The emergence of Lukas Dostal in the Anaheim Ducks’ net this season has only further fueled the possibility of longtime starter John Gibson finding a new home before the March 7 trade deadline.
Or at least, the desire to find him a new home.
And, to be clear, that has been a mutually agreed-upon desire for the club and the player (and his agent) for more than a year now.
Gibson has returned to action — The Athletic’s Eric Stephens caught up with him recently — after missing the start of the season while recovering from an emergency appendectomy performed Sept. 25.
One of the reasons Gibson hasn’t moved in the past, despite his long-standing availability, is that teams have had consternations about his contract, which has two more years on it after this one at a $6.4 million average annual value.
It’s been a fair concern. But now that top goalies are signing for $8.5 million a season, and now that the salary cap has finally begun to go up again in a meaningful way, suddenly that Gibson salary isn’t as bad as it may have looked a year ago.
I also believe the Ducks would be willing to eat some of that salary and cap hit in a trade, but of course, that comes with the usual caveat that retention would come at a cost for the acquiring team.
At a reduced cap hit, though, the question is no longer the contract. Instead, it becomes: Does anyone believe Gibson can be reinvigorated on a contender?
There have been concerns from other front offices that all the losing and all the shots faced in Anaheim had broken him. But there is also word he’s arrived this season with a fresh perspective and much better attitude.
Does a team take a chance on him? He’s only 31. People talk about him like he’s 37.
“John Gibson can play,” former NHL goalie and goalie coach Jamie McLennan, a TSN color analyst, told me Tuesday. “Two things come into mind: if he can get back to having fun playing hockey — because he’s been in a tough situation for years — and secondly, if he can be healthy. Those two things are great question marks for probably everybody that looks at him.
“But if you look at the raw talent, John Gibson is a very good goaltender. That’s probably why he’s intriguing for teams who need an upgrade in net.”
And if it comes with retention?
“If he becomes a $3.2 million goalie with Anaheim keeping half, jeez, he looks good. There’s a lot of $3 million goaltenders that I would put him ahead of. There’s probably nobody taking him at the full $6.4 million for another two and a half years.”
There are two teams that immediately jump to mind as potential fits: the Colorado Avalanche and Carolina Hurricanes.
The Avalanche were 31st in the NHL in goals against heading into Tuesday’s action. That’s not all on the goaltending, but goaltending sure as heck is a big part of it. There’s no question in my mind the Avs could use an upgrade in goal.
But that opinion is not shared where it matters most: inside the Avs’ front office. League sources suggest the team believes its goaltending will steady itself and is OK sticking with what it has.
And when it comes to starter Alexandar Georgiev, who is in his last year of a $3.4 million contract, you can understand why there is still belief internally. He went toe-to-toe with Connor Hellebuyck and Jake Oettinger last spring in the playoffs and didn’t get outplayed by either. Sure, the Avs ultimately lost to the Stars in the second round, but having covered that series, I sure didn’t think it was because of goaltending.
The other reason I think the Avs don’t currently plan to trade for a goalie (always subject to change between now and March 7) is that they don’t look at the market and see a true difference-maker available — or at least someone who is a clear upgrade on Georgiev. And when it comes to Gibson, they’d also have to worry about the remaining term on the contract, given their always-complicated salary cap situation.
Which brings us to the Hurricanes. As I wrote a few days ago, league sources indicate the Hurricanes are doing their due diligence on the goalie market just in case. It doesn’t necessarily mean they will end up trading for a goalie, but with Frederik Andersen injured — and I think it’s going to be a longish-term situation there — you can understand why Carolina would at least be getting a better gauge on the market.
Because this is what no doubt keeps GM Eric Tulsky up at night: What if Pyotr Kochetkov gets hurt? What then?
Enter Gibson. I do believe he’s among the different names the Canes have at least talked about internally. It doesn’t mean he’s at the top of their list, but he’s on it somewhere.
If the Ducks were willing to retain on Gibson’s contract and there’s a reasonable deal to be had, that’s a gamble perhaps worth taking for the Canes.
And would he work there? I mean, every goalie sees his stats improve in Carolina, but would landing on a contender revive Gibson’s career? It’s impossible to tell, of course. But it might be worth the risk.
Because, for one, the Hurricanes have usually been outplayed in net by their opponents come playoff time the past few years. If the Gibson experiment was a success and he found his old self in Carolina, that could be a home run.
Could be.
An outlier team in the mix is Edmonton.
Gibson has a modified no-trade clause, but my understanding is he would consider the Oilers, who came one win short of the Cup last season.
But my sense is that goaltending is not the Oilers’ focus right now. That’s not because their goalies have been fantastic but because that type of trade would have a lot of moving parts and affect their cap. Right now, the Oilers are focused on getting their forward group going in a more effective and consistent, offensive way. And closer to March 7, I suspect the blue line will require an addition.
(Photo: Patrick Smith / Getty Images)
