Reviewing the Detroit Red Wings blueliners of 2022 predicting 2023
By Steven Shaw
Improvement needed on the Detroit Red Wings blueline…
The first pairing has been a disappointment. Moritz Seider has received a lot of criticism, and I have even speculated that he has a nagging injury. He is still the best skater, penalty killer, hitter, and powerplay contributor for this team.
Seider will continue to improve, and his status as a star will continue to grow. Chiarot has been a problem. He does not play well with Seider. Careless pinches and fruitless offensive forays leave Seider alone or facing odd-man breaks far too often.
Chiarot serves the valuable purpose of making the Red Wings harder to play against. Chiarot is a fine skating tough guy, a shot blocker, and is precisely what this team needed. He would be excellent on the third pairing.
The third pairing was barely holding on for the first part of the season. Lindstrom and Hagg are smart and solid players. But they were physically beaten with size or speed on nearly every shift. When the third pairing was on the ice, the Red Wings were hemmed in their own end, holding on for dear life while the first two pairs rested.
Oesterle and Walman did a fine job of making the third pairing less of a weak link. They are limited, but the breakouts were cleaner, and Walman has the strength and skating to break up the defensive zone cycle. Now, Määttä and Oesterle are a reasonable third pairing and an improved component of the blue line.