Anaheim Ducks’ Goaltending Injuries Mean Changes For The San Diego Gulls

Life around the Anaheim Ducks lately is prime evidence that an NHL team’s problems quickly find their way down to its AHL affiliate.

The Ducks have been one of the NHL’s top stories early this season. At 16-9-1 going into Wednesday’s home date with the Utah Mammoth, the Ducks have been able to find that success despite ever-increasing injuries in net.

But Anaheim’s injury picture has meant changes for their AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls, as well.

Let’s recap the past two weeks for the Anaheim and San Diego goaltending depth chart.

Anaheim had been gone the first six weeks of the NHL season with a Lukas Dostal-Petr Mrazek tandem in net. But Dostal, who last played Nov. 22, is out with an upper-body injury, according to Anaheim’s website.

That Dostal injury prompted Anaheim to recall Ville Husso from the Gulls on Nov. 26. Anaheim had acquired Husso from the Detroit Red Wings for future considerations last Feb. 24. The new relationship soon made sense for both goaltender and team. Husso is 30 now, but he finished up last season by splitting time between Anaheim and San Diego. In getting Husso, who had played 56 games for Detroit as recently as the 2022-23 season, Anaheim had found solid insurance in net. But Husso’s game had dipped significantly in Detroit, and he had found himself fighting for playing time with the Grand Rapids Griffins last season. Anaheim gave Husso a two-year contract extension this past June two days.

So it became a Mrazek-Husso duo in Anaheim in Dostal’s absence. At least until this past Sunday night in Chicago. That is when Mrazek left the game in the third period. Husso finished in relief of an eventual 5-3 loss. With Mrazek’s lower-body injury putting him out and a game the next night in St. Louis, the Ducks had to scramble for goaltending reinforcements.

Up next came Vyacheslav Buteyets, who had all of three games at the AHL level this season and seven more with the Anaheim organization’s ECHL affiliate, the Tulsa Oilers. Buteyets came up, Dostal went on injured reserve, and it became a Husso-Buteyets tandem for Anaheim. Husso came through in St. Louis, making 21 stops in a 4-1 win.

Buteyets, 23, came to the Ducks as a 2022 sixth-round pick. With one game of experience in the KHL in 2023-24, he made the move to North America and played 36 games last season for Tulsa while also making a pair of appearances for San Diego. He finished 19-13-3 | 2.82 | .905 with Tulsa and also played five games in the Kelly Cup Playoffs.

But Buteyets had barely settled in with San Diego this season before Anaheim came calling. He recorded his first career AHL victory last Wednesday at Tucson with 39 saves but took a 5-0 loss two nights later at home against the Coachella Valley Firebirds. Husso surrendered four goals to Utah in the opening 40 minutes Wednesday night before Buteyets made his NHL debut in relief. He allowed three goals on 13 shots in a 7-0 loss.

In the mix now for San Diego is Tomas Suchanek, who had a strong debut season with the Gulls in 2023-24. But a ruptured ACL sustained in offseason training in the summer of 2024 cost him the entire 2024-25 campaign. Anaheim management opted to give the 22-year-old Suchanek playing time with Tulsa. Suchanek went 3-2-0 | 3.44 | .909 in six games with Tulsa. Husso’s recall last week prompted San Diego to bring Suchanek up to the AHL level.

Calle Clang, a 2020 third-round selection, played a combined 63 games with San Diego the past two seasons. But he has been limited to three AHL appearances this season, the last of which came Nov. 8. The Gulls announced Nov. 11 that Clang was taking a leave of absence.

It is not known when Clang might return, and the Gulls have not made any moves to add a goaltender so far this week. Eighth in the Pacific Division, San Diego is 7-6-5-0 through 18 games. The second quarter of the team’s season begins Friday night when the Texas Stars visit.

That game opens a hectic December period in which the team will play 11 games in 27 nights. Suchanek’s last AHL game came April 21, 2024, but he could now be looking at an exceptionally busy month.

The Ducks have to survive until their two goaltending regulars return. So do the Gulls.

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