehe spent four seasons. In 1982, McNab was signedby the Hartford Whalers, where he spent seven sea-sons as a scout, the last two as the Director of PlayerRecruitment. He then joined the New York Rangersin 1989, where he worked for four seasons before

leaving to join the Disney-owned Ducks in 1993. Hiswork with the Rangers helped the club to the 1994Stanley Cup championship.

A graduate of the University of Wisconsin in 1978with a degree in Communication Arts, McNab wasalso a goaltender on one of the greatest collegehockey teams of all-time, the 1977 University ofWisconsin Badgers’ NCAA championship team. Hewas drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the ninth roundof the 1975 NHL Entry Draft (151st overall). McNabhas worked on numerous occasions for USA Hockey,both as an Assistant General Manager for the UnitedStates in the World Championships on three differ-ent occasions, as well as serving as a consultant forthe 1984, 1988 and 1992 United States OlympicTeams. He has also been a three-time member ofthe selection committee that votes for the HobeyBaker Award, college hockey’s version of theHeisman Trophy.

A member of one of the most respected familiesin the NHL, McNab is the son of the late Max McNaband brother of Peter McNab. Max played on the1950 Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings andwas a former general manager with the WashingtonCapitals and New Jersey Devils. He was also a recip-ient of the 1998 Lester Patrick Award given annuallyfor “outstanding service to hockey in the UnitedStates.” Peter played in 954 NHL games, scoring363 goals and 813 points in a 14-year career andcurrently ranks 106th all-time in goal scoring in thehistory of the National Hockey League. Peter is cur-rently a broadcaster with the Colorado Avalanche.

David McNab was born in Vancouver, BritishColumbia, but grew up in San Diego, California andgraduated from Point Loma High School in SanDiego in 1973. He became a U.S. citizen in 1983.He and his wife, Kari, were married in Minneapolis,Minnesota in 1989 and have two daughters, Ali (17)and Erica (15). The McNab family resides yearround in Yorba Linda, California. #

David McNabSenior Vice President of Hockey Operations

Make plans to stayin the NEW’dThe Hilton Anaheim has stylishlyredressed for success: From 1,572 sleekguestrooms and suites to 100,000 squarefeet of contemporary meeting & eventspace. Let our team of hospitalityprofessionals plan your next meeting,elegant social event, or vacation stay.

For a sneak peek at the NEW’d,or to book your next event, pleasevisit www.hiltonanaheimtour.comor call (714) 740-4220.

777 Convention Way, Anaheim CA 92688

Bob Wagner enters his fourth year asSenior Vice President and Chief

Marketing Officer for the Anaheim Ducksafter being named to the position on June20, 2005. He has held the same position for

Anaheim Arena Management, LLC (AAM) since 2004. Wagner has more than 24years of experience in sports marketing, primarily in the Southern Californiamarket. In his current role, he leads all aspects of business operations, includ-ing: broadcasting, sponsorship, ticket sales, premium sales, marketing, commu-nity relations, entertainment, fan development, media sales, and communica-tions for both the Ducks and Honda Center.

In just three years since the purchase of the team by Henry and SusanSamueli in 2005, Wagner has secured several new sponsorship agreements andexponentially increased such revenue, including the recent creation of a mediasales division for the NHL club. Wagner has negotiated new broadcast agree-ments with FSN Prime Ticket, KDOC-TV and AM 830 in expanding game andhockey-related programming in Southern California. In addition, Wagner led thename and uniform change for the team, beginning the process late in 2005 andcompleting it by June 2006.

In addition to his club responsibilities, Wagner negotiated his fourth title-rights sponsorship deal in 2006. After negotiations with several companies bid-ding on the arena, the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim officially became HondaCenter on Oct. 3, 2006. Earlier in his career, Wagner secured three other title-rights sponsorship agreements: Edison International Field of Anaheim (1998),Powerade (with NHRA, 2001) and Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim (1993).

Wagner started his career in 1979, joining Fluor Corporation as a HumanResources Manager. Changing direction in 1984, Wagner joined the sales and

marketing team of the then California Angels. After nearly 10 years, he left hisposition as Director of Sales and Marketing to start the National HockeyLeague’s Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. In 1996, he returned to baseball whenAnaheim Sports, Inc., purchased the Angels. In his role as Vice President of Sales& Broadcasting, Wagner successfully built both teams’ relationships with localand national partners. As a member of the Ducks’ inaugural staff, he wascharged with launching the sponsorship, advertising and broadcast sales effortsof the expansion team. On the Angels side, he developed and implemented theclub’s first freestanding, in-mall retail store while designing and bringing to mar-ket a new logo and jersey for the club.

In 2000, after 16 years in Anaheim with professional baseball and hockey,Wagner joined the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) as Vice President of Salesand Business Development. He secured title and presenting sponsors for 24national events, coordinated the sale of broadcast inventory with ESPN and ESPN2and worked with the marketing department to develop and implement sales andmarketing strategies. Four years later, in July of 2004, he returned to OrangeCounty and Honda Center as the Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer.

An advocate for the sports and entertainment industry, Wagner has taughtsports management courses at the graduate level for four years, three withUniversity of San Francisco at its satellite campus in Orange and one withCalifornia State University, Long Beach. He is a member of the Advisory Boardfor Long Beach State University’s Sports Management Program. In addition,Wagner is a member of the board at the Newport Beach Sports Museum andthe Anaheim Prep Sports/Activities Foundation.

