Red Wings Prospects Focus: Goalies in the System

The Detroit Red Wings have a plethora of prospects playing in Europe.  One prospect who everyone forgets about is goaltender Joren van Pottelberghe.

Joren van Pottelberghe was selected by the Red Wings in the 2015 draft.  Now 24, van Pottelberghe could be a possibility to back up Alex Nedeljkovic next year.  Thoimas Greiss will be 36 in January and is an impending UFA.

According to eliteprospects.com, van Pottelberghe to the Red Wings has been a rumor for several months.  Last year, van Pottelberghe stated that he would very much like to sign with Detroit and play in the NHL.

After playing in the NL in Switzerland for the past six years, van Pottelbergh looks ready to challenge for a spot in the Red Wings lineup.  This year, van Pottelberghe has a record of 17-10-1, a 2.25 GAA, and a .920 SV%

For his career in the NL, van Pottelberghe has played in 135 games and has a record of 51-29-7, a GAA of 2.45, and a SV% of .917 including six shutouts.  He also has a tremendous amount of international experience after representing Switzerland in one Hlinka Gretzky Cup, one WJC-18, one WJAC-19, and two WJC-20 tournaments.

Here is a look at the remaining goaltending prospects in the Red Wings organization.

Sebastian Cossa

Sebastian Cossa was selected by the Red Wings in the 1st round, 15th overall in the 2021 draft.  Now 19, Cossa will likely turn professional next year with the hope of pushing for the backup job in either Detroit or Grand Rapids (AHL).

According to nhl.com, Cossa signed his three-year entry-level contract with Detroit in August.  The contract will kick in once Cossa turns professional.  According to capfriendly.com, Cossa will be paid $80,000 to play in the minors and $925,000 to play in the NHL.

Cossa is now in his 3rd season playing for Edmonton (WHL).  While playing for the Oil Kings, Cossa has played 73 games and has a record of 53-10-7, a 2.07 GAA, and a .927 SV%.

This year, Cossa has played 21 games for Edmonton and he has posted a record of 15-3-3, with a 2.26 GAA, and a .924 SV%.  He is currently representing Canada at the WJC-20 in his hometown of Edmonton, AB.  Expect Cossa to start the tournament as the #1 goaltender for Canada.  The tournament begins on Sunday December 26 with Canada taking on Czech Republic.

Victor Brattstrom

Victor Brattstrom was selected by the Red Wings in the 6th round, 160th overall in the 2018 draft.  Now 24, Brattstrom is currently in the 2nd year of his two-year entry-level contract signed with Detroit last year.

According to capfriendly.com, Brattstrom is currently earning $70,000 to play in the minors.  If he is recalled to Detroit, Brattstrom will earn $817,500.

After being drafted, Brattstrom posted outstanding numbers playing for Timra (HockeyAllvenskan).  In 2019, Brattstrom played 45 games and posted a record of 33-12-0, with a 2.13 GAA, and a .914 SV%.

After signing his contract with Detroit, Brattstrom was loaned to KooKoo (Liiga).  In 2020, Brattstrom played 38 games and posted a record of 18-12-7, with a 2.20 GAA, and a .903 SV%.  The Red Wings had enough confidence in Brattstrom to bring him to North America in 2021.

Brattstrom’s move to North America has been a struggle.  He is currently shuffling between Grand Rapids (AHL) and Toledo (ECHL).  In four games with the Griffins, Brattstrom has a 0-3-2 record, a 5.32 GAA, and a .835 SV%.  In Toledo, Brattstrom has struggled to a 2-1-0 record, 4.25 GAA, and an .829 SV%.  At the end of this season, Brattstrom will be a RFA.

Kaden Fulcher

Kaden Fulcher was signed by Detroit as a free agent after rookie camp in 2017.  Now 23, Fulcher is currently in the 3rd year of his three-year entry-level contract.

According to capfriendly.com, Fulcher is currently earning $65,000 to play in the minors.  If he is recalled to Detroit, Fulcher will earn $733,333.

After signing with Detroit, Fulcher played his final season of junior hockey with Hamilton (OHL).  He led the Bulldogs to an OHL championship and a trip to the Memorial Cup.  In 2017, Fulcher played 55 regular season games and had a record of 32-17-6, with a 2.86 GAA, and a .899 SV%.  During the playoffs, Fulcher played 21 games and had a record of 16-5-0, a 2.70 GAA, and a .905 SV%.

