The Detroit Red Wings made a bold move to acquire John Gibson this offseason, yet the move hasn’t panned out.
The Red Wings acquired Gibson for Petr Mrazek and a second-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft and a fourth-round selection in the 2026 NHL Draft. It was a hefty price to pay, but Gibson was supposed to be Detroit’s answer at goalie.
However, Gibson has struggled, and now NHL insider Dan Rosen of NHL.com believes the Red Wings could end up putting him on waivers.
“That’s not the solution. Not yet at least,” Rosen wrote. “It may eventually come to that, or at least someone else going on waivers to get Cossa up to Detroit from Grand Rapids, where he is performing well in the American Hockey League, albeit in a six-game sample size because of an injury. He has a 5-1-0 record, 1.67 goals-against average and .940 save percentage. Cossa is building on last season, when he was 21-15-5 with a 2.45 GAA and .911 save percentage in 41 games with Grand Rapids.”
Cossa has shown he’s ready for the NHL, and Gibson has struggled mightily, which could force the Red Wings to trade him or simply waive him.
Gibson is in the seventh year of his eight-year, $51.2 million deal with the Red Wings. This season, he’s 4-6-1 with a 3.46 GAA and a .870 SV%.
However, Gibson is a three-time NHL All-Star, so he has proven in the past that he’s capable of being an elite goalie.
Red Wings Likely to Give Gibson More Time
Although Gibson is off to a bad start, Detroit likely will give him more time.
Gibson spent his entire career with the Anaheim Ducks, so Rosen believes it could be a challenge to adjust. With that, the NHL insider expects the Red Wings to give Gibson more runway to figure it out, but time could be running out.
“Gibson, though, should be given more runway to prove his worth in Detroit. … We can’t forget that the Red Wings are Gibson’s first new team in his NHL career and for a goalie, it can take some time to get adjusted to playing in a different system with all new defensemen. That’s why Gibson should not be at the end of his runway,” Rosen added.
“Even more, the Red Wings acquired him to be a possible No. 1 goalie, sending goalie Petr Mrazek and two draft picks, including a second-round pick in 2027, to the Anaheim Ducks. They’re not going to give up on him after a dozen games, especially to elevate a goalie in Cossa who has one game of NHL experience, and that was in relief last season.”
However, if Gibson doesn’t turn it around, the Red Wings could very well make a difficult decision.
Todd McLellan Still Confident in Gibson
Despite Gibson off to a slow start to his Red Wings tenure, head coach Todd McLellan has confidence in him.
After the Red Wings lost 5-0 to the New York Islanders a week ago, McLellan still shared confidence in Gibson.
“Those are team goals, too. It’s been hard for Gibby,” McLellan said. “He’s come to a new team later in his career. And he’s had to adjust and adapt to a coaching staff, styles, a new goalie coach, teammates, the way we play.
“But he’s working hard. He fits in. He’s very competitive. We haven’t given him our best game. All of us. The players who put the equipment on in front of him and who wear the suits on the bench.”
Despite Gibson’s slow start, the Red Wings are 13-9-1 and in second place in the Atlantic Division.
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