According to Frank Seravalli on the Nasty Knuckles podcast, John Gibson said that he is “not playing another game for the Anaheim Ducks”. That is a big deal both for the Anaheim Ducks as well as the rest of the league, the Edmonton Oilers included.
If John Gibson is actually available the Edmonton Oilers should make a call and check to see if there is a deal to be made to bring him in. When a player doesn’t want to play for a team he comes cheaper as it is either trade him or he doesn’t play.
Why Should The Edmonton Oilers Be Interested?
Goaltending has always been somewhat of an issue for the Edmonton Oilers. Things are starting to look good for the Oilers though as Stuart Skinner actually played well for Edmonton. Unfortunately, the same can not be said for Jack Campbell.
Campbell struggled in his first season with the Edmonton Oilers. This is where a potential John Gibson trade would come in. If they were to make a trade for Gibson, Campbell would have to go the other way. The Oilers would need to add something on top in order to get the Ducks to retain some salary.
Right now Campbell’s AAV is $5 million while Gibson has a cap hit of $6.4 million. If the Ducks would take Campbell and a second-round pick to send John Gibson to the Edmonton Oilers I don’t see why the Oilers wouldn’t make that trade.
In this deal, the Edmonton Oilers would get a younger goalie who has been shown in the past to play at a Vezina level. Campbell has been good in the past, but that is behind teams that have been good. When John Gibson has shown his ability it was behind a weaker Ducks team. This is why I would like to see what he can do if he played for a good team like the Edmonton Oilers.