Red Wings Shuffle Goalies With John Gibson’s Status Unclear

The Red Wings goalie picture moved again Wednesday. Detroit reassigned Carter Gylander from the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye to the Grand Rapids Griffins, one day after John Gibson left a 4-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning with a lower-body injury . Gibson stopped 11 of 13 shots before he exited after the first period. What does that mean for Detroit? What the Red Wings Goalie Shuffle Signals With Gylander moving up to Grand Rapids, we can piece together what this means for Detroit. Especially after Gibson left the game hurt, the read is that a goalie from Grand Rapids is headed the other way. Gibson is still on the Red Wings roster , but he is also on the injury status list . Detroit has not officially announced a call up, and we can assume one is coming before the Red Wings host the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. ET. Our Current Backup Goalie Daniil Tarasov is the backup to Gibson, and he has played well this season in a small sample. Tarasov faced 13 shots against Tampa and saved 12 of them , giving the Red Wings a chance to stage a comeback. Coach Todd McLellan told reporters he did not have an update on Gibson after the game, but he was clear about where Tarasov stands. “Anytime we’ve called his number, he’s come in and played really well. Obviously, with Gibby getting injured … he’s going to get more playing time, and we’ll see where he goes with it.” Todd McLellan, via Detroit Hockey Now Tarasov has played six games this season with a .927 save percentage and a 1.74 goals-against average . Among goalies with at least five appearances, he is tied for second in save percentage with Igor Shesterkin and sits third in goals-against average . The company comes with a caveat. Shesterkin played only five games before a season-ending knee injury , and six games is a short run for Tarasov, so those numbers may even out as the season goes. The Most Likely Call Up Michal Postava is the most likely candidate. He has been a brick wall for Grand Rapids and was named AHL Goaltender of the Month for October. His first NHL start came against the Edmonton Oilers, where he held up against Connor McDavid and won the game in a shootout . With the Griffins this season, Postava is 5-0-0 with a .955 save percentage and a 1.20 goals-against average . He would be the smart choice to back up Tarasov, though maybe Trey Augustine gets his NHL debut instead.