Former Leafs, Avs Goalie Signs In Germany

Canadian goaltender Antoine Bibeau, 31, has signed a one-year contract with Red Bull Munich, the German DEL club announced recently.

“I’m very happy to now be part of the Red Bull organization in Munich,” said Bibeau. “I’ve already played in Europe for the past two seasons, where my family and I have really enjoyed it. When the offer from the Red Bulls came, my family and I quickly agreed that this was a perfect fit for everyone. My goal is quick and simple: Whenever I get the chance to play, I want to help my team win games.”

“Antoine is an internationally experienced goalie who has proven himself in a wide variety of roles – he brings calmness, consistency, and leadership qualities to a key position,” said Christian Winkler, the managing director of Red Bull Ice Hockey – a corporation that operates the Munich team and Red Bull Salzburg in the Austrian-based ICEHL.

“We are very pleased that we were able to convince him to play for our club in the future. With him, our goalie quartet is now complete – which this DEL schedule in an Olympic season demands.”

In addition to Bibeau, Munich has under contract German national team goalie Mathias Niederberger, Simon Wolff and Matthias Bittner.

Through nine games this season, Munich sits ninth in the 14-team DEL with four wins and five losses. The team’s leading scorer is Taro Hirose with 11 points. Other ex-NHLers on the roster include forwards Tobias Rieder and Adam Brooks and defenseman Ryan Murphy and Dillon Heatherington.

Bibeau was born in Victoriaville, Que. and played junior hockey in the QMJHL for the Lewiston MAINEiancs, Prince Edward Island Rockets, Charlottetown Islanders and Val-d’Or Foreurs.

Bibeau was selected in the sixth round, 172nd overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. He played in the Toronto organization from 2014 to 2017, mostly for the AHL Marlies but he played two NHL games for the Leafs in 2016-17, recording a win and a loss, and a 1.99 goals-against average.

Bibeau appeared in two more NHL games for the Colorado Avalanche in 2019-20. He also played in the organizations of the San Jose Sharks, Seattle Kraken, Carolina Hurricanes and Ottawa Senators.

Bibeau spent the 2023-24 season playing for AIK Stockholm in Sweden’s second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan, and last season for KooKoo Kouvola in Finland’s top-tier Liiga.

Leafs Prospect Impresses in SwedenToronto Maple Leafs prospect Tinus Luc Koblar made his professional debut for Leksand on Thursday night. The young forward quickly looked at home in the SHL, scoring his first goal already in the opening period.