If your retro sports nostalgia was whetted with Cobra Kai, get ready for the main course as Disney+ has set a March 26th premiere date for The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers. Starring Emilio Estevez reprising his role as Coach Gordon Bombay, the new Mighty Ducks will tell a new chapter in the story of youth hockey in Minnesota but from a different perspective than we saw from the scrappy underdogs in the big screen trilogy of films.
Per Disney's official press release:
In the 10-episode season set in present-day Minnesota, the Mighty Ducks have evolved from scrappy underdogs to an ultra-competitive, powerhouse youth hockey team. After 12-year-old Evan Morrow (Brady Noon) is unceremoniously cut from the Ducks, he and his mom, Alex (Lauren Graham), set out to build their own team of misfits to challenge the cutthroat, win-at-all-costs culture of youth sports today. With the help of Gordon Bombay, they rediscover the joys of playing just for the love of the game.
The series features a talented new team of up-and-coming young actors including Brady Noon, Maxwell Simkins, Swayam Bhatia, Luke Islam, Kiefer O’Reilly, Taegen Burns, Bella Higginbotham, and DJ Watts.
The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers is produced by ABC Signature, a part of Disney Television Studios. Steve Brill, the original creator, writer, and executive producer of all three films, which spawned an NHL franchise, is back as co-creator and executive producer of the new series. Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa (“The King of Queens,” “13 Going On 30”) are co-creators and will serve as executive producers and showrunners. Michael Spiller serves as executive producer/director on the series, with James Griffiths serving as director/EP on the Pilot. Emilio Estevez is an executive producer and Lauren Graham is co-executive producer. George Heller and Brad Petrigala of Brillstein Entertainment Partners and Jon Avnet and Jordan Kerner also serve as non-writing executive producers.
Whoa! It looks as if Gordon Bombay has taken up the Hans (Joss Ackland) mantle in this new series. I wonder how long it will take him to channel his first round of quacks as he adjusts to coaching a new team of hopefuls. I have to admit, my Nostalgia Meter is off the charts right now. I think … Yup, I can feel it coming on. Say it with me, friends … Quack … Quack … QUACK … QUACK … QUACK!