3 insane New Jersey Devils trade packages for John Gibson

The New Jersey Devils and Anaheim Ducks have a lot of trade options

The New Jersey Devils may not get the Ducks to retain money on Gibson's contract but that could be fine if they took back Vitek Vanecek. The Devils may have to send over draft picks to get a deal like that done because it is a big-time downgrade in net for the Ducks.

Anaheim might have the 2024 NHL Draft Lottery on their mind at this point though. They are one of the worst teams in the league once again so being in the lottery mix one more time might be good for their franchise in the long term.

If they had Vanecek instead of Gibson for the rest of the year, they would have a much better chance at the number one pick in the draft. They'd never admit that is what they want, but it is. They got off to a decent start but they are at the bottom of the standings once again.

Being a worse team by downgrading in goal is worth it for the lottery odds, but adding more draft picks in the meantime is also helpful for them. The Ducks have some good young players like Mason McTavish, Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale, and Troy Terry, amongst others, but they need more.