The Wild Should Target John Gibson As A Stopgap Goalie

Jesper Wallstedt is destined to be the Minnesota Wild's starting goaltender, but he's struggling to adjust to North American hockey. He has played 110 games with the Iowa Wild in the AHL and has a 2.90 goals against average (GAA) and a 90.2% save percentage (SV%). He has also recorded 4 shutouts. 

It looked like Wallstedt was going to break into the NHL last year. Before the season started, general manager Bill Guerin signed him to a two-year extension worth $4.4 million. There were questions about how the team would use Wallstedt since Filip Gustavsson is the team's starter and Marc-Andre Fleury was backing him up. It's rare for a team to carry three goalies throughout the season. 

In 2023-24, he only played 3 games, posting a 3.01 GAA and an SV% of 89.7% with one shutout. The Wild needed to get Wallstedt some experience while Gustavsson was injured. He gained a little confidence from his first three NHL games and went on to play 45 games for Iowa. He posted a 2.70 GAA and a .910 SV%, an encouraging sign for a rookie goalie, leading Guerin to sign him. 

How can Wallstedt produce these stats again? 

He took a step back this season, playing only 27 games with a GAA of 3.59 and a SV% of 87.9%. Wallstedt suffered injuries that held him back from repeating last year's success. Could he soon become the Wild’s Spencer Knight? 

It's still early to tell. Wallstedt's only 22 years old, and most goalies don't hit their stride until they're at least 24. Wallstedt would benefit from a couple more years of development. Therefore, they could use a stopgap goaltender. Fleury is officially done with his NHL career, and the team will need a backup for Gustavsson to ease himself back into the NHL. 

The Wild should target John Gibson. The Anaheim Ducks goalie has been desperate to play with a better team. The Ducks wasted Gibson's prime years. He was a three-time All-Star, including winning the William M. Jennings Trophy for the lowest GAA during the 2015-16 season. Gibson's resume isn't like Fleury's, but the Wild would get a veteran goaltender who was once elite to replace Fleury.

Minnesota wouldn’t be getting a prime Gibson. Still, ideally, the Wild can play Gibson up to 35 games like he did in the 2020-21 season, posting a 2.98 GAA and a .903 SV%. Put him with a more structured team in the Wild, and they could likely get close to a prime Gibson. All Gibson needs is a change of scenery and a better team in front of him. 

The Ducks have had trouble trading Gibson due to his $6.4 million cap hit for the next 2 seasons. Gibson hasn't been performing like a starting goaltender, and Anaheim has turned to Lukas Dostal in net. So, why would the Wild want to take on Gibson’s $6.4 million cap hit? 

Minnesota may try to trade captain Jared Spurgeon to make room for David Jiricek. Zach Bogosian has one more season, and it's hard to imagine Guerin wanting to move on from the 6-foot-3 veteran defenseman, who’s likely the team's seventh defenseman at this point. He wants to make his blueline bigger, using the Vegas Golden Knights as a model.

The Wild are likely moving on from Marco Rossi, and they need to trade him for a defenseman who can help take the burden off of Brock Faber to replace Spurgeon. The Ducks can use a defenseman like Spurgeon for their top pair. Radko Gudas is playing on Anaheim’s top pair, which isn't sustainable. Trading for Spurgeon moves Gudas to the second pair, which better suits the Ducks. 

Spurgeon has two years left on his contract with a $7.575 million cap hit. That number allows the Wild to get the Ducks to take Spurgeon's entire contract and save some money. Guerin will save $1.175 million, which is more cap to sign Kirill Kaprizov, because the Wild won’t have buyout penalties while the NHL increases the cap. Gibson and Spurgeon have Modified No-Trade Clauses (M-NTC), but Spurgeon no longer has a No-Movement Clause (NMC). 

Spurgeon can help lead the Ducks’ young players on the blueline. He won't have to worry about being the captain. Gudas is Anaheim’s captain and their version of Marcus Foligno. He's better suited as a captain than Spurgeon. The Ducks were almost a .500 team this season, meaning they're taking strides to improve like the Ottawa Senators, who made their first playoff appearance since the 2016-17 season. Getting Spurgeon is a good start for them. 

Minnesota could sign Alexandar Georgiev, Dan Vladar, Ilya Samsonov, or bring back Kaapo Kahkonen as an alternative to Gibson. Still, none of them are as good as Gibson once he's playing hot. Paying $6.4 million for a backup is expensive, but Gibson's at least on an expiring contract. He can be a legit stopgap goalie, preparing Wallstedt to be Gustavsson’s backup. Wallstedt can learn from another veteran in Gibson, which can be another benefit. 

The Wild can take the NHL by storm with a rejuvenated Gibson and by trading for a hungry, motivated defenseman in Reinbacher. The Wild won't be done making moves after trading for Gibson, but they've addressed their goaltending situation and have gotten a reliable veteran in Gibson. He will be 32 in July, three years younger than Spurgeon. The Wild wanted to get younger, and they would by making this trade.