In 2018, Fulcher turned professional and played 28 games with Toledo (ECHL).  Fulcher had a record of 15-7-6, a 3.00 GAA, and an .899 SV%.  He was also recalled to Detroit for insurance and ended up playing part of one game with the Red Wings.

In 2019, Fulcher was limited to two games with Toledo because of injury.  Fulcher ended up with a 0-2-0 record, 5.51 GAA, and an .831 SV%.

Last year, Fulcher bounced back and forth between the Detroit taxi squad and Grand Rapids.  He played seven games with the Griffins posting a 2-2-3 record, with a 2.84 GAA, and a .905 SV%.

Fulcher is currently back in Toledo for the final year of his entry-level contract.  Fulcher has played eight games and has posted a 4-3-0 record, a 1.70 GAA, and a .924 SV%.  At the end of this season, Fulcher will be a RFA.

Jan Bednar

Jan Bednar was selected by the Red Wings in the 4th round, 107th overall in the 2020 draft.  Now 19, Bednar is trying to impress the Red Wings enough to earn an entry-level contract to play in the Detroit organization.

Bednar is currently playing his 2nd season for Acadie-Bathurst (QMJHL).  In 2020, when the QMJHL was on lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bednar was loaned to HC Energie Karlovy Vary in the Czech league.  In five games, Bednar had a record of 3-2-0, a 4.16 GAA, and an .867 SV%.  When play resumed in the QMJHL, Bednar played 12 regular season games and seven playoff games.  During the regular season, Bednar posted a 6-5-0 record, with a 3.62 GAA, and an .894 SV%.  During the playoffs, Bednar posted a 3-4-0 record, with a 3.24 GAA, and a .908 SV%.  Bednar was also selected to be the 3rd string goal for Czech Republic at the 2021 WJC-20 but, did not see any action.

This year, Bednar has played 19 games for Acadie-Bathurst and he has posted a record of 10-6-2, with a 3.03 GAA, and a .902 SV%.  Bednar has once again been selected to represent Czech Republic at the WJC-20 starting next week.  Bednar has an excellent chance of starting or at least being the backup in the first game against Canada on December 26.

Carter Gylander

Carter Gylander was selected by the Red Wings in the 7th round, 191st overall in the 2019 draft.  Now 20, Gylander is in his sophomore season and continues to be the #1 goaltender at Colgate University (NCAA).

After being drafted, Gylander played one more season for Sherwood Park (AJHL) before joining Colgate.  In 2019, Gylander played 40 games and posted a record of 34-5-0, a 2.07 GAA, and a .924 SV%.

Last year, as a freshman, Gylander was the #1 goaltender at Colgate.  He played 19 games and posted a record of 6-9-4, with a 2.69 GAA, and a .901 SV%.

This season, Gylander has already surpassed last years totals despite only playing 14 games.  He currently has a 7-6-0 record, with a 2.49 GAA, and a .914 SV%.

Moving forward, Gylander will continue to develop at Colgate with the hope of signing an entry-level contract.  Detroit have until August 2024 to sign Gylander or risk losing him to free agency.

Jesper Eliasson

Jesper Eliasson was selected by the Red Wings in the 3rd round, 84th overall in the 2018 draft.  Now 21, Eliasson is sliding out of the goaltending picture in the Detroit organization.

In 2019, after being drafted, Eliasson was on loan from Vaxjo (SHL) to Almtuna (HockeyAllsvenskan).  He played 25 games and posted a 7-18-0 record, with a 3.09 GAA, and an .887 SV%.  Eliasson also played one game representing Sweden in the WJC-20 tournament.  In his lone game, Eliasson posted the win, and a 2.00 GAA, with an .895 SV%.

Last year, Eliasson’s SHL rights were traded from Vaxjo to Farjestad.  Eliasson was once again on loan, this time to EC Salzburg (ICEHL).  Eliasson played 13 regular season and four playoff games.  During the regular season, Eliasson posted a 5-7-0 record, with a 2.65 GAA, and a .916 SV%.  During the playoffs, Eliasson had a record of 1-2-0, with a 2.30 GAA, and a .916 SV%.

This season, Farjestad (SHL) loaned Eliasson to Almtuna (HockeyAllsvenskan) where he played 10 games and posted a 0-9-0 record, with a 4.43 GAA, and an .842 SV%.  After a disasterous start, Farjestad transferred Eliasson to a lower division (HockeyEttan) where he is currently a member of Vasby.  In three games, Eliasson has a record of 2-1-0, with a 1.62 GAA, and a .942 SV%.

Moving forward, Eliasson must be signed by Detroit before the June 2022 deadline or he will become a free agent.