Troy Terry’s breakout season in 2021-22 probably shouldn’t have come as a complete shock, but the level to which he elevated his game at the game’s highest level was eye-catching.
The former Denver standout earned his first NHL All-Star nod in the midst of a 67-point, 37-goal campaign for the Anaheim Ducks. To put that performance in some context, not only did the Colorado native lead the Ducks in both of those categories, but the winger exceeded his totals from his first three full pro seasons combined when he had 15 goals and 48 points in 129 games.
So how’d he do it? For starters, there was the start.
“It was a culmination of things,” Terry recalled during a recent interview. “I had a good summer last year, put on some weight. Every year I’ve played in the NHL I’m just feeling it out at the start of the year, trying to solidify my spot.”
That would seem to be a wise approach because Terry, who played for Team USA in the 2018 Olympic Games one year after starring for the Stars and Stripes’ World Junior team, needed two full seasons of pro hockey before establishing himself as a full-time NHLer during the truncated 2020-21 season, when he played 48 games.
Confidence helped Terry hit new heights
That brings us one of the NHL’s most talked-about feats in the first half of this past season. Terry went on a tear starting in Game 3, and he stayed on a tear for 16 games, piling up 12 goals and 22 points. By the season’s 42nd game he had 25 goals and was voted into the All-Star Game.
“To go on that run early on, you feel good about yourself, and they’re going in for you. It’s just a confidence thing,” Terry said.
“I played more, but I don’t think I was making different moves or getting a lot more scoring chances. I think when I was getting there I was still making the right decisions instead of just being happy to get the scoring chance and throw it on net.
“I was confident enough this year that once I got that scoring chance I knew I was going to score instead of just being satisfied with the chance. That was a cycle for me the first couple of years.”
Confidence was a big part of it, but not all of it.
Off-ice gains set the table
Terry weighed 155 pounds when the Ducks picked him in the fifth round of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. Now he said he’s about 190, and that’s not due to trips to Dairy Queen.
“(DU strength and conditioning guru) Matt Shaw has had the biggest impact on how my career’s gone,” said Terry, who is among a fleet of former Pioneers and other pros who descend upon DU each summer for workouts in the Shaw laboratory. “It’s every summer coming back and working with him. I’ve gained about 35 pounds – physically that’s the biggest difference in my progression as a player.
“And then maturing as a person. You go through school, that’s part of it. Once you get to pro you’re playing with older guys all of a sudden. Then you come back here in the summer and reconnect with guys you played with in college and discover we’ve all had the same experiences. (DU) has the facilities and the people to to help us.”
Blake Hillman is one of the players who came in as a freshman with Terry and like Terry turned pro after his junior season in 2018. The growth Hillman has witnessed in his friend has been notable.
“One thing that sticks out to me (as a defenseman) is how he’s not an overly big guy, doesn’t look super strong, but he’s super strong on his stick,” said Hillman, who signed with top farm team of the New York Rangers this summer. “He’s got that hockey strength in the corner. If you’re going to try to lift his stick, 99 percent of the time he’s going to get the puck. It’s like he has Velcro on his stick.
“You can see he’s also developed a very good wrist shot. … This summer all he was talking about was shooting the puck. It’s pretty obvious he’s realized he can not only make plays but he can place his shots wherever he wants. When you see how hard he works, it’s not that surprising.”
A Ducks legend paid it forward with Terry
The coming season presents another opportunity for Terry to elevate his game. The Ducks will need him to because one of the prime factors in Terry’s emergence won’t be there this season – longtime Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf, who retired after piling up 1019 points in 17 seasons.
“When you put that with being able to play on his line the past two years and the way he can find you on the ice, he makes you develop as a player. I was more of a passer and I needed to develop my game and become more of a shooter because I can shoot. I used to always defer and pass, defer and pass.
“Playing with him I couldn’t do that because if I pass to him, it’s just going to come right back to me. That forced me to work more on that side of my game and become more of a shoot-first guy. He’s been huge for me in a lot of different ways.”
Terry will be joined in the NHL by several more Pioneers this season. Most on the following list are locks, but there are a few projections.\
Pioneers in the NHL
Henrik Borgstrom, Washington Capitals: Maybe the third time will be the charm for the center. After playing parts of two seasons with Florida, Borgstrom had just seven points in 52 games with Chicago last season. The Blackhawks bought him out, and Washington signed him early in free agency.
Bobby Brink, Philadelphia Flyers: The forward had four points in 10 games after signing immediately after DU’s championship. Offseason hip surgery, however, is expected to keep him out a significant portion of the upcoming season.
Will Butcher, Dallas Stars: The defenseman, whose point totals have decreased in each of his first five NHL seasons (from 44 to eight), is seeking a reboot in Big D after playing last season in Buffalo.
Dylan Gambrell, Ottawa Senators: Traded from San Jose to Ottawa early last season, the center responded by playing a career-high 61 games for an ascending team.
Danton Heinen, Pittsburgh Penguins: The forward, who re-signed in Pittsburgh, put up 33 points – his most since 2019. His 18 goals were a career high.
Scott Mayfield, New York Islanders: The gigantic defenseman was a rare bright spot for an Islanders team that fell short of expectations, ringing up 18 points, one off his career high, in 61 games last season.
Ian Mitchell, Chicago Blackhawks: The defenseman has a good shot at a top-six role in rebuilding Chicago. After playing 39 NHL games two seasons ago, Mitchell played just eight in 2021-22. However, he emerged at the top D in AHL Rockford, amassing 35 points in 57 games.
Trevor Moore, Los Angeles Kings: Maybe it’s Southern California. While Terry was tearing it up in Anaheim, Moore erupted for career highs of 17 goals and 48 points for a playoff team. He added five more points in seven postseason games. He played in 81 games after 123 combined in the previous four seasons.
Logan O’Connor, Colorado Avalanche: The forward was a key part of the Stanley Cup champs’ penalty kill and second six forwards. He played in a career-high 81 games and tallied a career-best 24 points.
Paul Stastny, Carolina Hurricanes: The center, a veteran of 1,072 NHL games, enjoyed a nice bounce-back season with Winnipeg, posting 21 goals and 45 points. The point total was his most since 2016, while he hadn’t scored as many goals since 2014. He signed with Carolina late in the summer.
Jason Zucker, Pittsburgh Penguins: The speedy forward endured a second consecutive injury-plagued season but managed 17 points in 41 games, far from his four consecutive seasons of 40-plus points from 2017-20.
Free agent Tyler Bozak: The forward played the past four seasons for St. Louis, winning a Stanley Cup in 2019. He had 12 points in 50 games last season and has played 814 NHL games.
©First Line Editorial 2022
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