Detroit Red Wings: Gustav Lindstrom already struggling in return

The Detroit Red Wings have been without Olli Maatta for a few games, meaning Gustav Lindstrom has been recalled and is stepping in with the team’s defense core. Lindstrom may have only logged two games since being recalled, but he’s not the player many were hoping for.

The former second-rounder of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft was brought into the Detroit Red Wings organization with the hopes he could have a future in the team’s top four. The future had seemed bright for him to be a defensive defenseman when the offense ran a bit dry, but he’s still making silly mistakes.

While a two-game return may be hard to sit here and critique, he has been poor at some things. Even before his recent recall to Detroit, Lindstrom had not been performing well in 2021-22 after his first real season of logging time in a Red Wings sweater.

Detroit Red Wings Gustav Lindstrom’s struggles are continuing this season.

Last season, Lindstrom played in 63 games with the Red Wings, where he picked up a goal and 12 assists. But Lindstrom’s play was at least worthy of a return. The team wanted to see things through with him, hoping it would pan out for the better.

This has not quite been the case. In 2022-23, Lindstrom has logged 14 games with the Red Wings, where he has a lonely assist to his credit. Things are not working out great, and the lapses in the defensive zone are mounting.

It’s hard to watch the Stars walk right around him and score as they did in Saturday’s contest. Mason Marchment slipped the puck on a nice chip pass to Denis Gurianov, who found the back of the net. Lindstrom got absolutely exposed on the play getting beat to set up the goal.

Here’s the video.

Lindstrom keeps his eyes on Marchment, letting Gurianov slither around him and get open in close on Husso. By the time the pass gets sent to Gurianov, Lindstrom has to fight to recover the play, which goes quite poorly.

It’s not the only time, either. Throughout the game, he had several lapses in the defensive zone. He had a couple of missed assignments and left players open. A few times, he did not put up much of a fight with Dallas players working for positioning and several puck battles.

The Red Wings may be short-handed in terms of their defense core. But Lindstrom’s struggles are abysmal. Something has to give. Yzerman will have to act at some point, but for now, hopefully, Maatta can return quickly.