Third Game, Third Goaltender For the Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings will play their third NHL game tonight and will use their third different goalie.

Alex Lyon was in the starter’s net at the morning skate at Madison Square Garde, in preparation for tonight’s 7 p.m. game against the New York Rangers. Those two teams also meet Thursday at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena.

Ville Husso won the “blank slate” competition to be the opening day starter, but lasted less than 26 minutes. He was pulled after giving up four goals on 14 shots. Cam Talbot, signed this summer as a free agent, played Detroit’s second game against the Nashville Predators. He came away with a 42-save shutout. Talbot gave up two goals in 14 shots in relief of Husso in the opener.

The Red Wings put Husso on waivers Sunday and he cleared. He’s now on the Grand Rapids Griffins’ roster.

As much as coaches like to stay with the hot hand, coach Derek Lalonde said Saturday that he might go in a different direction because the volume of shots Talbot faced.

Petry, Fischer Out With Injuries

“There was a lot of volume (against Nashville), and he had some volume against Pittsburgh, too,” coach Derek Lalonde said Saturday night.  So that’s three games in six days. I don’t know if we’re putting him in the best situation to throw him right back out there Monday, but something we’ll talk about as a staff.”

Lalonde said he wasn’t going to consider last season’s performance during the preseason competition. But he gained plenty of respect last season when he rose from No. 3 on the depth chart to starter when the Red Wings made a late, but unsuccessful, bid to qualify for the playoffs.

In other lineup news, injured Jeff Petry is still not ready. Hence, the defense will look exactly the way it did Saturday against Nashville. Albert Johansson will play his second NHL game and Erik Gustafsson will be a healthy scratch for the second game.

There will be a change at forward  Austin Watson called up from Grand Rapids to replace injured Christian Fischer. Watson was recalled from Grand Rapids.

“He understands his identity,” Lalonde said. “We want his identity.”