Goalie market dries up as NHL teams scramble to secure netminders
Fewer than a dozen who played in the league last season were available as unrestricted free agents, Detroit acquired John Gibson from Anaheim after years of trade rumors and that left a handful of veteran backups to sign.
New Jersey kept Jake Allen, Thatcher Demko stayed in Vancouver, Philadelphia added Dan Vladar and the New York Islanders signed David Rittich.
'Really, you sort of take a look at the landscape and see what's out there,' said Allen, who re-signed with the Devils for $9 million over five years. 'Yeah, there were some spots, but at the same time, my situation in Jersey was good.'
Two-time defending Western Conference champion Edmonton might have lost out in the game of musical goalies and could have little choice but to stick with Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard. They combined for a save percentage of .888 in the playoffs, ranking 13th out of 16 teams, dropping to .866 in the Stanley Cup Final loss to Florida.
Allen was not really an option for the Oilers because he wanted to stay on the East Coast regardless. They signed 31-year-old hometown product Matt Tompkins for two years at the league minimum $775,000.
The Canucks have a rare surplus at the most important position in hockey after extending Demko for $8.5 million a year through 2029. They also have Kevin Lankinen under contract at $4.5 million annually through 2030, and Arturs Silovs backstopped Abbotsford of the American Hockey League to the Calder Cup after playing well in the playoffs for Vancouver last year.
Demko is a franchise No. 1, so he's not going anywhere.
'Probably we have the best goalie tandem in the league,' said winger Conor Garland, who also signed a long-term extension with the Canucks. 'For Demmer just coming back being healthy and the presence he is in the room, what a competitor he is. He has kind of an aura about him of just being one of the top goalies in the league and how hard he practices and what that does for our room on a day-to-day basis having a guy like that, it's a huge impact.'
Vladar, who turns 28 in August, signed for $6.7 million over the next two years to join the Flyers' mix. He figures to split time with Samuel Ersson.
Rittich joins the Islanders as depth behind unquestioned starter Ilya Sorokin. Semyon Varlamov is under contract for two more seasons but has been injured, and general manager Mathieu Darche got some insurance with the soon-to-be 34-year-old nicknamed 'Big Save Dave.'
'You can never have enough goalies,' Darche said. '(Varlamov's) rehab is going well, but we still have to prepare in case something happens. David is a veteran around the NHL. He's a very capable NHL goalie, so we're excited to have him.'
Elsewhere in the Metropolitan Division, Carolina signed 25-year-old Amir Miftakhov after he put up some strong numbers in the KHL. With Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov already in place, Miftakhov is a potential low-risk, high-reward addition at the league minimum of $775,000 and the chance for him to play with AHL Chicago if needed.
'Amir has put together a number of solid seasons in the KHL and is ready to return to professional hockey in North America,' general manager Eric Tulsky said. 'It's important to have goaltending depth, and we look forward to having him in our organization.'
The Panthers signed recently acquired Daniil Tarasov for $1.05 million, with Vitek Vanecek heading to Utah for $1.5 million. Buffalo signed well-traveled Alex Lyon to a two-year deal worth $3 million, and Seattle added two-time Cup champion Matt Murray for $1 million for next season.
San Jose got Alexander Nedjelkovic from Pittsburgh for a 2028 third-round pick, with the goal of him pushing and helping young starter Yaroslav Askarov.
Gibson was the most proven netminder available, and he has two years left on his current contract at an annual cap hit of $6.4 million. Days after changing places, he's not sure why the goalie market became so thin, but he's happy to be going to the Red Wings to perhaps revitalize his career at 31.
'It's a new chapter, fresh start, kind of going in excited to prove myself,' Gibson said. 'It's just an exciting opportunity to go to a team and an organization that really wants to get back and to playoff hockey.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
18 minutes ago
- New York Times
What does Duncan Robinson bring to Detroit?
