Red Wings goaltender John Gibson rebounded from a subpar first game of the season, making 31 saves and helping Detroit pick up their fourth win of the young season, a 2-1 overtime triumph over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
This was the kind of start that the Detroit Red Wings were envisioning from goaltender John Gibson when they acquired him during the offseason from the Anaheim Ducks.
Gibson stopped 31 shots by the Tampa Bay Lightning as part of Detroit's 2-1 overtime victory on Friday evening, a complete reversal of the bad fortune that befell him last week in what was his debut with the Red Wings against the Montreal Canadiens.
Rather than finishing the game on the bench after being pulled, Gibson instead heard chants of "Gibby! Gibby!" from the sellout crowd at Little Caesars Arena after he made save after repeated save.
In the third period alone, he turned aside 19 of Tampa Bay's 20 shots, allowing only J.J. Moser's screened shot from the point that spoiled what was an otherwise perfect performance.
After Dylan Larkin scored in overtime to secure the extra point for the Red Wings, Gibson was appropriately named one of the game's three stars.
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Afterward, Gibson kept the focus on the overall team win when asked his thoughts of the crowd chanting his name in appreciation of his performance.
“I didn’t have a really good first game and it was unfortunate timing wise, but it’s a long season and just get back to playing my game,” Gibson said. “Guys did a really good job tonight in front of me blocking shots and clearing the shooting lane. So helped me out and it was a good team win.”
The Red Wings broke the ice in the opening period of play thanks to the first goal in the NHL career of Axel Sandin-Pellikka.
Gibson didn't face any shots from the Lighting for almost the first 13 minutes of the opening period, but was extremely busy in the third period, facing 20 shots, one of which unfortunately found its way to the back of the net.
“You just got to stay in it. Obviously, sometimes it’s a little tough," he said. "But like I said, when they did have the push, the guys did a good job clearing the net front and blocking shots. There were a number of forwards and D that had a bunch of big blocks tonight, so it was a team effort.”
As for the only puck that got by him, Gibson said he saw it at the last possible second when it was too late to react, but the two points is what matters the most.
"Just kind of saw it at the last second and it got through, but we found a way to win and that's all that matters."
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