Pavel Mintyukov is nearing a multi-year extension with the Anaheim Ducks, a move that would pull the 22-year-old defenseman off the market. The deal would also remove him from offer sheet eligibility after multiple teams showed interest.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported the Ducks were close to a long-term agreement with Mintyukov on July 5, 2026 at 4:23 pm. The expected framework is in the realm of Brandt Clarke’s five-year, $37MM contract with the Los Angeles Kings.
Mintyukov’s 204-game track
Mintyukov has already played 204 NHL games and averaged 18:17 of ice time. He has added 82 hits and 103 shot blocks per 82 games in his career, a workload that shows why the Ducks are acting before his contract reaches the market.
He was the Ducks’ 2022 10th-overall selection, and his production has climbed into a useful but imperfect range. He posted 28 points in 63 games as a rookie in 2023-24, then finished with 19 points in 2024-25 before scoring 22 points in 73 games in the season referenced in the report.
Ducks blue line pressure
The extension also fits the current shape of the Ducks’ blue line. Mintyukov finished with the third-most power-play ice time behind Jackson LaCombe and Olen Zellweger, and he has the third-most career points on the blue line with 69, behind Nick Jensen and Jackson LaCombe.
That is the part that complicates the clean contract picture. Mintyukov is still young and described as a defender with upside, but he has not matched his rookie scoring total and is expected to land in a range similar to Clarke, even after other clubs pushed to get involved.
Offer sheet window closes
For the Ducks, the move is about control as much as price. Once the extension is finished, Mintyukov comes off the board and cannot be used as an offer sheet target, which is the point after multiple teams tried to test the defender’s availability.
The unanswered piece is the exact term sheet. The club appears close to a multi-year deal, and the structure points to Clarke’s five-year, $37MM benchmark, but the final years and dollars still matter because they will set Mintyukov’s place on the blue line and the Ducks’ cap map for the next stretch.
