Utah acquires AHL standout Sebastian Cossa from Red Wings

Utah paid the 23rd overall pick for Sebastian Cossa, a clear wager that the 23-year-old goaltender can help the Mammoth sooner than most prospects of his pedigree. Detroit used the pick immediately on J.P. Hurlbert, but the bigger read is Utah deciding that Cossa’s AHL track record was worth more than another first-round swing.

Cossa arrives with one of the strongest resumes in the league. In 123 career AHL appearances with the Grand Rapids Griffins, he went 70-33-18 with a 2.46 goals-against average, a .911 save percentage and eight shutouts. His 2025-26 season was even sharper: 26-8-4 in 39 games, a 2.33 GAA, a .915 save percentage and five shutouts. He and Michal Postava shared the Harry “Hap” Holmes Memorial Award after Grand Rapids allowed a league-low 159 goals, or 2.21 per game, and the Griffins finished with the club’s third Holmes Award and first since back-to-back wins in 2001-02 and 2002-03. Cossa also took AHL Goaltender of the Month honors in both November and December, becoming the first goalie in Griffins history to win the award twice in one season.

His NHL sample is small, but it matters. Detroit drafted Cossa 15th overall in 2021, then gave him his debut on Dec. 9, 2024, in Buffalo. He made 12 saves in the game and won in a shootout, becoming the first goalie in NHL history to win his debut in a shootout relief appearance before Detroit sent him back to Grand Rapids two days later. For an organization trying to measure whether a goalie is ready for the next tier, that kind of first impression carries real weight.

For Utah, the move points to a crowded but unsettled crease. The Mammoth already had Karel Vejmelka, Jaxson Stauber, Vitek Vanecek and Matt Villalta in their goalie mix, and Vejmelka finished the 2025-26 regular season with 38 wins, a 2.75 GAA and a .897 save percentage. Cossa can push for NHL time, but he also fits as a high-end AHL anchor if Utah wants to protect its depth and let him absorb more reps in Grand Rapids before making a full jump.

Detroit’s return was a different kind of bet. The Red Wings turned a goalie prospect into a premium pick and spent it on Hurlbert, the 2026 WHL Rookie of the Year who led all CHL rookies with 97 points in 68 games for the Kamloops Blazers and is headed to the University of Michigan. Utah bought certainty in net for its next phase; Detroit cashed out on a name-value prospect while Cossa’s departure leaves Grand Rapids searching for the next face of its crease.