Emerson Etem has taken another symbolic step toward his dream of playing in the National Hockey League.

One of the feel-good stories of the 2010 NHL draft last summer in Los Angeles, the native of suburban Long Beach signed a three-year entry level contract with the Ducks on May 19.

Etem, 18, will receive a $900,000 salary -- which contains a $90,000 signing bonus -- when he is in the NHL and a $67,500 when he is in the American Hockey League for each of the three years. The talks between the sides took only a matter of hours.

"It was pretty crazy," Etem said. "I wasn't really expecting it to happen this quick. ... I'm pretty excited, pretty stoked."

Etem's selection by the Ducks in front of many family members and friends was met by a loud ovation at Staples Center last summer, and he has become the club's top prospect. He had a big second junior season with the Western Hockey League's Medicine Hat Tigers, putting up 45 goals and 35 assists in 65 regular-season games.

The speedy right wing also produced in the postseason. He had 10 goals and 11 assists in 15 WHL playoff games as the Tigers reached the Eastern Conference final before being swept in four games by the eventual league champion, Kootenay Ice.

"Obviously, I'm training harder and harder every summer," Etem said. "I feel like I'm mentally and physically stronger. Going back to Medicine Hat was a great opportunity for me to build a more overall rounded game. I think I did that."

Etem won't be eligible to play in the AHL because he will not meet the league's 20-year-old minimum age limit requirement until next June. It means his options for the fall are making the NHL club or returning to Medicine Hat for one more season.

"I think every year it gets more and more realistic," he said. "I know last year, obviously, I had an open mind. There weren't many spots open. Every year you have to go in with the mindset of knowing and wanting to make the team. That's what I did last year and it's no different than this year."

Only two other California-born and trained players have been taken higher in the NHL draft than Etem -- Jonathon Blum of Rancho Santa Margarita by Nashville with the 23rd pick in 2007 and Beau Bennett of Gardena by Pittsburgh with the 20th selection in 2010.

SEASON HIGHLIGHT
It is hard to pick one out of a bunch that took place during a stirring playoff push in March that saw the Ducks win 15 of their final 20 games. Early on in the run, Bobby Ryan came through with a penalty shot in overtime to defeat Detroit at home. In the next game, Lubomir Visnovsky got his second career hat trick -- the first for a Ducks defenseman -- and scored the overtime winner to defeat Dallas. The run culminated with Corey Perry's hat trick on April 6 to reach the 50-goal mark and consecutive wins against Los Angeles on back-to-back nights to clinch a playoff spot and ultimately finish fourth place in the Western Conference. But the best single moment came March 23 in Dallas, when Teemu Selanne scored with five seconds left to tie the game in regulation, and then rookie Cam Fowler delivered in overtime for a dramatic win.

TURNING POINT
The Ducks emerged from another slow start to sit at 17-13-4 on Dec. 15 before they lost four of five road games, capped by a dreadful 4-1 defeat in Los Angeles in which they were not competitive in the third period against their Southern California rival. It was at that point that coach Randy Carlyle had individual meetings with every player and laid out with each how the team needed to play in order to succeed or changes could be in the offing. The Ducks responded with a win in Phoenix and went 29-13-1 over their final 43 games.

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