"I Feel Like A Kid": Red Wings' Michal Postava Beaming After 1st Career NHL Win

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The Detroit Red Wings wrapped up their four-game road trip Monday night against the Edmonton Oilers by giving Michal Postava the start in net after calling him up from the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins due to an injury to Daniil Tarasov.

It was proven to be the correct choice. 

Making his first NHL start, Postava turned aside 25 shots in both regulation and overtime before staring down Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in the shootout, denying all three and securing a 4-3 comeback victory for his club. 

In doing so, he became the third goaltender over the last 25 years of Red Wings history to win his first NHL start, joining Jimmy Howard and Petr Mrazek. 

Following the game, it felt as though he was a youngster again. 

"It's amazing, I feel like a kid," Postava said afterward. "I just watch all the NHL games when I was young. I just, I don't expect that one day, I'd be one day in the net and win the game. I'm just so happy."

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Speaking in a heavy Czech accent reminiscent of former Red Wings goaltender and fellow Czech native Dominik Hasek, Postava said his main goal was to enjoy the experience and help his teammates.

"Just go to enjoy the game and help the guys, make some saves," he said. 

Former Oilers head coach Todd McLellan, who gave Postava the starting responsibilities against the high-powered Edmonton offense, said that the performance of the young goaltender was indicitive of how he's played with the American Hockey League affiliate Grand Rapids Griffins. 

"We had a pretty good idea that Postava was what we saw tonight, and he was outstanding last year; the start to the season was really good," he said. 

Of course, the preseason schedule for 2026-27 shrunk to just four games, meaning that a young player like Postava wouldn't have as much of a chance to show what he could do at the NHL level. 

But that hasn't stopped the Red Wings from expressing confidence in his abiliites, which he's already put on full display in Grand Rapids and now has done so in the NHL. 

"Unfortunately, the way the exhibition schedule is set up now, these goaltenders don't get a lot of runway, which I think sucks for them - but yeah, we've liked him all along, and he's continued to work," McLellan continued. "The goaltending coaches are very confident in him. So are the players."

The Red Wings got goals in regulation from Viktor Arvidsson, Emmitt Finnie, and the game-tying marker from Dylan Larkin with 1:17 left while Postava was pulled for an extra attacker. 

They'll return home to face the visiting Chicago Blackhawks, who now have former Red Wings forward Patrick Kane back in the fold, at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday evening. 

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