


DETROIT >> The Detroit Red Wings’ goaltending this season was good, but not great.
Because of that, general manager Steve Yzerman will continue to scour the market to see if there’s an upgrade available for the position, with Cam Talbot and Petr Mrazek both under contract through next season.
Whoever is in the Wings’ net will have a new position coach, as Yzerman and head coach Todd McLellan confirmed Tuesday at their season-ending press conference that Alex Westlund will not return as goaltending coach.
The Wings have attempted to find their No. 1 goaltender through trades for Alex Nedeljkovic, Ville Husso and Mrazek in recent seasons, along with dipping into the free-agent market for Talbot, Alex Lyon (who can be an unrestricted free agent in July) and James Reimer.
They’ve drafted Sebastian Cossa (presently in Grand Rapids) and Trey Augustine (at Michigan State), and hope one will emerge to become that elusive workhorse in net.
But heading into this offseason, the position remains unsettled. After ranking 20th (out of 32 teams) in save percentage (.896) this season, there’s room to improve all over.
The trio of Lyon, Husso and Reimer nearly carried the Wings to a playoff berth last season, despite their injuries and inconsistency. This season, Lyon and Talbot mainly (Mrazek arrived at the trade deadline) could have used more help most nights, but also didn’t make enough saves.
“We need the goalie to stop the puck more,” Yzerman said.
Talbot, who’ll be 38 on July 5, was 21-19-5 in 47 appearances, with a 2.93 goals-against average and .901 save percentage. On the whole, the Wings couldn’t have asked for more out of the free-agent signing from last summer.
“We look at Cam’s season, he did very well,” Yzerman said. “We’re pleased. He met expectations for us.”
But given Talbot’s age, it’s difficult to imagine him getting close to 40-50 starts next season.
Mrazek, 33, was acquired from Chicago at the deadline and made five appearances (2-2-0, 2.49 GAA, .902 SVS) before a lower-body injury in mid-March knocked him out for the remainder of the season.
Mrazek struggled in back of a ragged Chicago team (10-19-2, 3.46 GAA., .890 SVS), but the Wings are confident he can have success with better defensive structure in front of him. Still, Mrazek has been injury-prone during his career and it’s fair to wonder how available he’ll be next season. Lyon was signed two summers ago to be the organization’s third goaltender, providing experience in Grand Rapids and a credible NHL option for the Wings.
But the Wings chose to mostly go with three goaltenders the past two seasons and Lyon has offered a level of stability when healthy. Lyon was 14-9-1 this season, with a 2.81 GAA and .896 SVS, but struggled in several key starts the last month and had to overcome lower-body injuries during the season.
Lyon can be an unrestricted free agent July 1 and Yzerman was non-committal as to whether Lyon will be back next season.