John Gibson

John Gibson (born July 14, 1993) is an American professional ice hockey player who is a goaltender for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Playing career

Amateur On June 24, 2011, Gibson was drafted in the second round, 39th overall, at the 2011 NHL entry draft by the Anaheim Ducks. Prior to his selection, while still playing with USA Hockey's National Team Development Program, he committed himself to playing college ice hockey at the University of Michigan, for the upcoming 2011–12 season. However, on July 27, he opted out of his agreement with Michigan to instead play major junior ice hockey for the Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Gibson, who attended Baldwin High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was cut from their hockey team and still went on to make the NHL.

During the following season, 2012–13, Gibson was selected to represent the United States at the 2013 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. He was the team's primary goaltender throughout the championship, registering a .955 save percentage and a 1.36 goals against average (GAA) in seven games for the eventual gold medal winners. His save percentage led all goaltenders in the tournament and he was named as the tournament's best goaltender. He was also named to the tournament All-Star Team, as well as named the tournament's most valuable player.

Gibson also won a bronze medal at the 2013 IIHF World Championships with Team USA's senior squad, posting a 1.56 GAA and .951 save percentage in the tournament.

Professional Anaheim Ducks Gibson made his professional debut with the Norfolk Admirals, the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks, on April 19, 2013, playing 40 minutes in relief.

On April 7, 2014, aged 20 years and 297 days, Gibson made his first NHL start for the Ducks following an injury to goaltender Frederik Andersen. Making 18 saves for a shutout, Gibson earned his first NHL win, a 3–0 victory over the Vancouver Canucks. In doing so, Gibson became the youngest NHL goaltender to record a shutout in his NHL debut since the Buffalo Sabres' Daren Puppa (20 years, 223 days) performed the feat in the 1985–86 season. Gibson made his Stanley Cup playoff debut with the Ducks in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinal against the Los Angeles Kings. He registered a shutout on 28 shots and was named first star of the game on May 10, 2014. Jonas Hiller, whom Gibson started over, was the last goaltender prior to Gibson to record a shutout in his Stanley Cup playoff debut. The Ducks would win Game 5 at home 4–3 but would lose Games 6 and 7 by scores of 2–1 and 6–2, respectively, with Gibson being pulled in Game 7 after allowing 4 goals on 18 shots.

With the departure of Jonas Hiller via free agency, the Ducks announced that both Frederik Andersen and John Gibson would compete for the number one starting job for the 2014–15 NHL season. Gibson seemed to have performed well enough in the preseason to start opening night against the Pittsburgh Penguins, his hometown team, in which Gibson stopped 33 of 39 shots en route to a 6–4 loss. With Andersen starting off the season strong, Gibson was sent to Norfolk for a weekend to gain some playing time. Afterwards, he was recalled by the Ducks. Upon his return Gibson won his next two starts and lost one, which included a shutout of the Chicago Blackhawks. Gibson then injured his groin while warming up before a game against the Colorado Avalanche. He was estimated to miss six to eight weeks, thus giving Andersen total control of the number one job and the Ducks signed Ilya Bryzgalov as a backup to Andersen in Gibson's absence. After coming off injured reserve, Gibson spent time off with Norfolk. When Andersen went down with an injury, Gibson was recalled. When Andersen returned, the two goalies would rotate in and out of the crease with Gibson at one point being considered as the starter down the stretch with Andersen struggling a bit. Overall, Gibson would post up a record of 13–8 with a 2.60 goals against average and a save percentage of .914%. He did not see a single minute of play during the Ducks postseason run, missing the entire first round due to an upper-body injury. The Ducks went all the way to the Western Conference Finals but fell to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks in seven games.

With the off-season acquisition of Anton Khudobin, rumors sparked of Gibson being traded elsewhere, which was promptly put down by Ducks general manager Bob Murray. On September 21, the Ducks announced that they signed Gibson to a three-year contract extension, worth reportedly $6.9 million. He also began the 2015–16 season with the new AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls. When Andersen had the flu, Gibson was recalled on November 24 and started when the Calgary Flames met the Ducks in which the Ducks won 5–3. Gibson started for the next nine games posting a 4–4–1 record. He was named the NHL's Rookie of the Month in December 2016. On January 6, 2016, it was announced that Gibson was selected to his first All-Star Game. Gibson started the first round playoff series with the Nashville Predators, but lost the first two games. Andersen replaced him, but it was not enough and Anaheim was eliminated. Andersen and Gibson combined to win the 2016 William M. Jennings Trophy for the lowest goals scored against. Gibson was also named to the NHL's 2016 All-Rookie Team. However, that offseason, the Ducks traded Andersen to the Toronto Maple Leafs and made Gibson the undisputed starter.

On August 4, 2018, the Ducks re-signed Gibson to an eight-year, $51.2 million contract extension worth $6.4 million annually. He made his second All-Star appearance at the 2019 NHL All-Star Game. Gibson appeared in 46 games (45 starts) going 17–19–8 before being injured in a collision with teammate Jaycob Megna during a 4–0 loss to the Ottawa Senators on February 7, 2019. On February 13, 2019, Gibson was placed on injured reserve by the Ducks, due to head, back, and neck injuries obtained from a collision Megna. He returned to the lineup on March 1 in a 3–0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, making 32 saves on 34 shots. The 2019–20 season marked Gibson's fifth straight 20-win season. During the 2020–21 season marked a downturn in Gibson's performance for the first time, with only a .904 save percentage and a 3.00 goals against average.

