ADetroit Red Wings analyst has been disappointed in the play of a star goalie as preseason play continues.
The Red Wings made the bold move to acquire John Gibson this offseason as he will be the starter, while Cam Talbot will be the backup. However, Detroit does have Sebastian Cossa in the pipeline, who projects to be a future starting goalie. Cossa is also competing to earn a roster spot this season.
However, Red Wings analyst Max Bultman of The Athletic says Cossa has been disappointing in preseason play.
“(Cossa) did give up four goals on 20 shots. The other two he let in were less excusable,” Bultman wrote. “Radim Mrtka’s goal (the second of the game) came off a cross-slot pass on the rush, which can be tough. But Cossa was still square to the 18-year-old defenseman when he shot it, and it just got through him. Even more glaring was Buffalo’s fourth goal, which was Thompson’s second of the night, in which Cossa was way out of position, and swimming, for an extended stretch of time before Thompson finally put it home…
“I didn’t have an opinion in either direction on Cossa’s preseason debut against the Chicago Blackhawks, and I’m certainly not going to make too big a deal out of a couple of exhibition goals regardless. But for a player who could really use a strong start this year, after a rocky finish last year, I haven’t seen that yet,” Bultman added.
With Cossa struggling, he will likely begin the year in the AHL. The former first-round pick will have to turn his game around before getting a crack at the NHL.
Red Wings Coach Not Naming a Starting Goalie
Although Gibson was expected to be Detroit’s starting goalie after the trade, Red Wings coach Todd McLellan wouldn’t confirm that.
Instead, McLellan says they expect to get both games plenty of starts and will ride the hot hand.
“I don’t know who our starter is,” McLellan said. “Obviously, Gibson is really important. But teams are proving year after year now that you need two guys to get the job done. It’s hard to stay at the top of your game over and over and over again if you’re just a single entity. We’ve got Talbs, we’ve got Gibby, we plan on playing them both and we expect a lot from both of them.”
Gibson has two years left on his eight-year, $51.2 million deal. He also figures to have the higher upside, but McLellan believes both goalies will be crucial to Detroit’s success.
Cossa Had Hopes of Earning a Roster Spot
Although Detroit has two good NHL goalies, Cossa was hoping to earn the backup job.
Grand Rapids Griffins – the AHL team of the Red Wings – head coach Dan Watson also thought Cossa had all the tools to make the NHL this season.
“He’s committed, dedicated. He wants to get better. He wants to be the guy. Whether it’s in Grand Rapids, I know he’s gonna be challenging mentally for a spot in Detroit,” Watson said to The Hockey News. “We’re looking for him to take that next step and be a good starting goaltender for us in Grand Rapids. If not, he’s going to be in Detroit.”
Cossa was selected 15th overall in 2021 by the Red Wings.
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