Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion has made yet another move, this time acquiring goaltender Cam Talbot from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for goaltender Filip Gustavsson, the Senators announced Tuesday.
The trade comes just one day after Dorion moved netminder Matt Murray along with a third- and seventh-round pick to the Toronto Maple Leafs for future considerations.
Talbot posted a 2.76 goals-against-average and a .911 save percentage with the Wild last season along with a 32-12-4 record.
Despite his solid performance, where he went 13-0-3 for Minnesota to end the season, the Wild felt the need to bolster their depth in the crease and acquired Marc-Andre Fleury from the Chicago Blackhawks at the trade deadline. Fleury then took over the No. 1 role and played five of Minnesota's six playoff games.
After the Wild extended Fleury with a two-year contract last week, Talbot's agent George Bazos informed Wild general manager Bill Guerin of his client's displeasure, according to The Athletic's Michael Russo, though an official trade request was never submitted.
Guerin had previously stated he wanted both Talbot and Fleury back in net for 2022-23. When asked about a conversation he had with Bazos at the NHL Draft following the Fleury extension, Guerin had a fiery response saying he didn't have to do anything since Talbot was under contract, Russo reported.
“I don’t have shit to do. Cam Talbot’s under contract. George can say whatever the hell he wants. My team’s set right now, and that’s the way it goes. We can have all the discussions we want. Cam’s a member of our team. We really like Cam. All we’re trying to do is win,” Guerin said.
The 35-year-old Talbot has one year remaining on his contract at a $3.66-million cap hit, the Wild did not retain any of his salary. The Senators will be the Caledonia, Ont., native's sixth NHL team, having previously played for the New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, Philadelphia Flyers, Calgary Flames and the Wild.
The Senators will now enter next season with a tandem of Talbot and Anton Forsberg between the pipes.
"Cam is experienced and provides us with greater goaltending stability heading into next season," said Dorion via a team press release. "He was instrumental in helping Minnesota reach the playoffs in each of his two seasons with the Wild. The tandem of he and Anton Forsberg sets us up nicely for the upcoming year."
Forsberg, 29, registered a .917 save percentage in 46 games in Ottawa last season after bouncing from several teams over the previous few seasons and failing to find solid footing in the NHL. The Senators rewarded him with a three-year, $8.25-million extension in March for his performance.
Moving off the younger Gustavsson in favour of the experienced Talbot signals once again that Ottawa is looking to turn the page on its rebuild.
Dorion and the Senators had already begun the off-season by acquiring 24-year-old sniper Alex DeBrincat from the Blackhawks in exchange for the seventh-overall and 39th-overall picks in the 2022 NHL Draft and a fourth-rounder in 2024. Then the club moved Murray on Monday.
The Senators are also reportedly interested in adding longtime Philadelphia Flyers captain Claude Giroux in free agency, and a top-4 defenceman, such as Mackenzie Weegar of the Florida Panthers.
Gustavsson was acquired by the Senators back in 2018 in a three-team trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Vegas Golden Knights. While spending most of the last few seasons with the AHL's Belleville Senators, the Swede from Skelleftea has played 27 NHL games over the last two seasons — recording a .905 save percentage and 3.12 goals-against average.
He has one-year left on a one-way deal at $787,500 before becoming a restricted free agent, and reunites with Guerin, who was an assistant general manager with the Penguins when the club drafted Gustavsson 55th overall in 2016.
The Wild now have Gustavsson and Fleury as netminders under NHL contracts for next season.
