Ducks remember Nikita Nesterenko

The Ducks announced they have recalled the forward Nikita Nesterenko from AHL San Diego. Since there were two free places in the active squad, no corresponding change was necessary.

The 23-year-old Nesterenko is coming out of the minors for the first time this season as a winger Brock McGinn ended up on injured reserve last weekend. The New York native gives Anaheim an extra striker for the two away games in Canada in case their group at the top suffers another injury.

Nesterenko has played 12 NHL games over the last two seasons, all for the Ducks. The Boston College product has two goals and a -3 rating, averaging 12:51 per game. Despite being a natural center, in his brief NHL appearances he was deployed almost exclusively on the left wing and lost all three faceoffs. He has tended to have a positive impact on the Ducks’ poor possession game in his small NHL sample, helping Anaheim control 44.4% of shot attempts at 5-on-5 compared to just 41.4% without him .

Nesterenko was a sixth-round pick by the Wild in 2019 and arrived in Orange County at the 2023 trade deadline when Anaheim sent John Klingberg to Minnesota. Nesterenko, who just completed his 34-point junior season at BC, signed his entry-level contract a few weeks later and joined the Ducks on a permanent basis. The 1.98 meter tall, 75 kilogram forward has spent most of his time in San Diego since his professional career and scored 21 goals and 49 points in 99 appearances for the AHL club. He has 12 points and a -9 rating in 29 games this season, ranking seventh on the team in scoring.

Nesterenko gives the Ducks a good enough bottom-six option to be added to the lineup if another injury occurs outside of McGinns or Trevor Zegras‘ will be created in the next few days. Nesterenko, who remains exempt regardless of the length of his recall, is expected to be returned to San Diego when Anaheim returns home from his trip. He will be a restricted free agent again next summer, this time with arbitration eligibility, after spending a few weeks on the closed market last July before signing a two-way pact.