John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks
It seems like every offseason, at least for the last few years, John Gibson’s name comes up in hypothetical offseason trade packages. And if the mere mention of Gibson makes you roll your eyes either because of his poor productivity over the years or because the Gibson Trade Talk is once again an annual occurrence, hear me out.
Before anything else, we can all agree the 30-year-old has been put in the worst possible situation over the past five years, as the Ducks have progressively struggled since the 2019-20 season. So we can’t entirely blame Gibson for his following numbers since October 2019: A 74-129-33 record, 0.900 save percentage, 3.36 GAA, 0.466 quality starts percentage, and just six shutouts.
Further, his $6.4 million AAV may also make you cringe, but the Anaheim Ducks will be in a position to retain up to 50 percent of his salary, so there isn’t much of an issue there. Further, because of Gibson’s age and recent performances, the price tag may not be as high as for other goaltenders on this list, so that’s another plus.
Finally, the Red Wings are about three rungs above the Ducks overall. And as a much better hockey team that will also improve its blue line this summer, Gibson will fare much better in the Motor City than he would near the City of Angels.