Looking back at John Gibson's best moments as an NHLer for his 32nd birthday. 

The Red Wings celebrate the birthday of Detroit's newest goaltender in former all-star John Gibson, who turns 32 on Monday. 

HBD, Gibby! 🥳 pic.twitter.com/H5WzazK63r

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) July 14, 2025

The Pittsburgh native has spent 13 seasons and over 506 appearances with the Anaheim Ducks and during that span has produced some unbelievable moments. We look back at some of his best career highlights so Red Wings fans can get excited about their new starting goaltender.  

Shutouts In NHL and Playoff Debut

Gibson entered the league during the 2013-14 season and made an immidiate impact with an 18-save shutout over the Vancouver Canucks en route to a 3-0 win. He became the youngest goalie to do so since 1985 and would go on to finish the season with a 3-0-0 record, a 1.33 goals against average and a .954 save percentage through three appearances. 

Anahiem would continue on into the playoffs, Gibson again produced another shocking moment when he shutout the LA Kings in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals. Gibson's 28 saves made him just the second NHL goalie ever to post shutouts in both their regular season and playoff debuts since Bruins goaltender Tiny Thompson from the 1930s. Following the win, Kings head coach Darryl Sutter said Gibson was "the best goalie I’ve ever seen."

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500th NHL Game With Anahiem 

Gibson became the first ever Ducks goaltender to reach 500 games, cementing himself as an all-time great in the franchise's history. He backed up the milestone with a massive 26-save performance in a 2‑1 win over the Dallas Stars. Gibson would finish with 506 appearances with the Ducks, managing a 204-217-63 record with a 2.89 goals against average and a .910 save percentage. 

Conference Finals Appearances

Gibson has seen his share of playoff success as he was on a pair of Anahiem teams that made it to the Conference Finals but fell short both times. Back in 2015, the Chicago Blackhawks were a dynasty and Gibson had to do his best to slow down a moving train. The Hawks would go on to win the Stanley Cup but Gibson gave them his best as he started Game 4, where he earned a 5-4 overtime win and followed it up with another overtime win for Game 5 to tighten up the series. 

The Ducks would eventually lose in seven games with Gibson splitting time with Fredreick Andersen with the wins proving Gibson is legit. Fastforward to 2017, the Ducks are back in the picture but now against the Nashville Predators. Gibson would start five of the six games and would be pulled in Game 5 after struggling early on. He would total 13 goals against on 117 shots in a 4-2 series loss. 

His overall playoff numbers currently sit at 11-13 with a 2.80 goals against average and a .912 save percentage. Gibson mentioned in his opening press conference with Detroit that playoffs are his only goal and when getting there, hopefully he can produce the same kind of numbers and help be a difference maker in the Red Wings success.

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The Dallas Stars kick off a new week of our NHL prospect pool overview series.

Tony Ferrari digs into the Stars’ strengths and weaknesses, latest draft class, positional depth chart, next player in line for an NHL opportunity and more. A player who no longer holds rookie eligibility in the NHL is considered graduated and no longer a prospect for these exercises, with some exceptions.

Initial Thoughts

The Stars put on a masterclass of how to usher in a new era while their older core ages. They’ve drafted and developed high-end talent, such as Miro Heiskanen, Jason Robertson, Jake Oettinger and Roope Hintz, and they’ve bolstered that group by bringing in Mikko Rantanen. 

Wyatt Johnston highlights the Stars' young core. He’s a high-level center who has scored over 30 goals in each of the past two seasons. Heading into his age-22 season, Johnston is poised to eclipse the point-per-game mark. 

Thomas Harley is an emerging defender who played well in the spotlight when he joined Team Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off. His mobility and length defensively, along with his puckhandling and passing offensively and in transition, allow him to impact the game at every level. He and Johnston are the centerpieces of the next generation, but they aren’t prospects anymore, so let's dive into the pipeline that will help bolster the Stars' winning ways. 

The back end has solid players on their way through the system.

Lian Bichsel technically isn’t a rookie anymore, having played 38 NHL games this past season, but he still feels like one. The heavy-hitting blueliner has developed into a solid defensive player who uses his skating and size to impede offense for the opposing team. His puckhandling and passing are simple but steady, never looking to play above his head.

