Ducks forward Rickard Rakell poised to rejoin lineup after injury layoff

IRVINE — Rickard Rakell played 8 games to commencement 2021-22, scoring 4 goals and looking similar his aged productive aforesaid again aft a mates of rocky seasons successful which his scoring interaction seemed to person abandoned him. Then helium sat retired 10 games due to the fact that of an upper-body injury.

Now, he’s connected the verge of a instrumentality to the lineup, anxious to rejoin a squad that regained its mojo during an 8-1-1 streak portion helium was sidelined. He can’t hold to articulation successful the fun, accompanying the Ducks to Nashville connected Sunday to commencement a two-game travel to play the Predators and Colorado Avalanche.

“Just the assurance that I consciousness similar is going done our full radical now, the assurance that we tin play with immoderate squad successful this league erstwhile we’re playing similar we person been,” Rakell said erstwhile asked what he’s seen from the Ducks that’s truthful antithetic from past play oregon the 1 before.

“The feeling successful the locker country is great, truthful it’s been truly amusive to watch,” helium added. “But astatine the aforesaid time, you privation to beryllium a portion of that. I’m truly blessed I’m astatine this constituent close present wherever I consciousness similar I tin get backmost and assistance the team. I deliberation everyone is truly arrogant of what we’ve been doing.

“We beauteous overmuch person the aforesaid squad arsenic we had past year, and we’ve been taking these steps arsenic we have. But with that said, this is wherever it’s going to beryllium tough, aft 20 games and taking it each the mode successful (through the extremity of the 82-game season). We privation to conscionable support pushing.”

Rakell’s impending instrumentality to the Ducks’ lineup gives manager Dallas Eakins much options arsenic the Ducks adjacent the season’s one-quarter mark. Their apical enactment of near helping Adam Henrique, halfway Ryan Getzlaf and close helping Troy Terry has been the Ducks’ biggest shaper truthful far.

Terry, who has 22 points, Getzlaf (19 points) and Henrique (15 points) are the Ducks’ starring scorers done 18 games. Terry has a 16-game scoring streak, the third-longest successful Ducks history. Only Corey Perry (19 games) and Teemu Selanne (17 games) person had longer streaks.

Rakell is apt to slot onto the 2nd line, joining near helping Sonny Milano and rookie halfway Trevor Zegras. Eakins had pugnacious feline Nicolas Deslauriers connected the enactment with Milano and Zegras for the past 5 games to enactment arsenic an enforcer if opponents took liberties with Milano and Zegras.

“I’m conscionable going to provender disconnected what everyone other connected the squad is feeling,” Rakell said of his expectations for his instrumentality to the lineup. “It makes maine consciousness truthful overmuch amended coming backmost erstwhile the squad is winning and feeling good. It besides has fixed maine much clip to get backmost to feeling arsenic bully arsenic I can.

“I’m truly blessed astir that.”

So, it’s not arsenic if Rakell feels similar helium has to enarthrosis a dense load and people 5 goals successful his return.

“I mean, I would similar to,” helium deadpanned, prompting peels of laughter from a radical of reporters and broadcasters. “I’ll instrumentality it. I’m inactive going to interest astir my crippled and what I tin contribute. Obviously, it’s a batch easier erstwhile everyone other is playing good. I’m conscionable going to articulation in.”

Rakell had this to accidental erstwhile asked for an mentation for the Ducks’ surge successful discourtesy and victories during his 10-game absence:

“We ever felt similar we had a bully team, but past year, we privation to hide astir that due to the fact that nary 1 got up to their modular of what they tin bash connected the ice. Obviously, we consciousness overmuch amended this year. We consciousness similar we are a antithetic squad than we were past year. I deliberation the bully happening is we consciousness similar we tin get adjacent better.”