It’s hard to take a lot of meaning out of summer hockey, but Friday afternoon’s World Junior Summer Showcase game between Canada and Finland came with extra juice for defenseman Andrew Gibson.
Just over a month ago, the Detroit Red Wings traded Gibson to the Nashville Predators in exchange for forward Jesse Kiiskinen and a second round pick. In Friday’s game, Gibson played against Kiiskinen, who is the captain of Team Finland.
“Obviously I want to prove to Nashville that I was worth that much,” Gibson said. “Playing against him, it makes me want to work extra hard and play even harder against him specifically, and everyone else on that team as well.”
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The two crossed paths a few times in the game, particularly in front of the net. They also lined up across from each other on the outside of a few faceoffs. “I don’t know if he recognized me,” Gibson said, “but I just kind of looked at him and I was like, ‘Hey, it’s the guy that I got traded for.’ It’s pretty funny.”
Gibson left those exchanges on the winning end of an 8-6 game that would’ve been a blowout if not for a late push by Finland on the power play. He was on the ice for a couple goals against, including one power play goal that Kiiskinen assisted on.
Overall, there’s a lot to like in Gibson’s game. His shutdown style helps out his teammates. This role is probably Gibson’s best shot toward making Team Canada, a team full of stars that needs role players like him to tie everything together. The same goes for any NHL hopes, where his shutdown play is his strongest attribute. It’s the kind of functional role that makes an NHL pathway clear, and it’s why a team like Nashville was willing to trade for him and give up extra assets.
The trade itself surprised Gibson, he admits. He thought he was “safe” from such a shakeup. At 19, having just signed his entry-level contract with the Red Wings less than a year after they drafted him, Gibson thought there was no way they could trade him, and neither did his family. When Gibson got the trade call, he told his mom. She thought he was joking. He had just gotten home from a training session at Little Caesars Arena.
“Obviously at first I was devastated,” Gibson said. “Being right in my…