With the 2025 NHL Draft kicking off on Friday, the Detroit Red Wings are poised to build upon their 2024-25 season and push the organization into contention status for the 2025-26 campaign. There have been no shortage of rumors in the days leading up to the draft, and, today, we’ll dive into a few that relate to the Red Wings.
Red Wings Reportedly Looking at Goalies
On Monday, NHL correspondent Andy Strickland mentioned that the Red Wings are among the teams currently exploring the goalie market. Notably, he said that they were looking to “upgrade their goaltending.”
Steve Yzerman mentioned previously that they’d go year-by-year with their goaltending tandem strategy. That appears to be the case still, even with Cam Talbot and Petr Mrazek under contract next season.
So far, the Red Wings have not been linked to any particular goalie this offseason. They expressed interest in acquiring John Gibson from the Anaheim Ducks last summer, but, ultimately nothing came of it, and the veteran remained in Anaheim for the 2024-25 season.
Gibson is reportedly back on the trade block. So is Vancouver’s Thatcher Demko and Columbus’ Elvis Merzlikins. As far as free agents go, Jake Allen represents the best available option. Ilya Samsonov, Alexandar Georgiev, Anton Forsberg, and old friend Alex Lyon are other, less appealing options.
If the Red Wings intend to upgrade their goaltending tandem, then Gibson is their best bet. He’s the best goalie in the group mentioned above and would fit in well with the organization. Not only would he be an upgrade, but also a great mentor for the likes of Sebastian Cossa and Trey Augustine.
That said, I don’t think it makes sense to carry three goalies again this year with Cossa pushing for NHL minutes. They’ll need three goalies, for sure. They have for the past several seasons. But it’s better to not block Cossa’s path to the best leagues at this stage in his development.
Any deal for a new netminder should include Talbot or Mrazek, in my opinion. Talbot holds more trade value at the moment. His $2.5 million AAV should be palatable for the Ducks (or whomever the Red Wings deal with). More would need to be offered, of course. In the case of the Ducks, including a high draft pick and a prospect like William Wallinder or Anton Johansson should get them close.
Dobson a Fit In…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at The Hockey Writers…