Is This The Year The Ducks Finally Trade John Gibson?

For Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson, the trade rumors have persisted for years as the team has undergone a deep rebuild. Gibson was once among the NHL’s elite netminders but hasn’t been part of the upper echelon of goaltenders for the past half-decade despite being compensated like one. The Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, native has two years left on his contract with a $6.4MM cap hit, which has long been an obstacle to finding Gibson a new home. Gibson’s name was brought up frequently before the trade deadline, but a weak market for the 31-year-old forced the Ducks to retain him, which begs the question: Will the Ducks trade Gibson this summer?

Anaheim has been out of the playoff picture since 2018 and has experienced a slow turnaround in its rebuild, which appears to be stuck. Gibson played well for the Ducks through some of the early years of the rebuild, which did little to help a team that just wasn’t very good. In recent years, Anaheim has been waiting for a second wave of its prospects to take the next step; however, that just hasn’t been the case, and general manager Pat Verbeek has started to make moves to insulate the younger players with veteran experience. Verbeek added defenseman Jacob Trouba last season and recently added forward Chris Kreider, who should provide veteran leadership to some of the younger Ducks.

These moves, coupled with Anaheim hoping to contend for a playoff spot, would lead one to believe that the Ducks keep Gibson in hopes he can turn back the clock to help the team reach the postseason once again after a seven-year absence. He was the better of their two goaltenders last season (albeit in limited action) and could be an essential piece for the team if they want to make some noise in the Western Conference.

Anaheim has what many believe is the heir apparent to Gibson in netminder Lukas Dostal, who is an RFA this summer and will be looking for a sizable raise on the $812.5K he made last season. Dostal certainly has a lot of upside and was good this season behind a weak Ducks team, registering a 14.3 goals saved above expected (as per Money Puck) and a 23-23-7 record. The issue with Dostal is that he hasn’t played meaningful hockey in the NHL, and there is no certainty he could hold up to the scrutiny if the Ducks find themselves in the hunt for a playoff spot late in the season. Gibson hasn’t played meaningful hockey in nearly a decade, but he has played some big games early in his career. If Anaheim opted to hang onto Gibson, they could let him play out his contract over the next two years before making a long-term decision on Dostal and whether he is the franchise’s goaltender of the future. Anaheim still has plenty of cap space with over $32MM available (as per Puck Pedia) and doesn’t have a financial reason to move him at this time. This could also afford them the ability to wait teams out and hope that someone panics and forces a trade that meets Anaheim’s asking price.

One other caveat with Gibson is that he has some trade protection in the form of a 10-team no-trade list, and he has some say over where he goes. Gibson has reportedly been willing to waive his no-trade in the past for specific teams, so it’s not likely to be a major hindrance, but it could come up if one of the teams interested in his services is on that no-trade list.

On the flip side of the coin, the goaltending market this summer is weak; there are no starters available in free agency and the netminders available on the trade market come with massive warts in their game and, in some cases (Philipp Grubauer), they might not even be NHL goaltenders anymore. Anaheim could likely place Gibson on the trade block, and he would instantly jump to the top of the list of available goaltenders, which could allow Anaheim to address other deficiencies in their roster while shedding Gibson’s cap hit.

Gibson has been linked in the past to the Carolina Hurricanes on several occasions, and they would hardly be the only suitor if Anaheim is serious about moving him. The Edmonton Oilers have also been rumored to have interest, and given the way goaltending has failed them in the two previous postseasons, it’s easy to understand why.

There would be no shortage of suitors given the state of the goaltending in Buffalo, Philadelphia, Columbus and Detroit, and there are not many options unless teams want to take a gamble on Pittsburgh Penguins netminder Tristan Jarry, who is a two-time all-star but hasn’t looked like one in quite some time. Gibson comes with his question marks, but as far as goaltenders with a track record, he is the best option, even if that track record came in the last decade.

Anaheim has also faced this distraction within the team since entering a rebuild around 2020, and Gibson began voicing his frustrations with the loss shortly thereafter. He continued to voice his displeasure the following season as the team’s struggles continued, and eventually his play began to drop off behind a weak defence.  The fact that Gibson’s disillusionment goes back nearly half a decade, it’s fair to wonder if the Ducks would like to put a bad situation behind them, with the return in a trade being a secondary concern.

Lastly, Gibson was excellent in 29 games last season, and given the way the previous five years have gone as a whole, he might not ever post those types of numbers again. Gibson registered 15.3 goals saved above expected last season and won’t likely replicate that number again in Anaheim. This type of play is what has opened the door to potentially moving Gibson, and the time to sell might never be better for the Ducks and for Gibson, who would most certainly benefit from a fresh start in a new city.

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