The Lakers appear to have their starting center. Meanwhile, the Knicks are nearing a deal for Tom Thibodeau's replacement. Ezra Shaw / Getty Images C. Morgan Engel / Getty Images Duncan Robinson will immediately become the Pistons' best 3-point shooter when he joins the team. He's a career 39.7 percent on 7.2 attempts from behind the arc per game and has made at least 185 triples in five of his seven seasons in the NBA. The 31-year-old is a proven threat from long range and will likely join his former Michigan teammate, Caris LeVert, in becoming Detroit's primary second-unit scorers. With the departure of Tim Hardaway Jr., who is heading to the Denver Nuggets, Robinson becomes even more valuable for a Pistons team still in need of more shooting and spacing on the floor around Cade Cunningham. Robinson also has 70 playoff games under his belt and should provide a valuable perspective in the locker room. One of Robinson's best on-court assets is his ability to shoot on the move. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra ran a healthy diet of off-ball action to get Robinson opening 3-point looks coming off screens. Because Robinson is accustomed to defenders staying attached to him off the ball, he's developed as a cutter as well. Although the sample size was small, Robinson shot 15 of 19 on cutting layups last season, when he averaged 11 points on 43.7 percent shooting from the field and 39.3 percent shooting from 3, 2.4 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game. Naz Reid agrees to re-sign with Timberwolves (Five years, $125 million) Reid's deal factors into the quest for continuity mentioned above. Reid is a phenomenal story, from going undrafted to carving out a great role for himself in Minnesota to winning Sixth Man of the Year two seasons ago to now a nine-figure contract. For $25 million per season, his type of role and production will justify that kind of money, as long as he stays healthy. It will be interesting to see if his role ever evolves during this deal. Maybe Julius Randle or Rudy Gobert are moved at some point, and Reid moves into the starting lineup. He still has a lot to do to become a solid defender, but he's had some moments. The Wolves not losing Reid likely cost them Nickeil Alexander-Walker, but they feel they have the young depth to make up for that. Grade: B+ The Detroit Pistons are adding Duncan Robinson on a three-year, $48 million deal, with the last two years non-guaranteed, according to a league source. Robinson is heading to Detroit as part of a sign-and-trade with the Miami Heat involving Simone Fontecchio. Robinson's 1,202 3-pointers are the most in Heat franchise history. As our noble compatriot, Jared Weiss, pointed out, the Boston Celtics will still be over the second apron with the impending signing of Josh Minott. But a reminder, whether it's about the Celtics or any other team that might be straddling the second apron: A team is not officially over the second apron until the end of the last day of the regular season. So for apron purposes, and tax payment purposes, this is not the end of the line, though it does make some things harder to do in the interim. It wouldn't be surprising to see the Celtics get below that threshold, because why only go over by a little bit if you don't have to? They still have the rest of this summer and through the trade deadline to do so. The Celtics will have to make another move at some point to get back below the second apron after agreeing to terms with Josh Minott. This fills their roster at 15, and they still are hoping Al Horford comes back, so they'll need to do more than just waive JD Davison to make that all work. Whether it's dealing Anfernee Simons to try to dive all the way back under the tax line or dumping Sam Hauser and/or Geroges Niang into an exception, Boston has more work to do. The Boston Celtics will sign forward Josh Minott to a two-year, $5 million contract, a league source confirmed. The 22-year-old became a free agent after the Timberwolves declined to pick up his team option. Depth was one of the bigger issues for Denver last season. Here's their current projected rotation: Starters: Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, Cam Johnson, Aaron Gordon, Nikola Jokić Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, Cam Johnson, Aaron Gordon, Nikola Jokić Bench: Bruce Brown, Julian Strawther, Peyton Watson, DaRon Holmes, Jonas Valančiūnas, Tim Hardaway Jr. Denver is making a couple of bets here on Valančiūnas and Brown, but I like what it has done so far. Between adding Hardaway, Johnson and Brown, that should help the Nuggets' need for ballhandling and shooting The LA Clippers plan to waive center Drew Eubanks, a league source said. LA will clear Eubanks' non-guaranteed $4.75 million salary off its books to provide more relief from the first apron and open a roster spot that was always expected to be open. I mentioned the possibility of Eubanks being waived overnight in my latest story discussing the Clippers' next potential maneuvers. We can't rule a trade out, but this decreases the likelihood of one for now. Jake LaRavia agrees to sign with Lakers (Two years, $12 million) LaRavia is a solid pickup for the Lakers after they lost Dorian Finney-Smith to Houston. After struggling