A California State University, Long Beach graduate and native of Seal Beach,California, Wagner currently resides in Dove Canyon with his wife, Debbie, andtheir three children, Ryan, Amanda and Nick. #

Bob WagnerSenior Vice President/Chief Marketing OfficerAnaheim Arena Management, LLC & Anaheim Ducks Hockey Club, LLC

Tim Ryan is now in his fourth season asExecutive Vice President/Chief Operating

Officer for the Anaheim Ducks. Since beingnamed to his current post in the summer of

2005, Ryan has led the club to record levels of success in virtually every area ofbusiness operations. In addition to record ticket and sponsorship sales, Ryan hasled aggressive community and fan development programs aimed at improvededucation, health and well-being, and recreation in the Southern California mar-ket. In response to the club’s efforts, ESPN the Magazine ranked the Ducks No.1 in the NHL and No. 5 in all of professional sports in their annual “UltimateStandings” edition (May, 2008), which measures the overall success of eachfranchise with respect to fan relations.

Ryan is now in his 16th year with Honda Center and 30th in arena manage-ment and event creation. In addition to his duties with the NHL club, he servesas President and Chief Executive Officer of Anaheim Arena Management, LLC(AAM). In his role, Ryan oversees one of the premier entertainment and sportsvenues in the United States. Through mid-year 2008, Honda Center ranked sec-ond in the country and third in the world in gross ticket sales according to indus-try publication Venues Today. The facility finished behind only London’s new 02Arena and New York’s Madison Square Garden. In addition, Honda Centerreceived its seventh nomination for “Venue of the Year” in the United States byPollstar Magazine in 2007.

Through strategic planning, business development and event production,Ryan ensures the arena is active with a variety of first-class events. Under hisguidance, the arena has been home to the 2003 World GymnasticsChampionships and 2005 World Badminton Championships; the John R.Wooden Classic; five NCAA events, including the first two rounds of the Men’sBasketball Tournament in 2008 and the first Frozen Four west of the RockyMountains in 1999, and a variety of professional sports teams, including indoorsoccer, arena football and indoor lacrosse. Performances by world-renownedmusical artists and family shows are also plentiful year after year for OrangeCounty and Southern California fans. Since 1993, over 26 million people havebeen entertained at Honda Center, enjoying more than 2,500 events.

As Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer of the Anaheim Ducks,Ryan oversees all business operations of the professional hockey team. Heassumed his current dual roles on June 20, 2005 when the Ducks were pur-chased by Dr. Henry and Susan Samueli, owners of AAM. In just three years, theclub’s season ticket base has grown from 7,000 in 2005 to a club-high 15,000 in2008. The team enters the 2008-09 NHL season with a club-record 77 consec-utive sellouts after becoming the second local NHL team (1991-92 Kings) to sellout a complete season.

Ryan has also spearheaded several initiatives from the Samuelis, includingcharitable programs that support approximately 500 non-profit organizationsannually and an expanded grass-roots marketing program. The Anaheim Ducksare now actively involved in over 20 local-area hockey rinks and are workingtoward the creation and development of several new rinks to be built inSouthern California. In the summer of 2006, Ryan oversaw the unveiling of theclub’s new name and logo, along with the change in arena title-rights sponsor-ship – from the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim to Honda Center. Ducks merchan-dise sales have soared both locally and nationally since the change.

In 1992, after a long career at the Long Beach Arena, Ryan joined the thenArrowhead Pond of Anaheim as Assistant General Manager. He was promotedto General Manager in 1998 and was named Pollstar Magazine “FacilityExecutive of the Year for 2001”. Near the end of 2003, the management contractfor the arena was purchased by Anaheim Arena Management, LLC and Ryanwas named President/CEO of both the company and the arena.

In addition to managing the 19,000-seat arena, Ryan is active in both theentertainment industry and in the local community. He helped to establishArenaNetwork, an association that strives to increase the volume of business forits members. He also serves on the boards of several non-profit groups, includ-ing Big Brothers Big Sisters of Orange County, Los Angeles Sports Council,Orangewood Children’s Foundation, Stars and Stripes Tournament, Tiger WoodsFoundation and Tiger Woods Learning Center.

Ryan graduated from California State University, Long Beach in 1979 with aBachelor’s Degree in Finance. He lives with his wife Michele in HuntingtonBeach and enjoys golf, fly-fishing and skiing. #

Tim RyanPresident/Chief Executive Officer, Anaheim Arena Management, LLCExecutive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer, Anaheim Ducks Hockey Club, LLC

26 Ducks Digest

COACHING STAFF

Randy Carlyle enters his fourth season asHead Coach of the Anaheim Ducks. He

was named the seventh head coach in teamhistory on August 1, 2005, and has sincerecorded the most wins (138) and highestwinning percentage (.630) in team history.

Carlyle led the Ducks to a 47-27-8record for 102 points last season, secondplace in the Pacific Division and fourth inthe Western Conference, extending a fran-chise record with a third straight trip to theNHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. Never havinggarnered 100 points in a single season priorto Carlyle’s arrival, the Ducks reached the100-point mark for the second consecutiveseason in 2007-08.

In only his second season as an NHLhead coach, Carlyle led the Ducks to theirfirst ever Stanley Cup championship in2007. The Ducks defeated Minnesota (fivegames), Vancouver (five games), Detroit(six games) and Ottawa (five games) tobecome the first California team to winhockey’s ultimate prize. Carlyle also led theDucks to their first Pacific Division champi-onship in 2006-07, compiling a regular-sea-son record of 48-20-14 for 110 points. Theclub set franchise records in most major sta-tistical categories, including wins, standingspoints and goals (254), eclipsing marks theteam set the previous season. In 246 regu-lar season games as an NHL head coach,Carlyle has a 138-74-34 record (.630 win-ning percentage).

