'A Championship' — Why Trey Augustine Is The Key To The Detroit Red Wings' Resurgence

Trey Augustine is a proven winner in every sense of the word.

In the past four years, the 21-year-old goalie already has a trophy case full of accomplishments that would rival a Hall of Fame veteran. That includes a gold medal at the Under-18 world championship, back-to-back gold medals at the world junior championship, two Big Ten Championships capped off by a Mike Richter Award as the NCAA's top goalie.

Now that his collegiate career is over, the Detroit Red Wings prospect is ready for his first full pro season — and winning more titles, whether that's in the NHL or with the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins.

"A championship," Augustine told the Hockeytown West Podcast when asked for what he hopes to accomplish this season. "Just anywhere. Win something meaningful, that's what it's all about."

It has been just over 10 years since Detroit's last playoff appearance. It is the longest active drought in the NHL have passed.

However, in Augustine, the Red Wings might finally have a missing piece that they lacked even in 2016: a bonafide No. 1 netminder.

Augustine, who was selected 41st overall in 2023, is considered one of the top goalie prospects in the NHL (The Hockey News ranked him 37th in the latest Future Watch magazine). For an organization that is trying to make the jump back to relevancy, he brings both hope and hype.  

With Michigan State last season, Augustine was named the top goalie in the NCAA after posting a 24-9-1 record, with a 2.11 GAA and a 929 save percentage. Following the season, he signed an amateur tryout with Grand Rapids, where he gave Red Wings fans a taste of what's to come as a future franchise goalie.

“He’s got a great demeanor,” assistant director of player development Dan Cleary told The Hockey News in February. “He’s got a calm, cool demeanor, but he’s competitive. That fire burns inside him.”

As a 2005 birth year from just outside Detroit, Augustine was no doubt influenced by the Red Wings' 25-year playoff streak from 1990-2025, which included four championships.

"I think one of my first cards was a Pavel Datsyuk card," Augustine, a native of South Lyons, Mich., said at the Upper Deck-hosted NHLPA Rookie Showcase last week. "I grew up watching games, his games at the Joe (Louis Arena)."

While the Red Wings could certainly use a Datsyuk-level forward, they also could use a goalie as dominant as Dominik Hasek. 

Between 2008-2026, Detroit had 24 different goaltenders play at least one game. Jimmy Howard, who spent 15 years in the Red Wings organization and was the last goalie to appear in the playoffs, was a great regular season goalie. 

Detroit currently has two goaltenders on its roster this year, neither of which are a long-term solution.

John Gibson is a solid veteran, coming over via trade from Anaheim last summer. While the longtime Duck had his moments, the 33-year-old isn't the same goalie he was earlier in his career. Daniil Tarasov, who was signed on July 1, has struggled at the NHL level in both Columbus and Florida. He earned a 20-25-3 record and 0.888 save percentage in 50 games across the past two seasons.

Both players are pending UFAs at the end of next season, which should pave the way for Augustine as he makes the full-time jump from college to the pros.

"I think just being around Tom Wilson and Kyle Okposo at dinner last night, hearing what they had to say about their experiences and kind of how they've gone about their own business, it's super valuable to hear from them and how different it really is from college or juniors or wherever you're coming from," Augustine said at the Rookie Showcase.

"Definitely, the highest level of hockey there is. I'm just going advantage of all the things that the NHLPA and these guys and the players have to offer."