to shoot the 3-pointer in Memphis his first two seasons, he shot it extremely well last year. The Lakers are praying that it will continue in his new home. The confusing part for me is our Dan Woike saying this was their top wing target after Finney-Smith was off the board. He's solid, but he can't be that high on your board. Grade: C+ Lon Horwedel / Imagn The Denver Nuggets have agreed to a one-year, veteran's minimum contract with free-agent guard Tim Hardaway Jr., a league source said. Hardaway, 33, averaged 11 points per game for Detroit last season while starting 77 contests. It's shocking the Nuggets can get a guy of Hardaway's caliber on that contract, but the market is drying up, so the Nuggets got a bit fortunate. Caris LeVert agrees to sign with Pistons (Two years, $29 million) The Malik Beasley investigation likely opened up this opportunity for LeVert with the Pistons. If that's the case, I'm not sure I love this pivot. LeVert is a fine scorer to bring off the bench, but he's been a below-average 3-point shooter for most of his career. He can handle the ball, but the Pistons needed more of a 3-and-D guy. You need pure shooters around Cade Cunningham, not someone to dribble a lot. Grade: C+ Stacy Revere / Getty Images The Milwaukee Bucks plan to sign veteran shooting guard Gary Harris to a two-year contract with a player option, and have agreed to a trade to send guard Pat Connaughton to the Charlotte Hornets, a league source confirmed to The Athletic. The Bucks will trade Connaughton and two future second-round picks to Charlotte for Vasa Mičić. In turn, the Bucks will likely try to work with Mičić on a buyout that allows them to create the necessary space to fit Myles Turner in Milwaukee and lets Mičić make his way back to professional basketball in Europe. Dorian Finney-Smith agrees to deal with Rockets (Four years, $53 million) This might be my favorite signing of Day 1. The Rockets gave up a good defender in Dillon Brooks to complete the Kevin Durant trade, but I'd argue Finney-Smith is a much better fit for this team. He can guard two through four and a lot of point guards as well. He's mostly been a league-average 3-point shooter or better in his career. He doesn't try to do too much with the ball, so you're not going to get those random acts of dribbling that look like it's a football. Finney-Smith also defends without taking away from the team in the form of trying to instigate. When it worked for Brooks, it got opponents out of their game. But when it didn't work, it caused the Rockets to crumble a bit. Finney-Smith is just solid at all times. For this kind of money and a four-year commitment, it's a perfect signing for the Rockets. Grade: A+ Jaren Jackson Jr. agrees to extension with Grizzlies (Five years, $240 million) The Grizzlies painted themselves into a corner with this extension, and it's not even necessarily a bad call. They have to do it, and he may end up being worth that kind of money. Nearly $50 million a year is huge. It doesn't even matter that he's not an elite shot blocker the last two years, because he's still an elite defender. He's getting stops in other ways. He's also improved his scoring to being a consistent 22-point-per-game scorer the last two seasons and brought his efficiency back up with a healthy 2024-25 campaign. Jackson isn't a good rebounder, and he's not a playmaker for others. If he can flesh out both of those skill sets, then it makes the max extension super easy to justify. And he may justify it anyway. The Grizzlies definitely build their defense around him, as long as he's not in foul trouble. You just can't miss at all when handing out these big contracts, and there's a non-zero chance of a miss here. Still, not a bad move for Memphis. Just not a home run. Grade: B+ Jakob Poeltl's extension is interesting. The Raptors likely will win by locking down his player option year at $19.5 million, but after that, things have the potential to get ugly fast. Based on the reported $104 million total, the Raptors are committed to $29.5 million in his age-33 season and a partially guaranteed $29.5 million at age 34. And this money is for a non-shooter who can't rely on skill to offset Father Time. While it clearly helps the Raptors manage their 2026-27 tax and apron situation, I'm not sure the downside is worth it. Nickeil Alexander-Walker to the Atlanta Hawks (Four years, $62 million) The Hawks are giving up a second-rounder and cash in the trade. The new Wolves owners keep adding to the till! For the Hawks, Alexander-Walker potentially gives them a playmaking wing who can knock down 3-pointers and provide a defensive punch on the wings. This has the chance to help put them further in a position to make a leap in the East. He pairs nicely with Dyson Daniels, and he can help take some of the initiation responsibilities from Trae Young to move him off the ball more. It looks like the fourth year will have a player option, so it might not be a straight-up four-year deal for Alexander-Walker. The last three seasons, he's shot 38.5 percent from deep, so the shot should be more than reliable moving forward. Grade: A- Page 2
San Francisco Chronicle
38 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Freeman, Smith join Ohtani to give Dodgers 3 All-Star starters for first time since 1980