In his first year as a head coach in theNHL (2005-06), Carlyle led the Ducks toplayoff series wins vs. Calgary (sevengames) and Colorado (four games), beforethe club fell in the Conference Finals toEdmonton (five games). Anaheim’s playoffrun followed a then best regular season per-formance in team history when the club setthen team records in wins (43), points (98)and goals scored (251).

Carlyle, 52, spent the 2004-05 season asHead Coach of the Manitoba Moose,

Vancouver’s primary development affiliatein the American Hockey League (AHL). Heled Manitoba to a 44-26-3-7 record (.613winning percentage) and an appearance inthe 2005 Calder Cup Semifinals.

In all, Carlyle spent six seasons (1996-01& 2004-05) as Head Coach in Manitoba(both in the International and AmericanHockey Leagues), earning a career mark of222-159-52-7 with the franchise. He had theadditional duties of General Manager of theMoose from 1996-00, adding the title ofclub President for the 2001-02 season. TheSudbury, Ontario native helped the Mooseto a 47-21-14 record for 108 points in 1998-99, for which he was named the IHL’sGeneral Manager of the Year.

Following the 2001-02 season, Carlylejoined the coaching staff of the WashingtonCapitals. He served as an Assistant Coachwith Washington for two years (2002-04),helping the organization return to theStanley Cup Playoffs in his first seasonbefore rejoining Manitoba in 2004-05.

Carlyle played 17 seasons in the NHLwith Toronto, Pittsburgh and Winnipeg. Heappeared in 1,055 games and earned 148-499=647 points. Known as a fiery, tough-nosed defenseman, he was selected to playin four NHL All-Star Games and won theNorris Trophy as the league’s top defense-man in 1981. He set a career high with 82points in 1980-81, appearing in 76 gameswith Pittsburgh that season. In all, Carlylehad five seasons in which he topped the 50-point plateau. He appeared in 69 NHL post-season games as a player, earning 9-24=33points.

At the conclusion of his playing career in1993, Carlyle remained with the Winnipegorganization’s hockey operations staff,eventually becoming an Assistant Coach forthe 1995-96 season.

Randy and his wife Corey have threechildren, sons Craig (24) and Derek (22), aswell as daughter, Alexis (12). The familyresides in Anaheim Hills. #

Randy Carlyle Head Coach

RANDY CARLYLE’S HEAD COACHING RECORDREGULAR SEASON PLAYOFFS

Season Team League GP W L T *OTR PTS W L

1995-96 Winnipeg NHL -Assistant Coach-1996-97 Manitoba IHL -Assistant Coach-

Manitoba IHL 32 16 14 NA 2 34 - -1997-98 Manitoba IHL 82 39 36 NA 7 85 0 31998-99 Manitoba IHL 82 47 21 NA 14 108 2 31999-00 Manitoba IHL 82 37 31 NA 14 88 0 22000-01 Manitoba IHL 82 39 31 NA 12 90 6 72002-03 Washington NHL -Assistant Coach-2003-04 Washington NHL -Assistant Coach-2004-05 Manitoba AHL 80 44 26 7 3 98 8 62005-06 ANAHEIM NHL 82 43 27 - 12 98 9 72006-07 ANAHEIM NHL 82 48 20 - 14 110 16 52007-08 ANAHEIM NHL 82 47 27 - 8 102 2 4

NHL Totals 246 138 74 - 34 310 27 16

*1996-97 to 1998-99 Shootout Loss *1999-00 Shootout Points*2000-01 Overtime Points *2004-05 to 2007-08 Overtime Loss

Ducks Digest 29

Dave Farrish enters his fourth season as an Assistant Coach ofthe Anaheim Ducks. He was named to his current post on

August 9, 2005 and won his first Stanley Cup with the club in 2007. Farrish, 52, joined the organization after one season with the

Pensacola Ice Pilots of the ECHL (2004-05). Farrish served as HeadCoach and Vice President of Hockey Operations with Pensacola,leading the club to the league’s best record (51-16-5, .743 winningpercentage).

A native of Lucknow, Ontario, Farrish brings 18 years of coach-ing experience to the Ducks’ bench. Farrish has served as HeadCoach of 1,027 professional hockey games between the AmericanHockey League (AHL), International Hockey League (IHL) and theECHL, compiling a record of 520-402-83-22.

Before joining Pensacola, he led the Louisiana IceGators(ECHL) to four consecutive division championships from 2000-01to 2003-04. After leading the IceGators to a 56-12-4 record in 2001-02, Farrish was named the ECHL Coach of the Year.

Prior to his time in the ECHL, he was the Head Coach of theSpringfield Falcons of the AHL from 1997-98 to 1999-00, compilinga record of 113-96-27. From 1993-94 to 1996-97, Farrish served asHead Coach in the IHL with the Salt Lake City Golden Eagles (1993-94) and Fort Wayne Komets (1995-96 and 1996-97).

Farrish began his coaching career with Moncton of the AHL in1989-90, where he coached until joining the New Jersey Devils asan Assistant Coach under Herb Brooks for the 1992-93 season.Including the Devils, Farrish’s teams have qualified for postseasonplay in 15 of his 18 seasons.

