Why Cam Talbot signed with Detroit Red Wings: 'Not ready to just mail it in yet'

Cam Talbot sees a chance for opportunity and stability with the Detroit Red Wings.

The former is important to Talbot as he seeks to prove that in the twilight of his career, he's still viable in the NHL. The latter is important to him as a family man.

When general manager Steve Yzerman made contact with Talbot's camp on the first day of free agency, Talbot, 37, was all-in on coming to Detroit on a two-year, $5 million deal.

"There were some other teams in the mix that maybe weren’t as close to making the playoffs," Talbot said earlier this month. "I’m at the stage of my career where I’m not ready to just mail it in yet. I don’t want to give up starts. I still want to compete for starts and I still want to compete for the playoffs and I still want to win a Stanley Cup. I’ve never done that yet."

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Talbot is a veteran of 486 NHL games, spread across stints with the New York Rangers (2013-15), Edmonton Oilers (2015-19), Philadelphia Flyers (2019), Calgary Flames (2019-20), Minnesota Wild (2020-22), Ottawa Senators (2022-23) and Los Angeles Kings (2023-24).

He has a 2.63 goals-against average and .914 save percentage in his career, solid numbers for a goalie who went undrafted. That's one thing he has in common with Alex Lyon, whose rise from No. 3 to No. 1 last season gives him an edge going into 2024-25 — not that Talbot isn't coming in with an eye to do what he did last fall, which was to end up starting 52 games. The Kings had Pheonix Copley (Michigan Tech) and David Rittich under contract when they signed Talbot; the Wings have Alex Lyon and Ville Husso under contract. So Talbot knows what it will be like come training camp.

"It was kind of the same situation I’m coming into now," he said. "They had a guy there that had played a bunch the year before. Then they signed myself and David Rittich and it was a healthy competition to start the season. I thought I started the season really strong. Got the All-Star nod at the beginning of January. Had a little dip as did the rest of the team midway through January to beginning of February, but I think I finished strong again.

"Overall I’d say my season went as well as I expected it to go. I just wanted to go in there after a down year in Ottawa and prove I could still be the guy and I thought I was able to do that. Internal competition always makes everybody better, so I think that bringing in the guys that they brought in just drives everybody that much more and that’s a good thing for everybody."

The Wings needed a proven performer to offset concerns regarding Husso after he missed the last two-thirds of the season dealing with a lower-body injury. Husso, who has one year left on his contract at $4.75 million, said in April that he expects to be healthy and ready to go come September, but he was also deemed ready in mid-February, and lasted less than 10 minutes in that comeback attempt. Lyon, who has one year left at $900,000, played the role of savior after Husso was injured and James Reimer struggled, but that marked a career breakout for Lyon, who'll be 32 in December.

Enter Talbot, who with two years on his contract projects to serve as a bridge until the hoped-for ascendance of goaltender Sebastian Cossa, a 2021 first-round pick (at No. 15 overall). Playing in the Western Conference, Talbot didn't see much of the Wings as they chased a playoff spot all the way till Game 82, but he was in net when the Kings visited Little Caesars Arena on Jan. 13 — that is, for at least the first two periods. He was replaced by Rittich to start the third period after giving up five goals on 27 shots in a game the Wings won, 5-3.

"They’re a fast team up front, very skilled, the back end gets pucks to the net pretty well," Talbot said. "They gave us a lot to handle and I’m pretty sure they beat us when we came to Detroit, and I didn’t play so well that game.

"They were this close to making the playoffs last year, so it’s going to be a fun group to be a part of and I’m looking forward to joining the team."

Just as key as the team's perceived competitiveness was getting a second year after so much moving around.

"You never really fully get used to it, especially with a young family now," Talbot said. "Taking the kids out of schools and moving them all the time and having to leave their friends, that’s the hardest part for me. A hockey team, you can plug in and play. Guys always integrate you into the team. But it’s the family factor at this point, which for me getting the second year on this deal was huge.

"It has been a bit of whirlwind lately moving from team to team. My kids have been troopers, but hopefully we’ve found a spot for a couple years here and we’ll be able to settle down a little bit."

Contact Helene St. James athstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter@helenestjames. Her books, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” and “The Big 50: The Men and Moments that made the Detroit Red Wings” are available from Amazon,Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.

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