Gibson began the 2021–22 season as the team's starter, backed up by Anthony Stolarz and Lukáš Dostál. He began the season demanding a turnaround in the team's play. The Ducks were in the playoff race until the All-Star Game, which they followed up with a losing skid and never got back in. They ended up missing the playoffs. This was reflected in Gibson's play, which saw him struggle following the All-Star Game. During the 2022–23 season, Gibson again played on a struggling Ducks team, leading or among the leaders in saves during the majority of the season. On March 10, 2023, Gibson set a new franchise record for career saves with the team, surpassing Guy Hebert's mark of 11,813 in a 3–1 victory over the Calgary Flames. The Ducks failed to make the postseason for the fifth straight year.

Detroit Red Wings On June 28, 2025, at the 2025 NHL entry draft, Gibson's 12-year tenure with the Ducks came to an end when he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for fellow goaltender Petr Mrázek and two draft picks.

International play

Gibson represented Team North America at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP W L T/OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV% 2009–10 US NTDP USHL 18 7 9 0 1023 63 0 3.69 .905 — — — — — — — — 2010–11 US NTDP USHL 17 9 4 3 983 39 1 2.38 .926 — — — — — — — — 2011–12 Kitchener Rangers OHL 32 21 10 0 1897 87 1 2.75 .928 16 8 7 898 40 1 2.67 .938 2012–13 Kitchener Rangers OHL 27 17 9 1 1615 65 1 2.41 .928 10 5 5 609 22 1 2.17 .946 2012–13 Norfolk Admirals AHL 1 0 0 0 40 3 0 4.50 .857 — — — — — — — — 2013–14 Norfolk Admirals AHL 45 21 17 4 2587 101 5 2.34 .919 6 4 2 373 9 1 1.45 .955 2013–14 Anaheim Ducks NHL 3 3 0 0 181 4 1 1.33 .954 4 2 2 200 9 1 2.69 .919 2014–15 Anaheim Ducks NHL 23 13 8 0 1340 58 1 2.60 .914 — — — — — — — — 2014–15 Norfolk Admirals AHL 11 6 3 2 665 23 1 2.07 .935 — — — — — — — — 2015–16 San Diego Gulls AHL 13 7 4 1 775 34 1 2.63 .917 — — — — — — — — 2015–16 Anaheim Ducks NHL 40 21 13 3 2276 79 4 2.07 .920 2 0 2 117 6 0 3.08 .900 2016–17 Anaheim Ducks NHL 52 25 16 9 2951 109 6 2.22 .924 16 9 5 879 38 0 2.59 .918 2017–18 Anaheim Ducks NHL 60 31 18 7 3429 139 4 2.43 .926 4 0 4 217 13 0 3.59 .889 2018–19 Anaheim Ducks NHL 58 26 22 8 3234 153 2 2.84 .917 — — — — — — — — 2019–20 Anaheim Ducks NHL 51 20 26 5 2982 149 1 3.00 .904 — — — — — — — — 2020–21 Anaheim Ducks NHL 35 9 19 7 2031 101 3 2.98 .903 — — — — — — — — 2021–22 Anaheim Ducks NHL 56 18 26 11 3236 172 1 3.19 .904 — — — — — — — — 2022–23 Anaheim Ducks NHL 53 14 31 8 3005 200 1 3.99 .899 — — — — — — — — 2023–24 Anaheim Ducks NHL 46 13 27 2 2561 151 0 3.54 .888 — — — — — — — — 2024–25 Anaheim Ducks NHL 29 11 11 2 1562 71 0 2.73 .912 — — — — — — — — 2025–26 Detroit Red Wings NHL 57 29 22 4 3181 144 4 2.72 .901 — — — — — — — — NHL totals 563 233 239 67 31,985 1,530 28 2.87 .909 26 11 13 1,413 66 1 2.80 .912

International Year Team Event Result GP W L T/OTL MIN GA SO GAA SV% 2012 United States WJC 7th 1 0 1 0 60 4 0 4.00 .852 2013 United States WJC 7 5 2 0 398 9 1 1.36 .955 2013 United States WC 5 3 1 0 308 8 1 1.56 .951 2016 Team North America WCH 5th 2 1 0 0 86 3 0 2.09 .932 Junior totals 8 5 3 0 458 13 1 1.70 .943 Senior totals 7 4 1 0 394 11 1 1.56 .951

Awards and honors Award Year NHL Rookie of the Month December 2015 NHL All-Star Game 2016, 2019, 2022 All-Rookie Team 2016 William M. Jennings Trophy 2016 International WJC18 First Team All-Star 2011 Dave Peterson Goalie of the Year 2011 WJC Most Valuable Player 2013 WJC Best Goaltender 2013 WJC All-Star Team 2013