Ducks begin life after Getzlaf with 4-year playoff drought

By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Ryan Getzlaf’s retirement from the Anaheim Ducks signals the start of a new era. That’s both for the star center and for the organization he’s leaving behind. The Ducks hope next year is when they’ll finally be contenders again. The Ducks have missed the Stanley Cup playoffs in four consecutive seasons for the first time in franchise history, but their growing wealth of young talent suggests they’ll soon have the players who can end the drought. They showed that promise intermittently this season, but ultimately fell well short of the progress necessary to get there.