Detroit Red Wings Blue Line report for the week of October 16

Examining the Detroit Red Wings’ second game of the season.

New Jersey is a team working to develop an identity but has extremely skilled young forwards.

The first road game of the year against a bigger and faster team than the Canadiens. The second of back-to-back games was expected to be a far stiffer challenge than the Canadiens. The Detroit Red Wings struggled for the first 30 minutes but did not fall apart.

Solid goalkeeping by Nedeljkovic kept them in the game. The contest was relatively low energy. Yet, an excellent road game to begin the season.

Detroit Red Wings: Game Two Individual Reports

Seider wore the “A” in New Jersey. He did not have the same energy as he had in game one. Yet, he was solid and skilled. The swagger and confidence are truly contagious. Skating the puck directly in front of his goal to escape the zone appeared risky, but he made it look easy.

Chiarot continued his excellent play. He was physical and made excellent decisions with and without the puck.

Although there were a lot of shots toward the Red Wing goals, Chiairot ensured that the slot was cleared of attackers and rebounds. He has been a positive surprise. A two-point night is an excellent addition.

Hronek has developed a good rapport with Maatta. I suspect that this pairing is going to improve. Hronek is playing a much more organized defensive zone game than in previous years. It could be coaching, or it could be Olli Maatta.

Maatta has been a stabilizing force. He is a low-risk player. He is in the right place and makes the right play. Coaches must love his game.

Maatta has a noticeable tic to his game. Every pass looks like he is cautiously guiding the puck to a teammate and every shot looks like he is winding up to launch a missile. Not a problem, but Ollie Maatta has a unique style.

Lindstrom was not bad, but being in a road game was not good for him. Jack Hughes was matched against Lindstrom’s pairing several times, which was not pretty. Hughes was too quick on several occasions and looked dangerous.

Lindstrom was dogged in pushing plays outside and limiting the damage. He did not excel, but he survived. And that is not too bad.

Hagg played a tough game. He led the team in hits, blocked shots, and taking high sticks to the head. He was burned by the Devil’s second-period goal. A bit of a scramble after a center-ice face-off led to Hagg being out of position by a single step.

The third pairing survived despite being matched against New Jersey’s best more often than anyone should be comfortable with.

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 Detroit Red Wings Game Two Summary

A road win in the second game of back-to-backs is always good. The team was not nearly as tight or energized as in game one, but the blue line looks far more solid than last year.