Farrish played seven seasons (1976-77 to 1983-84) in the NHLas a defenseman with Toronto, Quebec and the New York Rangers.In 430 regular season games, he recorded 17-110=127 points.Farrish was originally drafted by the Rangers in the second round(24th overall) of the 1976 NHL Entry Draft.

Dave and his wife Roxanne reside in Anaheim Hills. #

Dave Farrish Assistant Coach

Newell Brown begins his sixth season as an Assistant Coachwith the Anaheim Ducks. Prior to rejoining the organization in

August of 2005, Brown spent four seasons with the Columbus BlueJackets as an Associate Coach. The Cornwall, Ontario native origi-nally served as an Assistant Coach for the Ducks in the 1998-99 and1999-00 seasons.

A 2007 Stanley Cup champion, Brown has over 20 years ofcoaching experience at the NCAA, American Hockey League (AHL)and NHL levels. Prior to his original stint with Anaheim, Brown wasan Assistant Coach with the Chicago Blackhawks for two seasons,1996-98.

Before joining the NHL ranks, Brown spent four seasons in theDetroit Red Wings organization as Head Coach of the AdirondackRed Wings, Detroit’s AHL affiliate. He also served as Head Coach ofMichigan Tech University from 1990-92 and was an assistant at hisalma mater, Michigan State University, from 1986-90. He helpedthe Spartans win back-to-back regular season and CCHA tourna-ment titles in 1988-89 and 1989-90.

As a player, Brown spent two seasons with the Cornwall Royalsof the Ontario Hockey League in 1978-79 and 1979-80 and helpedthe Royals win the Memorial Cup in 1979. From 1980-84, Brownplayed at Michigan State, where he served as team captain in hisfinal three seasons and earned First Team All-CCHA honors in 1982.

Vancouver’s sixth pick (158th overall) in the 1982 NHL EntryDraft, Brown spent one year in the Canucks organization playingwith Fredricton (AHL) and Muskegon (IHL) in 1984-85 before serv-ing as captain of the Canadian National Team in 1985-86.

Newell and his wife Lori have a daughter, Erika, and son, Adam.The family resides in Yorba Linda. #

Newell Brown Assistant Coach

Joe Trotta returns for his fourthseason as Video Coordinator

for the Anaheim Ducks. In hisrole, Trotta works closely with thecoaching staff in compiling all pre-

scout and game film for review.Prior to joining the Ducks, Trotta served as Head Coach of the

Los Angeles Jr. Kings, an 18-and-under AAA team, for two seasons.He spent the 2003-04 season coaching alongside former Kings andcurrent Blackhawks assistant coach Mark Hardy. Trotta has nearly300 games experience as an assistant coach at the professional levelwith the Columbus Chill (ECHL), Indianapolis Ice (IHL and CHL) andPeoria Rivermen (ECHL). While with the Ice, he won the 1999-00Miron Cup as CHL champions. In addition, Trotta has coached underformer AHL Coaches of the Year Don Granato (Worcester) andBruce Cassidy (Grand Rapids). In all, Trotta has accrued over 12years of coaching experience.

Prior to coaching, the Los Angeles native played hockey at thejunior level in British Columbia and senior hockey in NorthernAlberta. In addition, he played for the Dayton Jets of the All-AmericanHockey League in Dayton, Ohio. Trotta currently resides in Anaheimand enjoys fishing and watching sports in his spare time. #

Joe Trotta Video Coordinator

Sean Skahan enters his sev-enth season as the Strength

and Conditioning Coach for theAnaheim Ducks. Skahan joinedthe Ducks in 2002 and is respon-

sible for the overall strength and conditioning program for all play-ers in the Ducks system. Skahan also coordinates all off-ice trainingat the annual prospect conditioning camp.

Prior to working with the Ducks, he was the Assistant Strengthand Conditioning Coach at Boston College for the 2001-02 seasonwhere he worked with the hockey team. In 2000-01, he was theAssistant Strength and Conditioning Coach at the University ofNorth Dakota. While earning his Master's degree in Kinesiology, theMassachusetts native worked as a Graduate Assistant StrengthCoach at the University of Minnesota from 1999-00. He earned hisbachelor's degree in exercise physiology from the University ofMassachusetts at Boston in 1998. He also holds certifications fromthe National Strength and Conditioning Association (N.S.C.A.) andUSA Weightlifting.

Sean, his wife Hillary and son Will reside in Anaheim Hills. #

Sean Skahan Strength andConditioning Coach

Francois Allaire enters his 13thseason as Anaheim’s

Goaltending Consultant.Long considered one of hock-

ey’s foremost experts on goaltend-ing, Allaire has worked extensively with Anaheim goaltenders sincehe joined the club. He helped Guy Hebert become the franchise’sfirst All-Star goaltender (1997 All-Star Game) and under his direction,Jean-Sebastien Giguere has become one of the league’s best.Giguere backstopped Anaheim to the 2007 Stanley Cup champi-onship and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the 2003 Playoff MVP.In 2007-08, the Ducks goaltenders combined for the best save per-centage (.920) and second-best goals-against average (2.20) in theNHL.

A three-time Stanley Cup champion, Allaire spent 12 seasonswith the Montreal Canadiens organization prior to joining the Ducks.As the team’s Goaltending Coach, he helped the club win theStanley Cup in 1986 & 1993, working with netminder Patrick Roy

beginning in 1984-85 until 1995-96. During that period, Roy wontwo Conn Symthe Trophies, four William Jennings Trophies, threeVezina Trophies and was named to the league’s end of season All-Star Team five times. Roy also appeared in six NHL All-Star Games inthat span.

