Ducks sign Tim Washe to entry-level contract

A player with a championship pedigree is heading to the Golden State.

On Monday, the Anaheim Ducks announced they have signed forward Tim Washe to a one-year, entry-level contract. The deal will be for the remainder of the 2024-25 season.

Washe heads to the big league after a successful end to his college hockey career. The undrafted center was the captain of the Western Michigan University team that advanced to the NCAA Frozen Four for the first time in program history. The Broncos made the most of their opportunity, taking down defending champion Denver and Boston University to claim the team’s first-ever national championship this past Saturday.

Washe was a big part of the team’s success. Along with being a leader on and off the ice, the Clarkston, Michigan native was one of the best two-way players in the country. He was near the top of the charts as one of the best faceoff men in the NCAA, leading all skaters with a 63.1 winning percentage, winning a total of 463 faceoffs.

Washe’s overall play in his own end earned him the title of NCHC Defensive Forward of the Year.

The fifth-year forward also had the best offensive season of his career. After scoring just 12 goals in his first four years in Kalamazoo, making contributions as a depth player on head coach Pat Ferschweiler’s squad, Washe exploded for 16 goals and 22 assists for 38 points in 42 games. He finished second on the team in scoring, trailing Philadelphia Flyers prospect Alex Bump. Washe led the Broncos with eight game-winning goals, scoring a goal and four points in the NCAA Tournament, being named to the All-Tournament Team as a result.

Ferschweiler has been proud of Washe’s work ethic over his career and how he’s been able to alter his approach in order to be an impact player.

“The maturity showed in kind of refocusing his aggression and his competitiveness from where we used to be focused on face-offs, defense, these kind of things,” Ferschweiler said in an interview with College Hockey News. “This year, he’s focused and said, ‘Okay, now I need to help this team in other ways.’ He also needed to help himself in other ways. … He is smart, he does have good hands, and he can really skate. There is offense in the game. He’s allowed himself to show it this year.”

During his tenure as a Bronco, Washe and his team made it to the NCAA Tournament four times, winning the NCHC Regular Season and Tournament championships this season. In 171 games, he scored 28 goals and 46 assists for 74 points.

The Ducks (35-37-8) have two games left this season, taking on the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday before rounding out the regular season on Wednesday against the Winnipeg Jets.