Red Wings Sign Trey Augustine: Expectations for His Development Path

On Tuesday, the Detroit Red Wings announced the signing of Trey Augustine, a goaltending prospect, to an entry-level contract.

This agreement takes effect for the 2026-27 season. In the interim, Augustine will join the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins on an amateur tryout agreement (ATO) and compete with Detroit's AHL squad for the remainder of the 2025-26 season. There, he'll join Sebastian Cossa and Michal Postava, giving the Griffins a formidable three-headed monster in net as the Calder Cup Playoffs approach.

It's unclear how much game action Augustine will get in Grand Rapids. The team has eight games remaining before the playoffs begin, and they'll probably want to use most of those contests to keep Cossa and Postava dialed in. That said, the Griffins do have a couple of back-to-backs remaining and finish the year with three games in five nights. In theory, Augustine could get into a game or two in the final three weeks of the regular season. Beyond that, it all depends on his performance and that of Cossa and Postava.

Looking ahead to next season, Augustine will likely split starting duties with Postava. It’s expected that Cossa will be up in Detroit full-time as John Gibson’s backup/1B – he will need waivers to be assigned to the AHL in 2026-27.

How much Augustine plays depends entirely on his performance and AHL scheduling quirks. Like Cossa before him, he’ll need to earn the ice time as the season goes on. For reference, Cossa appeared in 40 of the Griffins’ 72 games his first full year in Grand Rapids. It’s fair to expect a similar split for Augustine and Postava, with the latter starting around 30 contests. That said, back-to-backs, injuries, and call-ups could skew these projections a bit.

I would expect Augustine to remain in Grand Rapids for the 2027-28 season, too. While a stellar 2026-27 campaign and promotion thereafter would be great, I wouldn’t bet on it – even with Gibson’s contract expiring in 2027. Instead, Augustine will likely see an uptick in starts with the Griffins, and could get a spot start or two in Detroit if injuries arise. That brings us to the 2028-29 season – this is when I expect Augustine to be a full-time NHLer with the Red Wings. He’ll be in the final year of his entry-level contract and likely backing up Cossa at this point.

If this seems like a conservative approach, that’s because it is. It’s also the path Cossa has taken thus far. Like most Red Wings prospects, the organization has let Cossa cook slow and low instead of throwing him immediately into the fire. It’s fair to expect the same for Augustine.

Overall, Augustine should adapt nicely to the professional ranks. He seals off the bottom of the net very well, doesn’t play too aggressively, and tracks the puck well through and around traffic. The adjustment shouldn’t be too great since Augustine is starting at an advanced stage – there are very few refinements needed for his game.

Coming into the 2025-26 season, Augustine was ranked as Detroit’s seventh-best prospect. Since then, he earned a Hobey Baker nomination, a Mike Richter Award nomination as the NCAA’s best netminder, won the B1G Best Goaltender award, and was named to the B1G First All-Star Team, plus helped Michigan State reach the NCAA tournament. In short, he’s been outstanding.

Now that his collegiate career is over, Augustine will start anew in Grand Rapids. There, he’ll kick off his professional journey with his sights set on a role in Hockeytown.