Allaire was also instrumental in developing the MontrealCanadiens young goalies, who won the Happy Holmes Trophy (AHLteam with fewest goals against) on four occasions and the BazBastien Trophy (AHL’s best goaltender) on three occasions.

Throughout his career, Allaire has worked with more than 40goaltenders that have gone on to sign or play with NHL clubs.

A graduate of the University of Sherbrooke with a degree inphysical education, he has also published four books on goaltend-ing, pre-season physical preparation and sports psychology. In 2003,Allaire was named one of the “Top 100 People of Power andInfluence” inside the hockey industry by The Hockey News.

The 53-year-old Allaire resides in Boisbriand, Quebec. #

Francois Allaire Goaltending Consultant

Ducks Digest 31

Ducks Digest 41

Four new Ducks joined the roster after a multitude of deals before the trade deadline

B Y M A T T V E V O D A

Within a span of one week, a flurry of trades executed by Ducks General Manager BobMurray dramatically altered the Anaheim roster for the remaining portion of the

season and into the future.Gone are the recognizable faces of veterans Chris Kunitz, Travis Moen, Samuel Pahl-

sson and Kent Huskins along with offseason acquisitions Steve Montador and BrendanMorrison. Filling their locker room stalls are a crop of newcomers (all 26 years old oryounger) in defensemen Ryan Whitney and James Wisniewski and forwards Erik Chris-tensen and Petteri Nokelainen.

“I’ve never been a part of a team that has made five or six trades like this,” ChrisPronger said. “It’s a little bit different. Whether 15 guys got traded or nobody got trad-ed, we have to come with that same mindset that we’re going to win every night and cometo work. I like the makeup of our team. I think we’re going to surprise some people.”

Whitney, an elite puck-moving defenseman, was the first domino to fall in the clusterof trades for Anaheim, when he was obtained from the Penguins (where he was a key fix-ture in the team’s Stanley Cup run last season) on Feb. 26 in exchange for Kunitz andprospect Eric Tangradi.

The three other players were all obtained within hours of each other on March 4, thefrenzied NHL trade deadline day that saw 45 players and 21 draft picks swapped betweenteams. “I can’t remember the last time we had that many players specifically added to ourlineup for the next game,” Ducks head coach Randy Carlyle says. It was unique. Deadlinescreate a form of closure. This is our lineup.”

Nokelainen (far left) and Wisniewski(middle) were picked up by the Ducks just

before the NHL trade deadline, while Whitney(far right) was acquired a week prior.

42 Ducks Digest

Nokelainen, a solid two-way player, was brought in from the Bruins for Montador.Christensen, a skilled forward involved in the Marian Hossa trade last season, wasobtained from the Thrashers for prospect Eric O’Dell. Having played the Ducks the pre-vious night, tough d-man Wisniewski was acquired from the Blackhawks (with center PetriKontiola) for Pahlsson, prospect Logan Stephenson and a fourth-round pick (2009 draft).Finally, Moen and Huskins were dealt to the Sharks for intriguing prospects Nick Bonino,Timo Pielmeier and a conditional pick. Morrison was picked up by the Stars via waivers.

Once the new Ducks received word of their movement, they all quickly made plans tomeet up with the team. In Whitney’s case, that meant joining Anaheim in his hometownof Boston, where coincidentally he had already been tending to his mother (who wasundergoing surgery) and the Ducks were playing the Bruins that night. The 6-4 defense-man would log 24:19 of playing time mere hours after the trade went down.

As for the players acquired at the Noon (PST) deadline, they all made a frantic scram-ble to quickly get some things together before boarding lengthy nighttime flights fromChicago (Wisniewski), Atlanta (Christensen) and Boston (Nokelainen).

“It didn’t really sink in at first,” Wisniewski says. “You get a phone call, you’re packingand on a flight. Then, you’re in Anaheim practicing. It was pretty hectic, but in a good way.”

Bringing their skills to a locker room filled with talented credentials made the playerseager and enthusiastic to play out the season with the Ducks. “It’s a great opportunitywhen you have two Hall-of-Fame defensemen in Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger

“With Getzlaf and Perry, you have two of the best young guys in the game,” says Christensen(right). “There are a lot of really good hockey players here. They have had success with theStanley Cup banner and with good teams throughout the years. It’s exciting to be a part of.”

44 Ducks Digest

you get to learn from while getting to play for a great organization,” Wisniewski says. Says Christensen, “With Getzlaf and Perry, you have two of the best young guys in the

game. There are a lot of really good hockey players here. They have had success with theStanley Cup banner and with good teams throughout the years. It’s exciting to be a part of.”

A native of Imatra, Finland, the 23-year-old Nokelainen was even more excited to getthe chance to play with his fellow countryman and another future Hall-of-Famer TeemuSelanne. “It’s unbelievable,” Nokelainen says. “He was somebody that I grew up watch-

ing all the time. I had his posterson my wall. It’s pretty amazing.”

In what promises to be a fiercebattle for the Ducks in their questfor an unprecedented fourthstraight playoff appearance, theteam’s newest players will have abig say in that outcome.

“We feel comfortable with ourback end,” Carlyle says. “We havethe option of playing Wisniewskior Whitney with Pronger orNiedermayer. We also have theoption of putting the new guystogether and having Niedermayerand Pronger on the ice at the sametime.

“Christensen gives us offense.Hopefully it’s a shot for him to getan opportunity to play withGetzlaf and Perry. That’s a nicesituation to come into. WithNokelainen, we think that he canplay center, provide us with somesize down the middle and be goodon the defensive side of the puck.”

