Cam Talbot's new goalie gear featuring Blue Jackets colors and logos is parked in Toronto.
It's awaiting a seal of approval from Kay Whitmore, the NHL's vice president of hockey operations, a former NHL goalie and one-man clearinghouse who ensures that all goaltending equipment measures up to the NHL's stringent specifications.
Whitmore's signature 'K' is scribbled in black marker on every leg pad, elbow pad, knee pad, trapper, catching glove and chest protector used by NHL goalies, so his workload can add up. The only thing that doesn't need Whitmore's stamp are masks, but Talbot is also waiting for two new Blue Jackets lids.
That's how it goes for goalies who aren't signed until the last minute, such as Talbot, whom the Jackets inked two days
before the first day of training camp. As a result, he's using the Detroit Red Wings mask and gear that were stored in his garage in Birmingham, Michigan, after playing the past two seasons in Detroit.
"It was shipping to the league on [Oct. 2], and then Kay has to put his initials on the side of it," Talbot said. "It should be here any day now. They’ve all got to be signed off on [by Whitmore]. As soon as Bauer can make it, it can go to the NHL, and it could sit there for a week or two before Kay initials it. Sometimes that happens, so we’ve been on them."
If it stays in Toronto through the upcoming weekend, there's a chance Talbot, 39, could make his Blue Jackets debut wearing Red Wings gear while facing either the Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 9 or the St. Louis Blues on Oct. 10 . He's expected to start one of those games.
Talbot's debut will tie him with former NHL goalie Sean Burke atop an obscure career statistic. According to Hockey Reference, he and Burke will be the only two goalies in NHL history to play for nine separate teams.
That's a lot of moving around, and his family has gotten used to it. In fact, until the Talbots get a house, they're living out of a hotel. It's nothing new for his wife, Kelly, or their 9-year old twin children, Landon and Slone, but it's a new adventure three-month old Emmie, the Goldendoodle puppy they got this summer.
"I thought I was going to retire, so I was like, ‘Hey, let’s get a dog!’ " Talbot said, laughing. "Now we’ve got a three-month-old dog sitting in the hotel. It’s just a disaster. My wife’s ready to kill me."
She and the kids, though, are Talbot's biggest fans. His NHL journey is also theirs, and describing Talbot as a journeyman, doesn't fully fit the typical definition. Rather than bouncing around without playing much, he's played all over the league while compiling an impressive career with 567 games, 533 starts, a 2.69 goals-against average, .911 save percentage and 33 shutouts in 14 seasons.
Prior to spending the past two years in Detroit, which included him taking a tough loss to the Blue Jackets on March 2, 2025 at Ohio Stadium, Talbot played for the Los Angeles Kings, Ottawa Senators, Minnesota Wild, Calgary Flames, Philadelphia Flyers, Edmonton Oilers and New York Rangers.
His family is now practiced at living a nomadic NHL lifestyle.
"They’re going to be 10, and this is their eighth team," Talbot said. "In Detroit, we were there for two years, and that was the first time they went to the same school two years in a row. They are, unfortunately, well versed in this, but they’re also resilient.”
As a parent, it's a double-edged sword.
"I think it’s going to make them more resilient later in life, and they already are," Talbot said. "You see a lot of kids who have never left their little bubble, like in Birmingham or something like that, and my kids have been everywhere. They make friends a lot easier, too, because they just immerse themselves in a new town. It’s nice, as a father, to see they have that resiliency, but I also feel bad that I’ve been doing it to them, as well, you know?”
That's why this stop might be the end of that road.
After not getting a contract offer this summer, Talbot thought he might have played his final NHL game before the Blue Jackets called to see about signing him to back up Jet Greaves in the wake of former goalie Elvis Merzlikins' shoulder surgery in August. It was a reunion for sorts for Talbot, who had already formed a tandem and friendship with Greaves in May 2026 while playing for Canada at the world championships.
"I texted him when he signed his deal, and he was one of the first guys I heard from when I signed here," Talbot said. "So, we were both excited that I was coming here, but I think his parents were even more excited, because my dad’s going to be part of the dad's group now. Our families got along just as well as we did, if not better."
As for his family, they're just going with the flow on another NHL adventure.
Talbot's kids joined him on the blue carpet rolled out by the Blue Jackets prior to a season-opening 6-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres, and their design will adorn one of his new masks, which could be the last one he wears.
“I wouldn’t move again if something were to happen here, where I could stay put, and that’s why I’m approaching it like, ‘This is it,’ " Talbot said. "We'll see. We’ll revisit that later, but I know that my wife will kill me if she has to move again."
Dispatch Blue Jackets/Crew reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Everything old is new again for Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Cam Talbot, family
