Detroit Red Wings goalie prospect Michal Postava is back with the Grand Rapids Griffins after a quick NHL stint, and let me tell you, his numbers are absolutely screaming for him to stay with the big club for good. The team reassigned him on Thursday, bringing up forward Sheldon Dries under emergency conditions in the same breath, but that move shouldn’t overshadow what Postava is doing.
Postava Is Heating Up, And Detroit’s Got a Problem (The Good Kind)
This guy is on fire. Postava played his fifth game of the season for the Griffins on Sunday against the Chicago Wolves, his first since that brief call-up, and he absolutely shut the door, stopping 25 of 26 shots in a dominant 5-1 Grand Rapids win at Allstate Arena. But his two games up in the NHL? Those were not throwaways, not even close. Postava made his NHL debut in relief on October 22 against the Vancouver Canucks, then went out and WON his first NHL start, a 4-3 shootout victory on October 26 against the Edmonton Oilers. He even made a clutch save on Leon Draisaitl in that shootout, like, seriously.
His AHL record this season is an unbelievable 5-0 with a ridiculous .955 save percentage and a 1.20 goals-against average, all without a single shutout. As of Sunday’s games, this undrafted 24-year-old was leading all AHL goaltenders in both wins and save percentage, and he was second in goals-against average. With Postava playing like this, the Red Wings are going to have to make a move. They simply *must* consider having him with the big club for the rest of the season.
John Gibson’s Detroit Days Are Officially Numbered
Here’s where it gets real messy for Detroit. With Postava absolutely dominating in the AHL, the Red Wings need to figure out a way to move on from John Gibson. Let’s be blunt: Gibson has been horrible this season. He’s got a 4-5-1 record in 10 starts, with a brutal 3.37 GAA and a .860 save percentage, zero shutouts. That’s a huge drop from the 29-22-4 record and .901 save percentage he put up for Detroit just last season.
Gibson is 33 years old, and the article is saying it plain as day: he has no future with Detroit. The Red Wings are clearly turning the page, so maybe they need to healthy scratch him and just carry three goalies. Get Postava up in the big leagues alongside Gibson and Daniil Tarasov, because Detroit needs to be playing younger players. It’s time to invest in the future, and Gibson ain’t it.
What This Means For Trey Augustine
Now, with Postava absolutely owning the AHL, the Red Wings organization has another clear path: let Trey Augustine play the majority of the games in net for the Griffins. Augustine has already played in five games this season for Grand Rapids, recording a 2-1-2 record with a 2.92 GAA and a .901 save percentage. Like Postava, he’s got zero shutouts, but the kid is only 21 years old. He’s not NHL ready yet, and he can definitely use all those game reps to develop.
The situation is crystal clear. Postava is forcing Detroit’s hand with his insane play, Gibson is on the wrong side of performance, and Augustine needs those AHL starts. Detroit has a path forward, even if it’s a tough conversation to have with a veteran. Get Postava up, let Augustine develop, and make the hard calls now. The future is knocking, and it sounds a lot like Postava’s glove popping pucks.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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