Red Wings’ Goaltending Pipeline: Setting Fair Expectations – The Hockey Writers – Detroit Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings have been missing a strong starting goaltender for many years now, with the team’s season-long save percentage landing below league average in 10 of the last 11 NHL seasons. Plenty of goalies have come and gone, from Petr Mrazek and Jonathan Bernier, to James Reimer and Alex Nedeljkovic.

The organization has made plenty of attempts to shore up the position through trades and free agency, but nothing has seemed to stick. Detroit sought to solve that problem in the 2021 NHL Draft, trading up to select Sebastian Cossa with the 15th overall pick. Cossa was a bit of a late riser as a prospect, shooting up draft boards with an incredible stat line in the Western Hockey League (WHL) and a massive frame that caught the eye of many scouts.

Then, the Red Wings decided to use one of their five top-50 picks in the 2023 Draft to add Trey Augustine, a goaltender prospect who is an excellent stylistic foil to Cossa. Where Cossa is the big, athletic goalie with a fiery intensity, Augustine is a bit of a smaller goalie, with the focus, calmness, and technical game to be an effective NHL goaltender.

Related: Why the Red Wings’ Quiet Offseason Was the Right Call Long Term

While neither are likely to be impactful NHL goalies in the next 12 months, I think it’s time we take a look at both of their progress and set some realistic expectations for their continued growth, and for their NHL timelines.

Cossa’s Unorthodox Development

Cossa is a 6-foot-6 goaltender (was 6-foot-4 when drafted) with explosive movement side-to-side that allows him to cover the bottom of the net really well. He fills a ton of the net while standing, and there aren’t many professional hockey players in North America who he can’t look around, or even over, at the net front. Cossa’s hands naturally sit pretty high in the net, and he’s got a really strong ability to make stops with them. His positioning is generally solid as well, since his powerful lower-half lets him adjust to cross-ice passes quickly. 

The biggest issues in Cossa’s game are his five hole and tendency to get a bit wild in the crease during scrambles. Both of these issues are evidently understood by Cossa however, as I’ve seen some good growth in both areas since his draft season. Since he stands at 6-foot-6, Cossa isn’t the fastest at closing his five-hole, making it the highest-percentage shot location for a ton of shooters….