John Klingberg reveals why he chose the rebuilding Anaheim Ducks
Defenseman John Klingberg took the hockey world by surprise when he signed a one-year deal with the Anaheim Ducks.
When the UFA fired his agent and joined Newport Sports, many thought that he'd be looking for a significant payday; however, that payday never materialized.
Klingberg's previous agent advised him to turn down an eight-year, $58 million ($7.25 million AAV) contract extension from the Dallas Stars. His agent was certain that the Stars would increase their offer to the range of $8 million per season to keep, but that never happened either.
He ultimately settled on a one-year, $7 million contract with the Ducks, which is a total of $51 million less than he was offered from Dallas.
Now, Klingberg has opened up about why he chose the Ducks and how he sees next year going:
With (Trevor) Zegras and Troy Terry, what they did last year, I think that's exciting for the future. If you look at the signings they (made) in free agency as well, with Ryan Strome and Frank Vatrano, I think those are two really good signings. If you look at their D corps with Drysdale, I think it's very exciting too. He's young, and it looks like he can have a real bright future in the league.''
Klingberg will once again be a UFA after next season unless he signs an extension to stay in Anaheim before then. It'll be interesting to see if he and his agent take a new approach to a potential extension in the future.
