Anaheim Ducks Fire Head Coach After 2 Seasons
The Anaheim Ducks announced Saturday that Head Coach Greg Cronin will not return next season. In two seasons at the helm, the Ducks put together a 62-87-15 record. For the seventh straight season, the Anaheim Ducks will not participate in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. Next year, they will attempt to break that streak with a new face behind the bench.
Anaheim Ducks Fire Head Coach Greg Cronin
During the 2024-2025 regular season, which ended this week, the Ducks went 35-37-10 with an average of .488 points percentage. The Ducks finished with 80 points in the standings, which is 16 points behind the St. Louis Blues for the last playoff spot in the Western Conference. However, this was an improvement from last season when the Ducks went 27-50-5 with 59 points.
General Manager Pat Verbeek in a statement, “I want to personally thank Greg for his tireless work and dedication to the team. He is responsible in many ways for the improvement we’ve seen from our young core. However, after several weeks of careful evaluation, I concluded we needed a change in direction and a new voice. This was an extremely difficult decision for me to make, but I felt it was necessary to continue our progress toward becoming a Stanley Cup contender that I know we can be.”
The Ducks will now search for a new head coach, where higher expectations will be in place for next season. The Anaheim Ducks leadership wasn’t happy with the progress made in his two seasons.
Anaheim was ranked 23rd in team defense this season, thanks in no small part to the play of Goalies Lukas Dostal and John Gibson. They combined for a .901 team save percentage, ninth-best in the NHL. Their offense suffered under Cronin, finishing 30th overall in both seasons behind the bench.
Final Thoughts
The Anaheim Ducks last made the playoffs in the 2017-2018 season, where they were eliminated in the Western Conference Finals by the Nashville Predators. Since then, the Ducks have missed the playoffs in seven consecutive seasons.
