Detroit City Wire

Returning to Honda Center as a visiting player for the first time in his NHL career, Detroit Red Wings goaltender John Gibson is set to start against his former team, the Anaheim Ducks, on Friday night.

Gibson was traded from Anaheim to Detroit during the offseason. The 32-year-old goaltender said he is focused on helping the Red Wings secure another win as they complete a back-to-back road series. “It’ll be fun,” Gibson said. “I’m a pretty laid back and easy-going guy, but I’m going in to get the win. That’s my focus.”

Since joining Detroit, Gibson has formed a goalie tandem with Cam Talbot and holds a record of 4-2-0 with a 3.20 goals-against average and .876 save percentage over six games this season. In his previous tenure with Anaheim, spanning parts of 12 seasons since being drafted 39th overall in 2011, Gibson posted a 2.89 GAA, .910 save percentage, and recorded 24 shutouts in 506 games.

Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan expressed confidence in Gibson’s impact on the team: “I’m glad he’s in our net now,” McLellan said. “It’s been a pleasure to see him practice and play. The calming factor that he has on the team is pretty big right now."

Detroit captain Dylan Larkin noted that returning to Anaheim would likely be an emotional experience for Gibson: “It’s got to mean a lot to him,” Larkin said. “When you put years into an organization, especially years that aren’t great, there are good moments but also tough times, it’s hard. When you’re in it, you want to be the guy to help get that organization out of it…I think it’ll be an emotional return as a guy who is pretty cool, calm and collected. I know he’ll be excited, and I think it will be emotional because he put so much effort and cared a lot about that organization for a long time.”

The Red Wings enter Friday's game following a shootout victory over the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday night. After losing their two-goal lead late in regulation, Detroit recovered for their third consecutive win by prevailing in the shootout.

Anaheim returns home after completing a five-game road trip with three wins, one loss and one overtime loss; their last outing was also decided by shootout against Florida.

Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville leads an offense featuring Leo Carlsson (four goals, seven assists), Troy Terry (three goals, seven assists), and Cutter Gauthier (six goals, two assists). Goalie Lukas Dostal has started seven games this season with a 2.84 GAA and .906 save percentage.

McLellan emphasized preparation ahead of Friday's matchup: “I don’t believe in carrying momentum through,” McLellan said following Thursday’s contest. “I think [Friday] is going to be its own event…We’ve got to get our energy levels back up and got to be prepared to play a smart game. They’re playing really well. All hands on deck. It can’t be two or three guys that carry the team. It has to be all of them.”