Aram Minnetian is one of the most promising players on their way through the system. He’s been a solid part of the Boston College blueline, using his skating and intelligent, timely play to ensure he puts his team in excellent positions. With a bigger role next season, he should be a key piece to a very good BC squad.

Tristan Bertucci jumps to the AHL after a solid OHL career. Despite not winning the league title, Bertucci finished his OHL career with 18 points in 16 playoff games, which was an offensive level he’s never reached before. While that isn’t expected at the next level, he’s known for his defensive game and physicality. He moves well, and that’s allowed him to showcase some transition ability as well. Bertucci is the kind of defender who flies under the radar at the next level, but they can be undoubtedly valuable.

On offense, Emil Hemming is one of the more promising forwards in the Stars’ system. Although he didn’t have the best season in the OHL, he has a great shot and plays the game with urgency. He gets involved in the forecheck and engages physically when needed. He isn’t the most refined attacker, but he exhibits some solid habits that could translate to the second or third line. 

Ayrton Martino broke out in the NCAA as a senior, jumping from 27 points to 51. His speed makes him such an attractive prospect. He was finally able to show off his shooting talent at the college level. Martino has some rounding out to do, which will be addressed at the AHL level.

Key U-23 Players Likely To Play NHL Games This Season

Lian Bichsel (D), Wyatt Johnston (C)

2025 NHL Draft Class

Round 3, 94th overall - Cameron Schmidt, RW, Vancouver (WHL)

Round 4, 126th overall - Brandon Gorzynski, C/LW, Calgary (WHL)

Round 5, 146th overall - Atte Joki, C, Lukko Jr. (Fin.)

Round 5, 158th overall - Mans Goos, G, Farjestad Jr. (Swe.)

Round 6, 190th overall - Dawson Sharkey, RW, Acadie-Bathurst (QMJHL)

Round 7, 222nd overall - Charlie Paquette, RW, Guelph (OHL)

The Stars are known for taking swings at the draft, and they did exactly that with Cameron Schmidt. He was widely ranked as a first-round pick, but his size and lack of defensive commitment were major issues because he could get pushed around a bit, and he wasn’t always committed to playing in his own zone. With that said, his shot was as good as anyone in the draft, and he was a flash of lightning on the ice, flying around and bursting up ice with speed. He also has a bit of a nasty side, getting into it after the whistle and showing he has the fight in him that smaller players need. He must incorporate that into his game between the whistles a bit more.

To mitigate some of the risk from Schmidt, they went the safe route and drafted Gorzynski. He plays like your prototypical third-liner. Gorzynski looks to pressure opposing players with speed and effort, closing down the space they have to make plays and force mistakes. He doesn’t have the high-level skill to dictate play, but he has enough to advance play to teammates with the puck and find pockets to finish when given the chance. 

In the fifth round, the Stars had two picks. The first of which was Atte Joki, a Finnish center who has displayed some really solid two-way ability and a crafty scoring touch at times. He’s likely destined for bottom-six duties at the pro level, but there is a level of intrigue that comes from his intelligent off-puck offensive play. Joki will need some time to develop, but the Stars have a knack for drafting solid Finns.

Mans Goos is a Swedish netminder with some hype back home. He’s got great size, and he cuts down the angle really well, taking away any light behind him in 1-on-1 situations. Goos must improve his lateral quickness, but he is a solid bet as a netminder with some solid pedigree.

When the Stars picked Dawson Sharkey, it felt like a swing on an energetic forward who plays with some physical intensity. He showed a decent touch around the net, finishing pucks in tight and even showing off a decent shot off the rush. Sharkey has a few tools but isn’t always able to put them together. Grabbing a player like this late is a bet on tools, which is better than drafting strictly for size, as some teams do.

With their final pick, the Stars drafted Charlie Paquette, who scored 70 points in 68 games as a 19-year-old OHLer and an overage draft eligible. He throws some hits, gets shots off from good spots and tries to get involved all over the offensive zone. He’s a good net-front presence as well. He strikes me as someone who will be a very good junior player and even a solid AHLer, but he has too much to put together, including passing and defensive play, to really challenge for an NHL job. 

Strengths

The Stars’ pipeline has some promising defensemen. Bichsel is ready to roll in the NHL now, but with Minnetian and Bertucci on the way and some other nice swings in the pipeline, the Stars found ways to add a plethora of defensemen to the system.

