The Columbus Blue Jackets were busy ahead of the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline, shipping out four big pieces from their roster, including Jakub Voracek, a veteran who might have played his last professional game because of injuries. In return for the Czech forward, the Blue Jackets acquired Jon Gillies and a draft pick from the Arizona Coyotes.
Gillies was initially assigned to the team’s AHL affiliate Cleveland Monsters before being called up as an emergency recall because of an injury to Elvis Merzlikins. He got his first start on Sunday and helped the Blue Jackets to a 4-3 win over the Ottawa Senators before he was promptly sent back to the AHL. However, against the Senators, he showed why he is worth another look before the end of the season.
Gillies’ Career
At 29 years old, Gillies is far from a fresh face. The big goalie was once a highly-touted prospect in the Calgary Flames organization – selected in the third round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. He was the seventh goalie picked that year, behind Andrei Vasilevskiy and Joonas Korpisalo and ahead of Connor Hellebuyck and Linus Ullmark.
After being drafted, Gillies transitioned to a successful three years at Providence College. In that time, he started at least 34 of 40 games each year and was virtually unbeatable with a .931 save percentage (SV%). He closed his college career with an NCAA Championship and was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Frozen Four.
He was also selected twice to be a part of Team USA at the World Junior Hockey Championship. He played second fiddle to John Gibson in a gold medal win in his first appearance and was the starter in his second on a weaker squad that finished fifth.
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However, adversity hit in the professional ranks, with the Flames’ AHL affiliate Stockton Heat. After only seven games in the 2015-16 season, a nagging hip issue finally needed surgery to fix, so he was put on the sidelines for the rest of the season. That absence hurt his development early on.
The obstacles continued, as he was stuck behind a logjam of goalies, including Brian Elliott, Mike Smith, David Rittich, and Cam Talbot. He remained in ‘minor league purgatory’ for a few seasons before jumping ship via free agency in 2020. He bounced around a bit since then, including a very busy 2021-22 season when he dressed for five teams across the NHL, AHL and East Coast Hockey League (ECHL). His longest NHL stint came last season with the New Jersey Devils, in which he recorded a 3-10-1 record with a .885 SV%.
This offseason he was signed by the Coyotes and spent the season backing up their goalie of the future, Ivan Prosvetov, in the AHL before he was acquired by the Blue Jackets.
Gillies’ First Blue Jackets’ Game
Gillies spent the first few games of his emergency recall as the backup to fellow trade deadline acquisition, Michael Hutchinson before getting the start against Ottawa. He had a shaky first period, allowing two goals on his first five shots. However, one goal was the direct result of an equipment malfunction; he made a spectacular spinning save after losing his skate blade, but the rebound slipped by him.
This was also his first game action since Jan. 16 and his first NHL game in almost a year. After getting back into the swing of things, he was rock solid, stopping all but one of the next 22 shots. That helped push the Blue Jackets to overtime and the win, and he was named the game’s third star.
The next morning, Gillies was reassigned to the AHL and replaced with Monsters starter Jet Greaves on an emergency basis. Greaves has yet to play in the NHL, and it makes sense that Columbus would want to take a closer look at what they have in him. However, based on his first appearance, I would hope that Gillies has earned another look.
Now the big question is, do the Blue Jackets want to win games down the stretch? With only six games left, they are tied for second to last place in the standings with the Anaheim Ducks. Having the best odds in the Connor Bedard draft lottery would surely be more valuable than any sort of morale boost from winning games at this point in a losing campaign. Therefore it would not surprise me if we see more starts from Hutchinson and Greaves to close the season, despite that Gillies gives the Blue Jackets a better chance to win.