A bit of praise for the Wings’ ‘playing the long game’ with Sebastian Cossa

FloHockey’s Patrick Williams offers a slate of goaltending prospects to watch in his AHL season preview, and Sebastian Cossa makes Williams’ list:

Sebastian Cossa – Grand Rapids Griffins (Detroit Red Wings)

Led by Steve Yzerman, Red Wings management has shown a willingness to take a very long-term outlook with prospects.

Yzerman did that with Tampa Bay, and he has done that again in Detroit. That philosophy meant that Cossa went to the ECHL as a rookie in 2022-23 even though he was the 15th overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft. Once Cossa had shown that he was ready to move higher, the Red Wings sent him to Grand Rapids last year. That patience paid off as Cossa had a strong year and took charge of the Grand Rapids net. Now the challenge will be to build on that and take the Griffins deep into the postseason.

Continued;

Update: Chris Peters also names Nate Danielson a rookie to watch this year in the AHL:

Nate Danielson, C, Grand Rapids Griffins (DET)

Selected ninth overall by the Detroit Red Wings in 2022, Danielson wrapped up a strong junior career in the WHL last season. A former captain of the Brandon Wheat Kings, Danielson finished out his junior career with the Portland Winterhawks where his offensive game flourished, highlighted by his 24 points in 18 postseason contests. Danielson has sneaky skill and the ability to score, but also has a mature game away from the puck. He’s a critical piece of Detroit’s future and we’re going to learn a lot more about him as a pro this season.

Red Wings launch ‘The Conversation Line’ podcast

The Detroit Red Wings are producing a new podcast this year called “The Conversation Line,” and here’s the description of their first episode:

Detroit Red Wings broadcasters Daniella Bruce, Ken Daniels, and Ken Kal sit down to preview their new podcast, The Conversation Line. The trio discuss the unique paths that led them to the broadcast booth. Plus, we learn about Kal’s DJ alter ego, Doug Deep, and just how often the Kens are mistaken for one another.

Shapiro on the Red Wings’ three-headed goaltending monster

EP Rinkside’s Sean Shapiro profiled the Red Wings’ three goaltenders today, discussing Cam Talbot, Ville Husso and Alex Lyon’s respective statuses as on Shapiro’s Shap Shots blog:

At the end of the day, the cruel reality in the goalie world is that there is only one net, one crease, and as friendly as Talbot, Husso, and Lyon are with each other, only one can play at a time.

And for now, all three seem to be OK with that. All three have plans to compete, to try to win the No. 1 job and more starts, but they each have a healthy respect for the goalies sitting next to them.

Talbot signed up for this setup, Husso knew Red Wings management would question his health and performance, and Lyon has been use to people questioning him his entire career.

“You get it, you really do,” Lyon said. “You kind of have to be ready, understand how this all works, and that if you don’t seize the chance, you can be sitting for a while without a game.”

Continued (paywall)

A bit of praise for Sebastian Cossa

Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis offers a list of one player to watch on each and every one of the AHL’s 32 teams, and he’s picking Sebastian Cossa from the Griffins:

Grand Rapids Griffins (Detroit Red Wings): Sebastian Cossa, G

Is Cossa the Red Wings’ goalie of the future? It sure looks like it. Last year was about taking a bigger step forward against tougher competition, and Cossa looked great with Grand Rapids. He’s set to return there for another year, where he’ll look to challenge for the AHL’s top goaltender award, and I wouldn’t bet against him. He’s huge at 6-foot-6 and moves incredibly well for his size while showing all the signs of being a future No. 1 NHL keeper. The Red Wings have a crowded goalie pipeline right now, so there’s no need to rush Cossa. That patience could pay off.

Continued; Cossa and Augustine 2026?

Videos: Grand Rapids Griffins open their 2024-2025 season vs. Milwaukee tonight

Both Wood TV8 and WZZM 13 posted morning reports from Van Andel Arena ahead of tonight’s Grand Rapids Griffins opener against the Milwaukee Admirals:

Also of Grand Rapids Griffins-related note:

  1. MLive’s Tyler Kuehl posted a Griffins season preview;
  2. The Griffins’ website posted biographies of every player, coach and trainer on their website;
  3. The latest issue of “Griffiti” is also out, and the articles were made available online. Among their number are profiles of Sebastian Cossa and Antti Tuomisto, an introduction to Griffins video coach Eric Junge, a check-in with Griffins alumnus Tomas Nosek and an article about the other team that plays at Van Andel Arena, the Grand Rapids Rise volleyball team.

Morning Red Wings round-up: ‘That’s just, like your opinion, man’

Of Red Wings-related note this morning, mostly regarding the Wings’ 6-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins last night:

  1. The Free Press’s Helene St. James discusses the Red Wings’ lessons learned in the team’s loss to Pittsburgh, as the team looks forward to Saturday’s game against Nashville…

“We got away from that first-period game we had,” captain Dylan Larkin said after Thursday’s season-opening dud. “Pucks were just going in, and every time we went out there — we felt like we were doing the right things, but then we just have big-time breakdowns. A lot of sloppy breakouts, sloppy coming back to our zone and finding coverage. Not a good second and third period, not a good start for our season.”

The Nashville Predators, a preseason favorite to win the Stanley Cup, come into Little Caesars Arena having lost their opener, too.

In Thursday’s affair at LCA, it was 1-1 after the first period, largely because Penguins goaltender Joel Blomqvist was superb (outside of letting in a one-timer by Alex DeBrincat). But the second period was everything the Wings spent training camp and exhibition season trying to avoid: Letting the opponent run free.

“I think we had a good first period, and all those goals in the second are self-inflicted,” DeBrincat said. “It seems like we couldn’t keep it out of the net that second period. Hard to battle back from 4-1. We just have to get more juice at the start of the second period.”

Coach Derek Lalonde lamented the Wings’ inability to build on the good start.

“We gave up some easy offense, either through coverage or the puck was on our stick,” Lalonde said. “It was just one of those nights we could not sustain momentum. Had some signs of it, had some spurts of it, but we couldn’t sustain it.”

2. St. James also posted a video of the above-mentioned coach and players speaking with the media last night. The Red Wings didn’t post a post-game clip, and Bally Sports Detroit didn’t post a player clip, either. Did somebody swear on camera?

3. Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff wonders aloud what the Red Wings’ options are if Jeff Petry’s out for a significant period of time:

Continue reading Morning Red Wings round-up: ‘That’s just, like your opinion, man’