Christian Kyrou is an offensive defenseman with a couple of years of experience in the AHL, having shown flashes of the skill and passing that made him a lethal OHL defender. Niilopekka Muhonen has an interesting blend of mobility and physicality. He had a solid season in which he helped the Medicine Hat Tigers capture a WHL title. The Stars have nice bets throughout their blueline. 

Weaknesses

The Stars are weak down the middle in the prospect pipeline. Drafting Joki helps, but there aren’t any solid centers who could be much more than a fourth-line pivot. With that said, the Stars have Johnston and Bourque, who can play center at the NHL level. Dallas must replenish and continue to bring in centers to ensure long-term success.

Hidden Gem: Antonio Stranges, LW

Antonio Stranges is one of the most curious cases in hockey. His pure skill and creativity are incredible. Stranges has often been called a pre-game or practice all-star. Stranges has some of the most unorthodox but entertaining skating of any prospect in the last half-decade. His ability to deke, dangle or pull off tricks outside of the game was incredibly fun for people to watch. Last season, Stranges began to put the skill and mobility together at the AHL level. Whether he can continue to grow and eventually prove his skill at the NHL level will be the biggest question.

Next Man Up: Lian Bichsel, D

The Stars have missed the presence of Chris Tanev since he left in free agency. Tanev was a stout defensive force who helped keep the blueline steady in his limited days with the Stars. They are hoping that Bichsel can help fill that void after a season in which the Stars tried to patch the hole with unreliable veterans. Bichsel can lay the boom, and he can skate to shadow opposing players. Bichsel is young, but he might be the missing piece on the blueline. 

Prospect Depth Chart Notables

LW: Ayrton Martino, Antonio Stranges, Brandon Gorzynski, Justin Ertel

C: Angus MacDonell, Atte Joki, Francesco Arcuri

RW: Emil Hemming, Cameron Schmidt, Charlie Paquette, Matthew Seminoff

LD: Lian Bichsel, Tristan Bertucci, Niilopekka Muhonen

RD: Aram Minnetian, Gavin White, Christian Kyrou, Connor Punnett

G: Maxim Mayorov, Mans Goos, Arno Tiefensee, Remi Poirier, Ben Kraws

For a deeper dive into the prospect pool with player rankings, check out the Yearbook and Future Watch editions of The Hockey News in print.

The NHL’s offseason is now fully upon us, the draft is in the books, most significant trades have already occurred, and free agency has mostly shaken out. The NHL landscape for the 2025-26 season has become clearer.

Only a handful of NHL players remain on the unrestricted free agency market, and the focus has shifted to restricted free agency. Eleven players filed for salary arbitration last week, with meetings scheduled to be held between July 20 and Aug 4.

Among those 11 players were a pair of Anaheim Ducks: goaltender Lukas Dostal and defenseman Drew Helleson. The hope with any arbitration case in the NHL is to negotiate and agree upon a deal before having to enter the boardroom. Historically, when each side makes their arguments in those rooms, damaging effects on the relationship between the player and the team can ripple moving forward. Arbitration dates are best utilized when treated like deadlines to get a contract signed.

The only other RFA on the Ducks roster is center Mason McTavish, with Sam Colangelo, Judd Caulfield, Jan Mysak, Tim Washe, and Calle Clang also in the organization and needing new contracts.

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AFP Analytics has been fairly accurate when projecting both the length of contracts and the percentage of the cap for an individual deal. Analyzing their projections can be an interesting exercise when attempting to determine what these key pieces to the Ducks’ roster will ultimately sign for.

Lukas Dostal

AFP Analytics Projection: (Long Term) 4 Years, $5.2 million AAV

Dostal was the steadiest and most reliable player in the Ducks organization in 2024-25. The tandem between him and since-traded John Gibson made up potentially the best goaltending tandem in the NHL and were the largest contributors to the team’s 21-point increase in the standings last season.

Despite playing the most hockey in his career in the 12 months between the end of the 2023-24 season and the end of the 2024-25 season, he’s remained healthy, poised, and impactful between the pipes for Anaheim.

