Report: Teams Have Inquired About Gibson, Anaheim Uninterested in Retaining Salary
John Gibson's name in the Trade Winds isn't anything new for those following along.
The goaltending market just got smaller as the New Jersey Devils recently acquired goaltender Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames in exchange for a 2025 top-10 protected first-round pick and defenseman Kevin Bahl.
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Several teams remain on the hunt to improve their crease and precious few goaltenders are available on the trade market.
This has led to calculated speculation from outlets league-wide, including Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, one of the NHL's premier insiders.
"I’ll throw another name out there, and that’s John Gibson," Friedman said on Sportsnet's "The Jeff Marek Show" on Thursday. "I think there are some teams looking into Gibson. I think that New Jersey did, but obviously they’re off the table now. I don’t know if that’s a fit in Ottawa. The thing I’ve heard about Gibson is that Anaheim is not crazy about retaining money there, so that’s going to be complicated."
John Gibson (30) has three years remaining on his eight-year contract with a cap hit of $6.4 million and a 10-team no-trade clause.
Though Gibson's numbers, both traditional and underlying, have been unspectacular for the previous six seasons, he remains one of the more talented goaltenders in the NHL.
He is consistently putting together stretches of play where he proves his talent remains despite his statistical decline. He continues to display tremendous athleticism and situational awareness while giving his team a chance to win on a nightly basis. Rarely does he allow a "soft" goal at a bad time or cost his team a game.
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Lukas Dostal emerged as one of the NHL's top up-and-coming goaltenders with his 2023-24 rookie campaign. He started 38 games and appeared in 44 while posting a .902 SV%, one shutout, and saved -4.42 goals above expected. He also led Czechia to a a World Championship gold medal, posting a .939 SV% and three shutouts in eight games.
As spectacular as Dostal's year was, it may behoove the Ducks to show patience and not rush to appoint him their clearcut number-one goaltender. The position has become increasingly finicky and the NHL is trending toward deploying goaltending tandems to not burn out their number-one option.
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The Ducks enter the 2024 offseason with $33.3 million in salary cap space. Gibson's contract, however unappealing, isn't hampering the Ducks from building the type of team they desire.
For the Ducks to move Gibson, they'd likely have to get blown away by a trade offer.
"I’ll say this, and we’ll never know what he’s thinking (Yzerman) because he doesn’t like to tip his hand," Friedman speculated on "32 Thoughts: The Podcast" about the Red Wings want for a goaltender. "I suspect that Detroit is in this goalie market to some degree."
Teams like the Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, and possibly the Buffalo Sabres could all be searching to improve their goaltending position this offseason. Speculation leads one to believe the only goalie options on the trade market are Boston's Linus Ullmark, possibly Nashville's Juuse Saros, and possibly Anaheim's John Gibson. The unrestricted free agency market is unremarkable when it comes to goaltenders.
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Given the supply and demand discrepancy within the market, the Ducks could just get the kind of offer they'd desire from a Gibson trade.
"Who’s out there? There’s Gibson," Friedman continued. "Anaheim would move him, but they really don’t want to eat money. Which complicates that deal."
Trading Gibson would open up a hole within the roster that the Ducks would have to fill via an unreliable free agency market where they'd likely have to overpay for a quality option, via trade in which they'd have to part with further assets, or via internal promotion of a goaltender within the organization (Tomas Suchanek, Calle Clang, Damian Clara, etc.) who's unprepared for the role.
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If the Ducks would have to pay Gibson to not play for them by retaining money on his contract for three years on top of that, the incentive to move on from him remains lacking.
The Ducks likely view John Gibson as a positive asset and a significant piece of their team in the short term. Having him on the roster would aid with Dostal's development and his contract isn't hamstringing their flexibility.
If teams aren't willing to part with meaningful assets or take on Gibson's entire contract, it remains unlikely he will be dealt anytime soon and the Ducks may be in a better situation because of it.
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