Ducks forward Rickard Rakell poised to rejoin lineup after injury layoff

IRVINE — Rickard Rakell played eight games to start 2021-22, scoring four goals and looking like his old productive self again after a couple of rocky seasons in which his scoring touch seemed to have abandoned him. Then he sat out 10 games because of an upper-body injury.

Now, he’s on the verge of a return to the lineup, eager to rejoin a team that regained its mojo during an 8-1-1 streak while he was sidelined. He can’t wait to join in the fun, accompanying the Ducks to Nashville on Sunday to start a two-game trip to play the Predators and Colorado Avalanche.

“Just the confidence that I feel like is going through our whole group now, the confidence that we can play with any team in this league when we’re playing like we have been,” Rakell said when asked what he’s seen from the Ducks that’s so different from last season or the one before.

“The feeling in the locker room is great, so it’s been really fun to watch,” he added. “But at the same time, you want to be a part of that. I’m really happy I’m at this point right now where I feel like I can get back and help the team. I think everyone is really proud of what we’ve been doing.

“We pretty much have the same team as we had last year, and we’ve been taking these steps as we have. But with that said, this is where it’s going to be tough, after 20 games and taking it all the way in (through the end of the 82-game season). We want to just keep pushing.”

Rakell’s impending return to the Ducks’ lineup gives coach Dallas Eakins more options as the Ducks near the season’s one-quarter mark. Their top line of left wing Adam Henrique, center Ryan Getzlaf and right wing Troy Terry has been the Ducks’ biggest producer so far.

Terry, who has 22 points, Getzlaf (19 points) and Henrique (15 points) are the Ducks’ leading scorers through 18 games. Terry has a 16-game scoring streak, the third-longest in Ducks history. Only Corey Perry (19 games) and Teemu Selanne (17 games) have had longer streaks.

Rakell is likely to slot onto the second line, joining left wing Sonny Milano and rookie center Trevor Zegras. Eakins had tough guy Nicolas Deslauriers on the line with Milano and Zegras for the past five games to act as an enforcer if opponents took liberties with Milano and Zegras.

“I’m just going to feed off what everyone else on the team is feeling,” Rakell said of his expectations for his return to the lineup. “It makes me feel so much better coming back when the team is winning and feeling good. It also has given me more time to get back to feeling as good as I can.

“I’m really happy about that.”

“I mean, I would like to,” he deadpanned, prompting peels of laughter from a group of reporters and broadcasters. “I’ll take it. I’m still going to worry about my game and what I can contribute. Obviously, it’s a lot easier when everyone else is playing good. I’m just going to join in.”

Rakell had this to say when asked for an explanation for the Ducks’ surge in offense and victories during his 10-game absence:

“We always felt like we had a good team, but last year, we want to forget about that because no one got up to their standard of what they can do on the ice. Obviously, we feel much better this year. We feel like we are a different team than we were last year. I think the good thing is we feel like we can get even better.”