Gulls Grads: Troy Terry

Gulls Grads: Troy Terry

Jun 1, 2023

By AJ Manderichio/SanDiegoGulls.com

Troy Terry is a development success story.

Anaheim’s fifth-round selection (148th overall) in the 2015 NHL Draft, Terry continued to make an impact on the Ducks roster this season. He followed a breakout 2021-22 season with another stellar campaign, finishing the 2022-23 season with 23-38=61 points, his second 60+ point performance. He sat among team leaders in most offensive categories while improving his plus/minus rating and taking fewer penalty minutes.

Terry burst onto the scene with an incredible opening week, kicking off the season with a 2-1=3 point performance in Anaheim’s home opener against the Seattle Kraken. His second goal was an exclamation mark on his multi-point performance, delivering Anaheim an overtime win. After making a save, John Gibson made a bank pass off the boards to a streaking Terry, who slipped behind Seattle’s defense and carried the puck down the ice. He warded off the pressure behind him and cut to the slot, snapping a fluttering backhand over Philipp Grubauer to send the fans home happy.

After the game, Terry and Anaheim’s 21st Duck, Ethan Baroldi, celebrated the victory by giving away a stick to a lucky fan. The Ducks wing made Baroldi’s night, asking him to autograph a hat in the locker room following the win.

The opening night performance highlighted a strong start for Terry, who posted 3-3=6 points in Anaheim’s first three games. He continued this production throughout the early portion of the season, posting 2-9=11 points from Oct. 23 – Nov. 6.

A few weeks later, Terry once again grabbed a victory for the Ducks, netting his second game-winning goal of the season on Nov. 23 against the New York Rangers. After a New York turnover at center ice, Terry grabbed the puck and raced into the offensive zone. Using the defenseman as a screen, he whipped a wrist shot by Jaroslav Halak to give the Ducks a two-goal advantage. They’d hold the lead through the rest of regulation, skating away with the 3-2 win.

Terry’s first half performance earned him a second straight All Star appearance, as the National Hockey League chose the right wing to represent the Ducks at the midseason event. When it was announced on Jan. 5, Terry’s 12-20=32 points in 39 games led Anaheim in points, goals, assists, power-play goals (4), even-strength points (8-15=23), even-strength goals and shots.

He learned the news through a surprise almost as impressive as his first-half performance. Terry, a noted Dallas Cowboys fan, is named after legendary quarterback Troy Aikman. The Hall of Famer is a favorite of Terry’s father, Chuck, and gave Anaheim the spark for a viral idea.

After a January practice, the entire team entered the video room at Great Park Ice and FivePoint Arena, expecting a normal film study session. Instead, Aikman – part of ESPN’s Monday Night Football team – popped up on the screen to deliver a personalized message.

In the short video, Aikman congratulated Terry on being an All Star and congratulated him on becoming a dad, as Terry and his wife announced they were expecting their first child later in the season. A clearly stunned Terry sat watching the video with his mouth open before thanking his coaches, teammates and Aikman for the support.

Terry went on to find success in the second half of the season, posting a four-game goal streak from Feb. 23 – Mar. 1. Included in that run is another game-winner, this time against the powerhouse Carolina Hurricanes. Terry’s third-period tally – a spectacular individual tally where he worked around a defenseman and fired a shot home – backstopped a 51-save effort from Gibson. The win ended Carolina’s five-game win streak, an uplifting win for an Anaheim team in the midst of an East Coast road trip.

Terry ended his season with points in 10 of his last 11 games, including a 1-1=2 point effort against the rival Los Angeles Kings in Anaheim’s season finale.

As the season wound down, Terry earned high praise from Anaheim Ducks General Manager Pat Verbeek.

"Troy's goal-scoring hasn't been quite as high, but I think there's been a lot of other elements [of his game] that have improved," Verbeek said. "His strength has improved. I still see a lot more upside with Troy Terry. It's funny, every player goes through different stages and how they get to the level that they need to get to. I think Troy is just actually really starting to figure out the off-ice conditioning, the strength that he needs to play against the best defensemen each and every night. He's starting to understand the mental approach that you need to take playing against the best players in the league every night."

Off the ice, the right wing continued to play a prominent role in the team’s charitable and marketing efforts. He joined with Trevor Zegras and Max Jones to shoot a cameo in the former Disney+ series "The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers." In addition, he helped with the team’s Make A Wish Foundation request, arriving to Honda Center before a game wearing a custom shirt for youth hockey player Jackson Lewis-Rodriguez.

Now, the Gulls Grad is officially a dad, as his family welcomed Grayson James Terry just over a month ago.

Gulls fans can point to Terry as an example of the development process leading to success at the NHL level. Now a key cog in the Ducks lineup, Terry took his time to hone his craft in San Diego. In two seasons with the Gulls, the Denver native posted 23-34=57 points, learning the professional game and taking the crucial first step toward NHL success.

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