NEW YORK (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers will have three fan-elected starters in the All-Star Game for the first time in 45 years, with first baseman Freddie Freeman and catcher Will Smith joining designated hitter Shohei Ohtani as winners in final ballot totals announced Wednesday. Detroit will have three fan-picked starters for the first time since 2007 after second baseman Gleyber Torres along with outfielders Riley Greene and Javier Báez were voted in at their positions for the July 15 game at Atlanta's Truist Park. Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker of the Chicago Cubs were picked for the NL outfield along with Ronald Acuña Jr. of the host Braves. Arizona second baseman Ketel Marte, New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor and San Diego third baseman Manny Machado also were voted NL starters. Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh, Toronto first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson. Cleveland third baseman José Ramírez and Baltimore designated hitter Ryan O'Hearn were picked as AL starters. Wilson edged Kansas City's Bobby Witt Jr. 52% to 48% and will become just the second rookie shortstop to start an All-Star Game after Baltimore's Ron Hansen, who started both games in 1960. Wilson's father, Jack, was an All-Star for Pittsburgh in 2004. There will be nine first-time starters for the second time in three years. Wilson will be joined by Greene, O'Hearn, Raleigh and Torres in the AL lineup and Crow-Armstrong, Lindor, Smith and Tucker in the NL lineup. Báez edged the Los Angeles Angels' Mike Trout 26% to 24% in the closest vote, winning the third AL outfield slot. New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge earned a starting spot last week as the top vote-getter in the first round, when Ohtani was picked as NL DH with the top total in his league. Under rules that began in 2022, voting is split into two stages, and the second phase ran from Monday to Thursday. Los Angeles hadn't had this many starters since first baseman Steve Garvey, second baseman Davey Lopes, shortstop Bill Russell and center fielder Reggie Smith in 1980 at Dodger Stadium. Detroit's three elected starters for the 2007 game at San Francisco were catcher Iván Rodríguez, left fielder Magglio Ordóñez and second baseman Plácido Polanco. Freeman is the senior All-Star, picked for the ninth time and his fifth as a starter. He will return to Atlanta, where he starred from 2010-21. Guerrero, Judge, Marte, Ohtani and Ramírez were holdovers from last year's elected starters. Pitchers and reserves will be announced Sunday. ___
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Sophie Cunningham Receives Blunt Message From NBA Superstar on Tuesday
Sophie Cunningham Receives Blunt Message From NBA Superstar on Tuesday originally appeared on Athlon Sports. While the Indiana Fever are playing in the Commissioner Cup Final on Tuesday night against the Minnesota Lynx, Indiana guard Sophie Cunningham is still going viral for her controversial comments on WNBA expansion. Advertisement On Monday, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced that in the coming years, several cities will be gaining teams in the league, with the three latest being Detroit, Cleveland, and Philadelphia. While these are all prominent markets in the NBA and have been for years, Cunningham made it very clear that there isn't much of draw to going to Detroit or Cleveland and the league should take more of interest in where the players would like to go, pointing out Miami, Nashville, and Kansas City as three possible cities. 'I also think that you want to listen to your players. Like, where do they want to play?' Cunningham said. 'Where are they going to get excited to play and draw fans? And I do think that Miami would've been a great one, like everyone loves Florida. Nashville is an amazing city, Kansas City, amazing opportunity, there's a huge arena downtown that no one's using.' She continued, 'It's kind of a hard situation, but man, I don't know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland].' Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham (8).© Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Cunningham's comments sparked notable backlash, particularly given that she currently plays in Indiana — a state also located in the Midwest and not drastically different from Cleveland in terms of lifestyle and perception. Advertisement Her remarks even prompted a response from Cleveland Cavaliers superstar Donovan Mitchell, who made it clear he disagreed with her take on the city. 'Cleveland in the summertime,' Mitchell posted on social media, accompanied by fire emojis. As of now, Portland and Toronto are set to debut WNBA teams in 2026, as previously announced. Cleveland will join the league in 2028, followed by Detroit in 2029 and Philadelphia in 2030. These expansion efforts follow the successful launch of the Golden State Valkyries this season. The team has already drawn strong fan support and performed well on the court, holding a 9–7 record in their inaugural WNBA campaign. Advertisement Related: JJ Redick's Comments About Deandre Ayton Resurface After Lakers Report This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
