1 uncomfortable truth Red Wings must address early in 2025-26

The Detroit Red Wings were off to a hot start in 2025-26. They rebounded from a brutal opening night loss to the Montreal Canadiens. And it seemed as if this team had things figured out after nine seasons without postseason hockey. Big moves for the likes of John Gibson, James van Riemsdyk, and Mason Appleton seemed to have helped.

However, Detroit has fallen off hard since its hot streak to begin the season. They are 8-10-1 since their initial 5-1-0 start to the campaign. They have lost three straight games and four of their last five. In their last four losses, the team has given up four or more goals. They are fifth in the Atlantic Division, and Detroit has a suddenly crucial early-season matchup with the Boston Bruins next on the ledger.

The Red Wings have shown glimpses of being better than this. At the same time, there is just as much evidence to say that this team once again doesn’t have it in them. Detroit has never gone 10 straight years without playoff hockey. But they are dangerously close to experiencing that reality this year.

Through it all, there is one uncomfortable truth emerging for the Red Wings. It’s a truth they simultaneously need to address, but may not be equipped to do so. And it could sink their season if something doesn’t change quickly.

Red Wings’ John Gibson is nigh unplayable through 13 games

As mentioned earlier, the Red Wings traded for John Gibson over the summer in a trade with the Anaheim Ducks. At the time, the move made a ton of sense. Gibson had the best track record of any recent goaltending pickup Detroit has made since Steve Yzerman returned to the franchise. And he was coming off a career resurgence, posting a .912 save percentage last season.

The Red Wings hoped he would stabilize their goaltending and allow their top prospects to continue their development. Unfortunately, this has not happened at this time. Through 13 games, Gibson has posted a nauseating .865 save percentage. Entering play on Friday, the Red Wings netminder was worth -8.64 Goals Saved Above Average, which is fourth-worst in the NHL.

The news doesn’t get better, either. He owns the seventh-worst Goals Saved Above Expected Mark. And among goaltenders with at least 400 minutes played, Gibson has the third-worst save percentage in the league.

It’s hard to overstate that the Red Wings netminder is unplayable right now. It’s not something the team wants to admit, either. Detroit hedged its bets on his play this offseason. Gibson was far and away the most significant offseason addition before the 2025-26 campaign.

In saying this, there is little Detroit can actually do. Veteran netminder Cam Talbot has played much better this year. However, he hasn’t exactly turned in a good performance himself. He’s servicable, at best. Talbot is also 38 years old, which limits the effort he can give to this team.

The most obvious solution does lie in-house, at least. The Red Wings can call up Sebastian Cossa, one of the top goalie prospects in the NHL. He has posted a sparkling .935 save percentage in the AHL this year. And he recently earned his 50th career AHL win.

Bringing Cossa up does complicate things with their roster a bit. But Detroit has shown a willingness to carry three goalies on the NHL roster. If Gibson can’t turn things around in a dramatic way, the Red Wings may need to carry three netminders once again if they want a chance at the postseason in 2026.

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