ANAHEIM, Calif. — Veteran goaltender John Gibson sustained an upper-body injury during the first period of the Anaheim Ducks‘ 5-2 victory over the Nashville Predators on Saturday night.
Lukas Dostal took over netminding duties at the start of the second period. Gibson made nine saves in the first period as the Ducks held a 2-1 lead after 20 minutes. Dostal made 31 saves across the final 40 minutes, giving up only one goal, en route to the win.
It’s the second time this season Gibson has left a game because of injury. He was hit in the right eye by a stick blade during a Dec. 23 game against the Vegas Golden Knights and sat out the next two games.
Anaheim coach Greg Cronin, in his postgame media availability, told reporters that, after the first period — when Gibson was being evaluated — he was preparing the team to return to the ice, so he didn’t have a major update other than saying “I think he’s going to be fine.”
One of few proven netminders who has been mentioned in trade rumors as the regular season hits its stretch run, Gibson also was out for the first 12 games of the regular season after undergoing an emergency appendectomy.
Gibson came into Saturday’s game with an 8-8-2 record in 20 games, a 2.76 goals-against average and .914 save percentage. He has 201 career victories with the Ducks and is five away from tying Jean-Sebastien Giguere for the most wins in franchise history.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.