Chris Kreider admitted it was difficult to move on from the New York Rangers after 13 seasons but is excited to join an Anaheim Ducks team he believes is trending in the right direction.
"I think it's a team that's on the come up that has ... a wealth of talent, youth veteran presence, speed, size, and it's a group that I think can win hockey games and make a push to make the playoffs," Kreider said. "And obviously with the addition of (head coach) Joel (Quenneville) and his staff, I think that's a massive draw for me as well. And it certainly helps knowing some of the guys on that team and being able to get a look behind the curtain."
He added, "So it's a really exciting time to be a Duck."
Kreider accepted a trade to Anaheim despite it being on his 15-team no-trade list. A handful of Kreider's former Rangers teammates are on the roster, including Jacob Trouba, Ryan Strome, and Frank Vatrano.
Anaheim has missed the playoffs in seven straight years but improved by 21 points this season. The Ducks brought in Quenneville to be head coach and have more than $32 million in cap space to keep making moves this summer, according to PuckPedia.
All that, plus a strong core of young players, made the Ducks an attractive destination.
"They've got some fantastic vets with great track records of winning in the prime of their careers, and they've got a wealth of young talent, of speed, of size, of skill," Kreider said.
Kreider singled out Mason McTavish, Trevor Zegras, and Troy Terry as some of the forwards he's excited to play with but acknowledged there's talent throughout the roster.
"Not to mention the D core, which is kind of everything that you want in a D core, right?" Kreider said. "Skill, size, speed, toughness, physicality, and the whole group has nothing but unbelievable things to say about the goaltending."
Kreider amassed 582 points in 883 games with the Rangers.