Whitney, who has a recent his-tory of a long playoff run, says forhis new team to do the same, “It’sabout putting together a bunch ofgood games in a row and guysplaying well for consistent periodsof time. If we can do that at theend of the year, we’ll be in goodshape.” #

“It didn’t really sink in at first,” Wisniewski says ofbeing traded to the Ducks. “You get a phone call,you’re packing and on a flight. Then, you’re inAnaheim practicing. It was pretty hectic, but in agood way.”

Ducks Digest 47

His trade to the Ducks came as a surprise,but now Ryan Whitney has great

expectations in his new home

Chances are, Ryan Whitney won’t forget Feb.26, 2009 for the rest of his life.

Whitney was sitting at his mother Sue’s bedside ina Boston hospital room, having taken leave from

his Pittsburgh Penguins team to be there whenshe had surgery to remove a brain tumor.

Two days after a successful procedure thathad doctors saying there was a 90 percentchance her tumor would be benign,Whitney was slouched in a chair next to hismom’s bed when his cell phone buzzed.The voice he heard when he picked up wasPittsburgh general manager Ray Shero.

“I was supposed to fly into Chicago thatday to meet back up with the team, so Ididn’t know if Ray wanted to talk about myflight or whatever,” Whitney recalls.

Instead, Shero had some more serious newsto break. “It was a tough decision,” he told

Whitney, “but I traded you to Anaheim.”Just minutes before, Shero completed a deal that

sent the 26-year-old Whitney to the Ducks for long-time winger Chris Kunitz and prospect Eric Tangradi.

Having already spent a tense couple of days worryingfor his mother’s health, the news came at an awk-

ward time for Whitney. “He was professionalabout it, but it was a little tough to hear,”

Whitney says. “It was kind of shocking.Right away, it felt pretty weird. I had

been there my whole career.”Just to add more oddness to

the day, Whitney was inhis hometown of Boston(where he still keeps an

apartment), the exactplace the Ducks

were scheduledto face the

B r u i n s

B Y A D A M B R A D Y

Ducks Digest 49

later that night. “The whole day was a little crazy,” Whitney understates. “I left my momand went back to my apartment, and the Ducks called and said I wasn’t playing that night.Then all of a sudden I got the call around 3:30 that [Bret] Hedican might not be able toplay, so they needed me to play. I went to the rink, hadn’t eaten anything and did the bestI could. It was a wild couple of hours.”

And Whitney didn’t have a lot of time to digest the news that he was traded for thefirst time in his life. “It’s a business,” Whitney says. “I know that and Ray made it pretty

clear. I wish him and that team thebest. I had some great times thereand made some good friends.”

Ironically enough, Whitney left ateam of close friends for one wherehe didn’t know a single soul. “I wassaying to one of my buddies, theDucks are probably the only team inthe league where I didn’t know oneguy. It was pretty weird coming intothe room and not knowing anyone.I kind of know what kids gothrough now on the first day ofschool.”

But Whitney was warmly wel-comed (“the guys were awesome”)the minute he walked into the visi-tors locker room at TD BanknorthGarden, where the Ducks werehours away from a game with theBruins that didn’t elicit quite thesame cheer. Anaheim was blown out6-0 on a night Whitney played 24minutes, 19 seconds (second on theteam behind Chris Pronger) andblocked a team-high three shots.

The game came in the middle ofa 13-day road trip for the Ducks,giving Whitney ample time to getused to what he calls “a real goodgroup of guys” and find some opti-mism in being shipped to a new clubin mid-season. “Anytime you get

traded, it’s a sign that a team wants you,” Whitney says. “Now I’m living in an awesomeplace and it’s a pretty sweet place to play.”

Of course, Whitney wouldn’t arrive in that place until nearly a week after the trade, andhe had to do some scrambling to make the adjustment to the Orange County climate.“I’ve tried to do some shopping, get some shorts and flip flops,” laughs Whitney, whoseonly previous trip to California was a 2006 road swing with the Penguins. “The toughthing is, I’m not a huge shopper. I get a little tired walking around the mall.”

Aside from that, Whitney’s move west was relatively seamless, since he’s a single guy

“It was pretty weird coming into the room and notknowing anyone. I kind of know what kids gothrough now on the first day of school. But the guyswere awesome.”

Ducks Digest 51

who was actually renting furniture in Pittsburgh. “I pretty much just had my clothes andmy cars,” he says. “I didn’t have any furniture or anything like that. I bought all this stufffor my house in Boston and I didn’t want to buy a whole new set of things.”

Whitney’s move was nothing compared to the adversity he faced in the first halfof this season, having missed the first 33 games following August surgery on his left foot.And when he came back, he never felt at full strength as the Penguins lost nine of the next12 games. “I wasn’t playing very well,” he says. “I had to get some confidence back.”

It was a differentPittsburgh team than theone Whitney helped get toGame 6 of last year’sStanley Cup Final beforeultimately falling toDetroit. This year thePenguins were fighting justto get back to the postsea-son, a lot like Whitney’snew team.

“I left a situation inPittsburgh where we werebattling for a playoff spot,and I came here into thesame thing, so that doesn’tchange much,” Whitneysays. I can’t imagine notbeing in the playoffs and Idon’t think anybody inhere can imagine it either.”

And the Ducks look toWhitney to help themregain the postseason gloryof seasons past, not onlythis year but in the future(he’s signed through 2012-13). The 6-4, 219-pounder’s ability to defendin the back end, and his tal-ent for moving the puck upthe ice and join the rushare a vital ingredient inAnaheim. And Whitney feels he’ll only get better playing alongside two future Hall-of-Famers at his position.

