Michal Postava is back on the same track he was on a year ago, and the Grand Rapids Griffins are benefiting from it.
Postava stopped 36 shots Friday and carried Grand Rapids to a 2-1 victory over the Manitoba Moose. Through his first two appearances this season, he’s sitting on a 1.50 goals-against average and a .947 save percentage.
The Griffins got the offense they needed from Cameron Butler and William Lagesson. Kienan Draper set up Butler’s goal, and the win pushed Grand Rapids to 2-0-1-0. It also extended the club’s home-opener streak to four straight wins.
Postava’s rise matters because the Red Wings were willing to move Sebastian Cossa last summer after Postava outplayed him last season. Detroit also has another top goalie prospect in Trey Augustine, who is with Grand Rapids.
The Griffins are headed to Milwaukee tonight.
Carter Bear also made his professional debut in the win. He finished with two shots on goal, no points and a minus-1 rating.
Elsewhere on the Red Wings front, William Wallinder has become the sixth defenseman in franchise history to record a point in each of his first two career games. He joins Moritz Seider, Dennis Cholowski, Brett Lebda, Al McLeod and Thommie Bergman on that list.
And per NHL Stats, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard and Wallinder became the first Red Wings pair to score their first NHL goals in the same game since Nov. 17, 1999, when Marc Rodgers and Yuri Butsayev each scored their first in Vancouver.
In Other News...
Red Wings Standings Chase Just Got Tougher In The Atlantic
The Atlantic race is getting a little tighter for Detroit to navigate, with Ottawa set to add some important bodies back into its lineup after a stretch of injury absences. Defensemen Jake Sanderson and Artem Zub are expected back within the next few days, and forward Andr Burakovsky is also nearing a return from an upper-body injury, giving the Senators a chance to steady themselves at a time when every point matters in the division.
Detroit, meanwhile, made a pair of its own roster moves by activating forwards Chase Stillman and Carter Bear from the injured list and sending both to Grand Rapids. For the Red Wings, those transactions are more about keeping the pipeline moving than altering the NHL picture right away, but they underscore how quickly the standings chase can shift when rivals start getting healthier and depth pieces are being sorted out on both sides. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Suddenly Get A Tougher Canadiens Matchup Tonight
The Canadiens are getting a significant boost on the blue line tonight, and it comes at a time when theyve already been trying to sharpen the edges of their roster. Kaiden Guhle is set to make his season debut after missing the first four games following offseason surgery on his adductor muscle, and Montreal plans to slot him next to Mike Matheson against the Red Wings.
To make room for Guhles return, Montreal recently moved Jayden Struble out of the picture in a trade with Nashville for a 2027 second-round pick. For Detroit, it means the matchup suddenly looks a little stiffer on a night when the Canadiens can roll out a more complete defense and lean on a player theyve been waiting to get back. [Read more 🡒]
Dylan Larkin Trade Chatter Just Took A Strange New Turn
Social media has added a strange layer to the Dylan Larkin trade chatter, with Canadiens fans being encouraged to make plenty of noise for the Red Wings center during an upcoming game in hopes of helping sway him toward Montreal. It is the kind of outside-the-box fan campaign that speaks to how badly some around the Canadiens want to believe Larkin could be part of their future, even as the rumor mill keeps spinning without anything official to grab onto.
The skepticism, though, is hard to miss. While the chatter has stirred up interest and mixed reactions ahead of Saturday's game, there is still no confirmation of any trade talk, and the broader sense around the speculation is that Larkin has not exactly been lining up for a move to Montreal. For now, it remains one more odd subplot in a league where fan passion can travel faster than facts. [Read more 🡒]