Several NHL teams shake up look in net with draft-day deals

SUNRISE, Fla. – Anaheim general manager Bob Murray wants to make it clear that the acquisition of goalie Anton Khudobin Saturday at the NHL draft was not a precursor of a major deal to come.

"John Gibson is not getting traded," Murray said, clearly miffed at the speculation. "Put that out there."

Murray said he made the move because he felt that his contending team needs three quality netminders because of the potential for injuries. The Ducks gave up veteran defenseman James Wisniewski to land Khodobin.

"This was because of what we went through last year chasing around goalies," Murray said. "Now we have some depth again."

Goalie maneuvering was the story of the 2015 draft with the Edmonton Oilers, Chicago Blackhawks, Carolina Hurricanes, Vancouver Canucks, Dallas Stars and Buffalo Sabres all making moves to change their look in net.

Frederik Andersen was Anaheim's playoff goalie last season, and Gibson is considered one of the NHL's top young goalies. He is on a two-way contract, meaning he can be sent to the minors next season without clearing waivers.

The Stars gave up a seventh-round pick to receive permission from the San Jose Sharks to talk to Antti Niemi who will be an unrestricted free agent on July 1. He is expected to sign with Dallas soon.

"We are close," Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill said.

Nill said last season's starter Kari Lehtonen is still part of his goaltending equation. Niemi and Lehtonen are both Finnish and they know each other.

"Kari is the first to admit he had a tough year last year," Nill said. "He is going to bounce back…competition is out there now."

The Edmonton Oilers gave up a second-round draft pick and two later picks to acquire Cam Talbot from the New York Rangers. He is in line to become the Oilers' No. 1 goalie.

Meanwhile, the Buffalo Sabres acquired Robin Lehner from the Ottawa Senators to be their new No. 1, and Eddie Lack goes from Vancouver to Carolina. Chicago traded backup goalie Antti Raanta to the New York Rangers for Ryan Haggerty.

The Ducks were looking to move Wisniewski because he is a $5.5 million salary cap hit, and he was a healthy scratch during the playoffs.

"Wis didn't work out with us, so moving this contract along became available and I said, 'Oh this kind of works,'" Murray said.

The Ducks also acquired speedy Carl Hagelin from the New York Rangers for Emerson Etem and an exchange of second-round draft picks. Additionally, the Ducks receive a sixth-round pick.

"The speed element of the game is getting bigger and bigger and bigger so we have to move along with the times," Murray said. "So we have a guy who can really skate."

The Toronto Maple Leafs were expected to make some trades to begin their rebuilding effort, and that didn't happen. Also, the Chicago Blackhawks didn't move any of the veterans they need to move to improve their salary cap situation. It's presumed they will move Patrick Sharp, Bryan Bickell and Kris Versteeg at some point.

"We had a lot of discussions," Chicago general manager Stan Bowman. "We just have to keep working at it."

Pittsburgh general manager Jim Rutherford was trying to land a forward, but he found no deal to his liking.

"There are more players than there are chairs available," Rutherford said.

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