“This is a great place to be for me,” says Whitney, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2002draft. “I’ve got two of the best defensemen in the league to learn from and to watch. ScottNiedermayer is a guy I grew up kind of idolizing, and it’s been pretty cool to play with aguy like Chris Pronger. I’m very excited to be here.” #

“This is a great place to be for me. I’ve got two of the bestdefensemen in the league to learn from and to watch. I’mvery excited to be here.”

DUCKS IN THECOMMUNITY

CHOC Night

The Anaheim Ducks and the Children’sHospital of Orange County (CHOCChildren’s) hosted CHOC Night atHonda Center on February 15 when the

Ducks took on the Atlanta Thrashers. Tohighlight the important work being doneat CHOC Children’s, staff, families andpatients participated in a variety of activitiesthroughout the game.

In an effort to raise funds benefitingCHOC Children’s, their volunteers soldlimited edition, Herrington CHOCO (theCHOC mascot) bears to Ducks fans andCHOC Children’s supporters. Each bearcame equipped with a hockey stick and ajersey signed by a current Ducks player.The sale of the CHOCO bears raised over$48,000 for CHOC, with an additional$500 from an opportunity drawing for aCHOCO bear autographed by the Ducksteam.

A limited number of Ducks player auto-graphed CHOCO bears are still available

for $80, with all proceeds going to CHOCand CHOC at Mission. For more informa-tion, please visit the CHOC website atwww.choc.org.

2009 Anaheim Lady DucksFashion Luncheon

The second annual Anaheim Lady DucksFashion Luncheon was to be held on inCorona del Mar on February 9, but waspostponed due to weather conditions.

The rescheduled event brought thebeach to the rink and took place March 9at Honda Center in the Jack Daniel’s OldNo. 7 Club. The luncheon featured high-lights of the 2009 Spring designer collec-tions presented by GARYS, as modeled byvarious Ducks players, wives and CHOCChildren’s ambassadors. The event alsoincluded a VIP reception, where guestssipped on teal “Duck-tinis.” The extrava-ganza included a silent and live auctionwith a variety of priceless items.

Proceeds raised at the event benefitedCHOC Children’s, which provides theresources necessary for CHOC and CHOCat Mission to nurture, advance and protectthe health and well-being of children.

Anaheim Ducks Wing

There is a new addition to Children’sHospital of Orange County (CHOC). Aspecial Ducks-themed wing on the oncolo-gy floor includes a new children’s play-room, school room and teen room, whichincludes a flat screen TV and video games.The new wing features décor eflective of

52 Ducks Digest

Ducks Digest 55

the Anaheim Ducks organization. Hockeymemorabilia and images fill the walls,which are painted with orange, black andwhite.

The teen room is part of the CHOCChildren’s Cancer Institute Adolescent andYoung Adult Program, which is the onlyprogram of its kind in the nation. Havingthe teen-focused environment encouragescamaraderie and social interaction amongthis unique children’s hospital patient population.

To celebrate the completion of thewing, Ducks representatives, players andtheir wives attended a ribbon-cutting cere-mony. Included in the festivities was a pick-up hockey game in the hallway, which con-sisted of patients engaging the Ducks play-ers and their wives.

Surprise Puck Sale

To help raise funds to support the AnaheimDucks Foundation, the Anaheim LadyDucks will be selling “Surprise Pucks” atthe Sunday, March 29 game against theColorado Avalanche. Fans will have the

opportunity to pur-chase a “Surprise

Puck” for $40and will pickan individ-u a l l yw r a p p e dpuck atr a n d o m .

All fans willreceive either

a Ducks playerautographed black

puck or, for 24 lucky fans, the “Surprise”Ducks player autographed orange puck.The lucky fans who receive the orange

pucks will win the opportunity to attend a2009-10 Ducks preseason practice wherethey will meet the player who autographedtheir winning orange puck, as well as twoTerrace Level tickets to a preseason gamenext season.

Special Olympics Southern California

The Ducks have partnered with AmericanHonda in an effort to raise funds forSpecial Olympics Southern California.Throughout the 2008-09 NHL regularseason, the two organizations collectively

will donate $1,000 for each Ducks victory.American Honda is also participating in theNHL’s “Three Stars” program, donating$100 to Special Olympics SouthernCalifornia for each point accumulated bythe Ducks player with the most Three Starspoints at the end of the regular season.

Special Olympics Southern Californiaoffers opportunities year-round for chil-dren and adults with intellectual disabilitiesto participate in sports training and compe-tition. Approximately 13,000 athletes trainand compete in Olympic-type sports forSpecial Olympics Southern California.

American Honda has been a sponsor ofthe Special Olympics Southern CaliforniaSummer Games since 1997. #

Nickname

“Ebby”. We’ll go with that one.That is what most of the guys call me.

Favorite NHL player growing up

Growing up it was Theoren Fleurywhen he played with Calgary.

Favorite food

Steak and potatoes. It’s prettysimple with me. I like the steak fromAcqua Al 2 down in San Diego.My girlfriend and I go down there.

Favorite movie

“Braveheart”

Favorite OC restaurant

I’m pretty new around here, but maybe Yardhouse.

Favorite vacation spot

Italy. Two years ago I went overthere. I pretty much went aroundFlorence, Rome and Tuscany, that area there.

First car

A brown 1987 Hyundai Stellar.I bought it for $800 and sold itfor $1600, so I made a profit.

