The excellent Sean Shapiro is back with another selection of “Shap Shots” on his Substack, and he answers a reader question regarding the Red Wings’ hiring of Roope Koistinen as the Grand Rapids Griffins’ goaltending coach:
The Griffins named Roope Koistinen the new goalie coach. I’ve always wondered – does a goalie coach actually matter that much? If it does have a significant impact, doesn’t it seem like a fairly large gamble to put a coach with no AHL or NHL experience (playing or coaching) in place in a system that’s tasked with developing Cossa and now Trey Augustine? (From Aaron)
Yes, goalie coaches matter, a lot. I think it’s become even more important in the AHL, which is one of the most volatile leagues in the world for goalies. Having a strong goalie coach, a confidant, that can help with the ups-and-downs of the AHL can be the difference between a prospect making it or not.
So I understand your concern about Koistinen, he’s never coached in North America. But I really like the hire, and some people I’ve spoken to in both Finland and North America also keen on his work he’s done developing young goalies in Finland with both Karpat and the national team program.
Sebastian Cossa needs more of a tactician to work with in his next goalie coach. He needs someone who will help create some more calmness in his game, and remove some of the wasted movements/energy. That’s something that Finnish goalies tend to be very good at, so for Cossa in general, Koistinen could be an ideal fit, even without North American experience.
Continued (paywall); Sean offers a set of reader questions about topics all over the hockey map, he discusses how writing about soccer made him a better hockey writer, and he shares some of his goaltending superstitions. I really enjoy Sean’s work.
Anyway, my thoughts on the Koistinen hire:
- Koistinen almost entirely worked with Karpat Oulu’s under-18 and under-20 teams as their goaltending coach, so he’s specialized in development. He’s only 30 years old, which is particularly young for a goaltending hire, but the Red Wings seem to want a younger coach that can relate to the players they’ll be working with (in this case, Alex Lyon, Sebastian Cossa and John Lethemon), as was the case with Brian Mahoney-Wilson.
- The Wings then have an older coach, Phil Osaer, working as their roving goaltending development consultant, and he will be spending his time working with and checking in on all the Red Wings’ goaltending prospects, be they at the AHL, ECHL or other developmental levels. Trey Augustine is an interesting case (as is Carter Gylander) in that the Red Wings can’t technically work with their NCAA prospects on the ice at any time of year save development camp, but coach Osaer can still go over video with them and offer feedback and suggestions.
- As far as Cossa is specifically concerned, Sean’s right in suggesting that Cossa needs to refine the technical details of his game. He’s still a remarkably talented, 6’6,” 229-pound goaltender, but the little holes in his blocker and five-hole, the fact that he can be “turned around” and struggle…Those are detail-oriented mistakes that need to be fixed through repetition and reinforcement.
