The Athletic’s Prasanth Iyer examined the Red Wings’ goaltending situation this morning. Iyer, like most fans, doesn’t have much faith in Jared Coreau as the Wings’ back-up, and he notes that the Wings’ six goaltending prospects aren’t going to be ready right away (see: Keith Petruzzelli, Filip Larsson, Kaden Fulcher, Joren van Pottelberghe, Matej Machovsky and Chase Perry)…
And after analyzing the free agent crop, Iyer comes to a smart conclusion as to the duration Jimmy Howard era: it will probably yield more Jimmy Howard and the best cheap back-up the Wings can get their hands on:
The most likely scenario is Detroit re-signing Howard, perhaps for $3 million a year for two years, as a bridge to the 2021 offseason. At that point, the Red Wings will know better what they have in van Pottelberghe, Larsson and Petruzzelli and can make a more informed decision about their long-term goaltending plans.
Unless a team has one of the truly elite goaltenders in the league, it’s unwise to commit a significant chunk of money to the position. The Red Wings have been handicapped by this over the past two years, with nearly $10 million committed to non-elite goaltenders. The Mrazek trade allows them to reset both their short- and long-term plans. As they enter the full-on rebuild, it’s important for them to learn from that past mistake as they identify goaltenders who can provide them serviceable numbers at a reasonable value.
Based on availability, the answer to “who’s the future goaltender of the Red Wings?” seems to be Jimmy Howard for now.
Iyer continues (paywall)…
