William Karlsson is competing with Rickard Rakell for the Ducks' No. 3 center gig, Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register reports.

Karlsson is competing with Rickard Rakell for the Ducks' No. 3 center gig, Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register reports.

Analysis:

By virtue of his greater (albeit light) NHL experience, Rakell is the presumptive favorite to win the job, but Karlsson has made some noise in the preseason, most notably in Sunday's contest against the Kings. He banged a shot off the post in that game and assisted on an Emerson Etem goal, perhaps narrowing the gap in the competition in the process. Karlsson, 21, made the jump from the Swedish Elite League to North America late last season, tallying two goals and seven assists in nine contests for AHL Norfolk.