Dostal got off to a tremendous start with Gibson out for the first three weeks of the 2024-25 season, who was recovering from an emergency appendectomy. Dostal’s numbers wavered as the season drew longer, but arguments could be made that uncertainty around Gibson’s nagging injury issues last season threw Dostal out of rhythm.

He finished the season with 49 starts and appeared in 54 games. He posted a .903 SV%, stopped 10.28 goals above expected, and tallied his first career shutout.

The goaltending outlook will be significantly clearer for Anaheim heading into next season, with Dostal earning his way to the status of “obvious number one.” His signature knowledge of angles, ability to track pucks around screens, occasionally casual yet remarkable athleticism, and improving game-management skills can be trusted to give the Ducks a chance to win any game they step on the ice for.

Author’s Projection: 5 Years, $5.8 million AAV

Drew Helleson

AFP Analytics Projection: 1 Year, $874,125

Jackson LaCombe’s breakout was the pleasant surprise of the 2024-25 season for the Ducks blueline. A close second, however, was Drew Helleson’s steadying impact on the right side.

After a brief three-game cameo with the Ducks to end the 2022-23 season, spending the entirety of the 2023-24 season in the AHL with the San Diego Gulls, and playing the first 12 games of his 2024-25 campaign in the AHL, Helleson was recalled to the NHL halfway through November and never looked back.

In his rookie 2024-25 season, he played 56 games, averaged 16:21 TOI, scored 13 points (4-9=13), and averaged over a minute of ice time on the penalty kill.

Helleson doesn’t dazzle with any one skill, but is as reliable as they come for a 24-year-old defenseman. He uses his 6-foot-3 frame to establish body position in front of the net or when retrieving pucks, outlets are crisp and decisive, and he does well to funnel pucks to the net around screens and succeeds at finding teammates' sticks for deflections.

Defensively, after some mistakes. needed adjustments were made to the speed and skill of the NHL game vs the AHL game, but he displayed quality fundamentals from the start, including gap control, angling, and sealing at the defensive blueline.

Filing for arbitration was an interesting tactic from Helleson’s camp, but he may be searching for more security or salary heading into his sophomore NHL season. He can make a strong case should a hearing take place, so it would be surprising to see him signed for as little as the AFP projection.

Author’s Projection: 2 years, $1.4 million AAV

Mason McTavish

AFP Analytics Projection: (Long Term) 6 Years, $6.77 million AAV/(Short Term) 3 Years, $3.98 million AAV

McTavish is the only remaining first-round pick on the Ducks roster from Bob Murray’s era as general manager. Pat Verbeek has let Jacob Larsson, Sam Steel, Max Jones, and Isac Lundestrom walk to unrestricted free agency without qualifying offers, and he traded both Jamie Drysdale and Trevor Zegras to the Philadelphia Flyers.

McTavish has always been the player in that group who seems to most epitomize what Verbeek values in his players, and Verbeek has stated he’s a big piece of the organization’s future.

McTavish’s per-game production has increased in each of his first three NHL seasons from .54 in his rookie season to .66 in 2023-24 to .68 in 2024-25, where he totaled 52 points (22-30=52) in 76 games. His 22 goals led the Ducks last season, and his 52 points placed him second on the team behind only Troy Terry (55 points).

He’d grown his 200-foot game considerably from year two to year three in the NHL, and his brand of high-motor, small-area battling has become increasingly more impactful. He’s at his best when inviting pressure and distributing to the open ice created by the attention he draws from defenders.

Coming off his ELC, he’s in a similar situation to Drysdale and Zegras two summers ago. Based on how those negotiations went, where disputes with both players lasted into training camp and may have led to subsequent injuries, agreeing to terms sooner rather than later would likely be preferred by both parties.

However, in these situations, Verbeek has tended to use every ounce of leverage he can in an attempt to get the player down to a desirable number. Based on comparable contracts given to players like Quinton Byfield last summer and William Eklund this summer, compounded with Verbeek’s penchant for bridge deals for young players, it would be surprising to see McTavish sign a contract over four years in length.

It would also be surprising to see his number come in at AFP’s projection on a short-term deal. Sending Zegras to Philadelphia highlighted the Ducks' commitment to McTavish as their second-line center behind Leo Carlsson, and in doing so, Verbeek surrendered some leverage.

Author’s Projection: 3 Years, $5.83 million AAV

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Photo Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images