I refuse to eat…

I’m allergic to shellfish and nuts.

Favorite video game as a kid

Pretty much all the hockey ones. I created myself, of course.

One superpower you’d like

Invisibility

First pet

I had a dog named Binky. It wasjust a mutt. He had a little bit ofeverything in him.

Pairs of shoes you own

Not that many, maybe five or six.My girlfriend takes care of that.

Playing on your iPod right now

These days I got O.A.R. going a lot. I like Tragically Hip andTheory of a Deadman also, someCanadian rock bands.

Ducks Digest 57

Teemu Selanne is congratulatedby former Duck Steve Rucchin during a

pregame ceremony on February 11 honoring Selanne for breaking Rucchin’s franchise record for games played.

58 Ducks Digest

George Parros high fives fans as he heads into the locker room prior to

the game against the Phoenix Coyotes on January 4 at Honda Center, a 2-0 Ducks victory.

Ducks Digest 61

Todd Marchant rejoices, alongwith a full house at Honda Center, after a

Chris Pronger goal paced the Ducks to a 3-2 victory over thevisiting Buffalo Sabres on Feb. 2.

64 Ducks Digest

The Power Players support the Ducks event presentation efforts atevery home game by greeting fans, sweeping the ice during intermissions,assisting with on-ice and in-stand promotions and helping to ensure our fanshave an outstanding experience. Power Players are also actively involved inour many Community Relations and Fan Development events.

2008-09 POWER PLAYERS

Front row (L-R): Brittany, Krystal, Lindsey, Amanda, Tara, Daniella and Jenn.Back row: Laura, Lisa, Stacy, Brittany, Treana, Alex and Allison.

UNIFORMS CUSTOM-MADE BY

www.discountdance.com • (800) 328-7107

66 Ducks Digest

Ducks Digest 69

Nestled in the heart of Orange County, Honda Center stands as one of the premierentertainment and sports venues in the country. Opened in 1993, it is owned by the

City of Anaheim and managed by Anaheim Arena Management, LLC. Home to theAnaheim Ducks and annual John R. Wooden Classic, the arena has hosted the 2003 WorldGymnastics Championships and 2005 World Badminton Championships; NCAA eventsincluding the first Frozen Four west of the Rocky Mountains and much more.

Performances by world renowned musicalartists and family shows are also plentifulyear after year for the fans of OrangeCounty and Southern California.

Since 1993, more than 26 million fanshave been entertained at Honda Center,enjoying more than 2,500 events.According to Billboard Magazine, over thepast two years, Honda Center has rankedamong the top ten venues in the world forgross ticket sales for venues with more than15,000 seats.

Honda Center offers fans a facility that isboth beautiful to behold and a delight inwhich to view any event, reflecting state-of-the-art design in both form and function.The arena affords visitors incredibly com-

fortable seating and some of the best sight lines and proximity to the action found any-where. The creation of The Theatre at Honda Center in 2001 as a separate venue allowsfor intimate performances in front of a crowd of approximately 7,000 people.

The complete arena encompasses 650,000 square feet of space and is lined inside andout with marble and granite from around the world. The building’s roof spans 444 feetby 329 feet, more than 100 feet above the arena floor.

The arena has three levels of seating. Closest to the arena floor is the Plaza Level with5,200 seats and 39 luxury suites. Just 21 rows above ice, the exclusive Club Level is acces-sible only to Premium Seat holders. It contains 1,750 seats, 44 luxury suites and the JackDaniel’s Old No. 7 Club. The third level, the Terrace Level, has a total of 9,200 easilyaccessible seats.

The arena is located in Orange County, east of the 57 (Orange) freeway on KatellaAvenue. Five major freeways (57, 22, 5, 91, 55) are conveniently located within a five-mile radius of the building. #

LOCATION SITE: 2695 East Katella Avenue (atDouglass, east of 57 freeway)

SEATING CAPACITY (including Suites): 17,174for hockey, lacrosse and other rink events; 17,608for basketball; 18,900 for center stage events;18,325 for end stage events and 7,000 for Theatreevents. Seating is customized per event.

ARENA HIGHLIGHTS: NCAA Men’s BasketballTournament Western Regionals (1998, 2001, 2003,2008), 1999 NCAA Frozen Four, 2003 WorldGymnastics Championships, 2004 U.S. Team Trials -Gymnastics, 2005 World BadmintonChampionships, U2, Bette Midler, Paul McCartney,Eagles, Barbra Streisand, Gwen Stefani, Luis Miguel,Sarah Brightman, Rod Stewart, David Bowie,Beyonce, Missy Elliott, Shakira, Phil Collins, TobyKeith, Alan Jackson, Madonna, Prince, Van Halen,Gloria Estefan, Jimmy Buffett, Bon Jovi and the JohnR. Wooden Classic.

Ducks Digest 71

BILLY JOEL & ELTONJOHN: FACE 2 FACE TOUR March 28 at 7:30 PM andMarch 30 at 7:30 PM

AN EVENING WITHFLEETWOOD MACSaturday, May 23 at8:00 PM

BRITNEY SPEARSApril 19 at 8 PM and

April 20 at 8 PM

YANNI VOICES: LIVE IN CONCERTSunday, June 21 at 7:30 PM

RINGLING BROTHERS AND BARNUM & BAILEY CIRCUSJuly 15-July 26(See HondaCenter.com for dates and times)

BARBERSHOP HARMONYSOCIETYJune 28-July 5 (See HondaCenter.com fordates and times)