DETROIT | After 12 seasons with the Ducks, goaltender John Gibson underwent a major change and was traded to the Red Wings.
Prior to this trade, which occurred on the second day of the draft on June 28, the goalie was familiar with only one organization.
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“I come here and I just want to do my job. It's an interesting thing,” Gibson said. “From the first week in Detroit, I felt a sense of anticipation, everyone was showing up early, so when camp started, we had a head start.”
It could be said that Gibson has come at the right time, as the Wings are in full recovery and can dream of the playoffs, and he would undoubtedly have waited a few more seasons in Anaheim.
Good buy
John Gibson's arrival won't hurt the Wings, who used five goalies last season. Cam Talbot, who is still there, has been used the most (47 games), followed by Alex Lyon (30 games). Collectively, the five goalies had a goals-against average of 2.91 and an efficiency percentage of 0.884.
Last season, the Ducks (261) allowed two more goals than the Wings (259). Second to Lukas Dostal, Gibson played 29 games and maintained a 2.73 batting average with a .912 save percentage.
“Now we have a real number one,” said Patrick Kane. He can play a lot of matches and that solves a few problems for us. He can allow us to be the team we want to be.”
Despite the injuries, Gibson had only played one season in which he had played fewer than 40 games in nine years prior to last season. He played 35 games in the 2020/21 season and played a whopping 60 games in the 2017/2018 season. During this period, he also played six seasons in which he played at least 50 games.
“He's an exceptional goalie. I've played against him for a few years now, he's a goalie who understands the game and moves well. He's a leader in the locker room,” Travis Hamonic said.
