3 Defenseman the Red Wings Should Target in Free Agency

Ben Chiarot, LHD

The Detroit Red Wings could potentially be losing both Marc Staal and Danny DeKeyser this off-season which is fair. But if they do let them go, they will need to replace their experience.

With Moritz Seider, Gustav Lindstrom, and potentially Simon Edvinsson. They will have a very young defenseman core. With that comes many mistakes which is fine for young players to make because that’s how they are going to learn. But, in the defensive zone, that’s not the time to mess with the puck. That’s the time when you move the puck forward and you should never move the puck across the middle of the ice.

When it comes to the NHL, these players will capitalize on errors. So, in order to balance out the rookies or younger players, you need veterans who have the experience to counteract the younger players mistakes. Ben Chiarot could be a great addition for that very reason.

Chiarot who was apart of the 2021 Montreal Canadiens team that made it to the Stanley cup. Of course, they later lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning. But, Chiarot was one of the players who really helped them get there. But we also have come to learn that the Canadiens were 100% pretenders as this past season was quite awful. That being said, the Canadiens decided to part with Chiarot.

Chiarot was dealt at the trade deadline to the Florida Panthers in exchange for their first-round pick next season, their 2022 fourth-round pick, and unsigned prospect, Ty Smilanic.

That trade was meant to help bolster their defense to the next level in hopes of the Panthers competing for the cup. Now, although they did make the playoffs, the President’s trophy curse struck them down.

Now, Chiarot is a unrestricted free agent and will more than likely be getting targeted by many teams. I’m not very confident that the Red Wings will actually target him, but I do feel like he could be a very good pickup for the Wings should they make a good enough offer for him.

Now, with that being said, I will say that one of the cons I have to this signing is the fact that he doesn’t fit the style of play that the Red Wings have. The Red Wings are young and fast. Chiarot is not.

He’s an older player, but he’s a very physical defenseman who doesn’t shy away from contact. But, it’s for that reason that I feel the Red Wings could use him. Chiarot could be the person we are missing defensively.

He would bring the tenacity, and veteran presence on the team that would bolster some of the younger guys and give them someone they could truly learn from. The biggest question mark over his head and a signing happening is, how much is he valued by other organizations and what would a contract look like.

Anthony DeAngelo, RHD

Tony DeAngelo was known as a toxic guy in the locker room. In fact, there has been multiple incidents regarding him and a referee and/or a teammate. That reputation led to him and the New York Rangers parting ways this past season.

With the New York Rangers pretty much openingly stating that he is not the guy you want in the locker room, and that made a lot of teams very hesitant at looking at him. After some time, the Carolina Hurricanes decided to give him a shot in theory to replace right-handed defenseman, Dougie Hamilton who signed with the New Jersey Devils last season.

Now, Hamilton was right to leave and go where the money takes him. Prior to this past season, Hamilton was almost a consensus top defenseman in the NHL, and he deserved to get paid. But, now the trend has been set as DeAngelo is more than likely going to find himself making some money in free agency.

This past season, DeAngelo played in 64 games for the Hurricanes. In those 64 games he put up 10 goals and 41 assists for 51 total points. On top of that, he was playing top lines minutes averaging just under 20 minutes of ice time.

DeAngelo is more than likely going to get a moderately large deal after this stellar season he had. Now I don’t know for sure rather or not he plans on staying with the Hurricanes, I mean, they are right there, they just needed Frederik Andersen and they probably would have been representing the eastern conference in the Stanley Cup. So, I’m sure he is open to returning under the right contract and circumstances. But if he follows the money, the Red Wings need to know there are definitely some benefits to signing DeAngelo.

DeAngelo would likely drop Hronek down to the third line which I don’t really like. However, when you look at the big picture, Hronek being on the third line because of the other two guys ahead of him speaks to the talent you have.

If the Red Wings were to sign or target DeAngelo, he would give the Red Wings another star offensive defenseman along with Seider. Having put up 51 points in 64 games this past season with the Hurricanes and previously putting up a 53 point season with the Rangers back in the 2019-20 season.

DeAngelo is also a very good defenseman due to his physicality and willingness to face anyone and everyone. And I have to be honest, that’s one of the reasons I really want him.

When you have a young team like the Red Wings, It’s important to make sure that you back them. If the opposition lays a bad hit on them or starts playing in a way that is disrespectful, DeAngelo will drop with them and we don’t really have a guy like that right now. Well, none that really puts fear into the other guy. There’s no banger on this team like him.

Signing him really has no downsides as of right now. However, if he reverts back to his nature of idiocy and bull-headedness, he could prove the Red Wings wrong for signing him. Is it a risk worth taking?

Mario Ferraro, LHD

Mario Ferraro is probably a name that not many of you expected to see on this list. However, that’s part of the reason I chose him as the final guy- a dark horse.

The Red Wings need right-handed defenseman more than they need left-handed defenseman. The reasoning for that has all to do with the fact that they have so many left-handed defenseman prospects just waiting for their chance in the NHL. Some of those names include Simon Edvinsson, William Wallinder, Albert Johansson, and Donovan Sobrango. And that’s just to lift a couple names. So why am I choosing another left-handed defenseman?

Ferraro has been one of the names that I feel slips under the radar having been on the Sharks for the last couple seasons. Furthermore, he is playing behind Erik Karlsson and Brent Burns who pretty much draws everyone’s attention. But Ferraro is not a knock-off. Ferraro can hold his own without a doubt. Additionally, compared to some of the other names the Red Wings could target, they’d be much more expensive. Ferraro would be a cheaper option.

Ferraro joined the Sharks in the 2019-20 season and since that point, he’s really grown and developed as a player. What I find fascinating with him is that he’s not necessarily a large player but he’s a very good defensive defenseman. He’s a very talented player in the defensive zone.

Having played in 180 games in the past three seasons with the Sharks, he has 415 hits, 305 blocks, and 76 takeaways. But, let’s just re-wind for a second. 415 hits and 305 blocks in 180 games. In case you’re wondering what that averages out too:

• 2.30 hits per game
• 1.69 blocks per game

As you can tell by those stats, he doesn’t shy away from anything in the defensive zone. He is aggressive and likes to play physical.

When it comes to Ferraro, really the only concern I’d have with him is just his offensive zone ability. He hasn’t exactly proven to be much of an offensive defenseman which the Red Wings are in dire need of.

Rather or not Ferraro would pan out would be interesting. But his youth fits with the organization and he’d be a great left-handed defenseman on the second-line with Filip Hronek should they not go after anyone else.