Why competition on defense will be one of the best stories at Detroit Red Wings camp
When the Detroit Red Wings take the ice in two weeks for the first day of training camp, one of the most intriguing storylines will be the defense corps.
General manager Steve Yzerman added three veterans during the offseason in Jeff Petry, Shayne Gostisbehere, and Justin Holl. Gone from last season's roster are Filip Hronek, Jordan Oesterle, Robert Hagg and Gustav Lindström. Returning defensemen include Moritz Seider, Jake Walman, Ben Chiarot, and Olli Määttä. Health is unpredictable, of course, but on the face of it, that is a better starting corps than the Wings have had in years.
ON THE HORIZON: Well-traveled Antti Tuomisto ready to begin trip towards Detroit Red Wings
Seider, Petry and Holl shoot right, so the Wings will have the luxury of forming three pairs consisting of right-shots and left-shots. With Seider, Walman, Petry and Gotisbehere, the Wings can also have at least one defender on each pairing who can make things happen offensively. And Määttä showed renewed signs of that side of his game last season, too.
With the exception of three games in mid-February when Walman was out of the lineup, he and Seider formed a successful partnership the second half of the season. They read off one another well, allowing each to take an active role with the puck, without compromising integrity in their own zone. Seider had a minus-13 rating when he gained Walman as a partner, then posted a plus-two in the time they played together. The logical starting point is to have those together again.
From there, it gets interesting. Chiarot, Seider's partner the first half, had an ugly plus-minus at season's end, bottoming out at minus-31. But he's 6 feet 3 and 232 pounds and plays as heavy as he is. He's got an edge to him — when Ryan Reaves was taking all manner of liberties with the Wings during a game at Minnesota in December last year, it was Chiarot who dropped his gloves to send a message on behalf of his team.
Gostisbehere's appeal is his offensive skill set. He posted 41 points last season, and 51 in 2021-22. Of those 92 points, 34 came on power plays. He'll have to prove to the coaching staff that he can be trusted defensively, but his ability to score is needed after trading Hronek at the deadline. Likewise, Petry has an offensive skill set the Wings could use on the back end; he delivered 31 points last season, and four straight 40-point seasons from 2017-18 to 2020-21. He's another guy who can help out on the power play, too.
In the immediate aftermath of free agency — i.e., before the Petry addition — Yzerman said of signing Holl that, "we needed to get a right-shot defenseman, that was important." Holl's assists over the past four years have hovered around the high-teen range, and he's finished each of those seasons with a plus-rating. Yzerman signed Holl for three years and $10.2 million, so there's clearly an expectation that he will be a regular in the lineup.
GHOST BEAR: Why Shayne Gostisbehere is out to prove something with Detroit Red Wings
That leaves Määttä — who Yzerman signed to a two-year, $6 million extension in mid-February. That contract reflected the growth Määttä has shown since arriving in Detroit on a one-year deal in 2022. He had six goals and 17 assists last season in 78 games (he missed four games battling pneumonia), mostly playing on the second or third pairing.
Competition on the blue line isn't limited to those with significant NHL experience. Simon Edvinsson, the team's top pick in 2021, appeared in nine games last spring, recording two goals and a minus-7 rating. He needs to develop his positional game, and Yzerman's additions point to Edvinsson starting in Grand Rapids, but he's going to do everything possible to get into the lineup in Detroit. The expectation is — eventually — prospects Albert Johansson, William Wallinder and Antti Tuomisto, all of who are earmarked to start with the Griffins, will also push for minutes.
It bodes well for the Wings' aim to make the playoffs that they go into the season with more quality depth on defense than they have had in a decade. And for starters, it will stoke competition in camp as the pairings take shape.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.
Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Depth on defense bodes competitive camp for Detroit Red Wings
