NHL Rumors: 3 Goalies Being Discussed in Offseason Trade Talks

The 2023 NHL offseason has been entertaining and it's far from over. The goalie trade market continues to be hot as several teams are looking to move on in the crease and start fresh on their depth chart. Here's the latest from three teams chatting trade:

Ducks Trying to Move John Gibson

So far there's been limited bites for the Ducks as the free-agent frenzy certainly influenced potential suitors. The Penguins chose keeping Tristan Jarry over trading for Gibson, meanwhile the Ottawa Senators signed Joonas Korpisalo to be their starter. At this point there's a lack of teams with high levels of interest after close to 10 teams kicked tires. There's been a lot of chatter about changes Gibson needs to make to his game. Goalie analyst Mike McKenna of Daily Faceoff had this to say recently on much needed changes:

It’s 2023 and Gibson is using decades old gear technology. While almost every other goalie in the NHL has been able to adapt to better gear, he still has white cowlings on his skates. And Gibson’s pads use an archaic strapping system. He’s been a workhorse for the Ducks but it’s been four seasons since Gibson posted a save percentage over .904. Embracing technology would be a great first step to modernizing his game.

Maple Leafs Have Plan for Matt Murray

Leafs GM Brad Treliving was busy these first couple days of free agency as he's added John Klingberg, Ryan Reaves, Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi. He still has restricted free agent Ilya Samsonov to sign and in order to make all of these pieces fit, the team will need to move on from Matt Murray. If there's an arbitration case this summer in Toronto, then Murray can be bought out, but this isn't a guarantee. The Maple Leafs may need to add a sweetener to get a team like the Blackhawks to budge. If not, the Murray may end up having some strange injury all season and land on LTIR.

Connor Hellebuyck Trade Talks Cooling Off

The Jets could very well start next season with Hellebuyck between the pipes, even though he's told management he prefers to sign elsewhere next summer. Winnipeg's GM Kevin Cheveldayoff is doing his best to try and keep the team afloat after moving on from Pierre-Luc Dubois and Blake Wheeler. So far so good and this could continue should Hellebuyck be moved. The New Jersey Devils have interest but aren't willing to give up Akira Schmid and are more open to including Vitek Vanecek. The Senators were interested but then signed Korpisalo. Cheveldayoff is going to have to lessen his demands if he wants a deal completed by the start of next season.

Based on prices, limited available dollars in the system, potential trades for All-Star Goalies Helleybucyk and Gibson will require both creativity and flexibility from their clubs. Curious to see where they go from here. @espn @NHL @NHLNetwork @DKSportsbook #HockeyTwitter
— Kevin Weekes (@KevinWeekes) July 3, 2023