Who has been Meeting Expectations?
Lucas Raymond: Some may see this as a slight towards Raymond, but trust me, it's not. After last season, when he took such a massive step in the second half of the season by leading the team in every facet in the final push last season, it was hoped he'd keep that performance up. While he has largely been one of the team's best players, his apparent reluctance to shoot the puck so far this season has caused me to put him here. Thankfully, he's become an incredible playmaker that's kept him from moving, being lower than this.
Moritz Seider: This may be a bit of a shock to see Seider here, but it's where he belongs at this point in the season. It's not even that he's playing badly; he's having a really good year and is on pace for roughly a 50-point season. It's more of a product of his deployment, as it's the same deployment he had last season. He's been playing just as good defensively as he was last season but this time has a consistently competent partner. Otherwise, he hasn't changed much of his game in the first place and in turn, is performing almost exactly to expectations.
Alex DeBrincat: The Cat's only expectations going into this season were being more consistent in goal scoring and points in general. He's always been a streaky goal scorer but going 12 games without a goal needs to be left in last season, with at least one point in 12 games and 17 points in total. He's on his way to a .80 PPG pace this season, which is the same as last season. We're just hoping that those numbers will come from the goal-scoring column more often than not.
Christian Fischer: When Steve re-signed Fischer in the offseason, the entire Red Wings fanbase collectively cheered. His personality and play style hit really well with a lot of fans. The expectations for Fischer are to be a bottom-six grinder who makes life a living hell for the opposition, and I would say he's done just that. He'll never be the guy you go to when you need a late-period goal or the OT game-winner. But when you need to protect the lead or slow an opponent down, He's one of the first I'd call.
Alex Lyon: Coming into this season, Lyon was expected to be nothing more than 50% of a 1A/1B tandem with either Husso or Talbot. The good thing is that he's been exactly that. Providing the same caliber goaltending he did for most of last season, he is performing in a way that every Red Wings fan anticipated.
Justin Holl: Coming into this season, Justin Holl had minimal expectations, including being a serviceable third-pair defenseman. Well, he's done just that. As part of the rotation with Johansson and Gustafsson, he's done exactly what he's supposed to do, albeit with extremely sheltered minutes. Still, he's meeting expectations flawlessly.
Andrew Copp: Yes. as much as he irritates a lot of fans. Andrew Copp is meeting expectations. Ignoring his contract status, he is playing the role given to him well. He's defensively reliable and a strong Penalty Killer. He's also an important part of the team's defense, centering the shutdown line of him, Rasmussen, and Fischer.
Michael Rasmussen: Rasmussen was a tough one for me to place. On one hand, He's not producing much on the scoresheet. On the other hand, he was expected to be put in a position that wouldn't allow him to produce much. So with that, I feel it's necessary to put him here. Even though he's only got 6 points in 21 games and is projected (via eliteprospects) only to have 24 points this season, which is 7 points less than last season's career-high of 33, he's playing the role given to him incredibly well. He's the board-battling, big body and backup centerman of his line with Copp and Fischer. He also makes the Penalty Kill flow noticeably better than when he's not on it.
Tyler Motte: Signed in the offseason, Motte was brought in to support the team's penalty kill and overall defense. Despite some injuries early in the season, he's been proving his worth. Defensively he's incredibly sound and is an absolute pitbull while going after the puck. He's given the team's defense and the PK a noticeable boost. While he hasn't been rewarded on the scoresheet yet, he's been a welcome addition to the Red Wings bottom six.
Albert Johansson: One of the Red Wings two "true rookies" this season. Johansson was brought on due to his waiver-exempt status and contract expiring. He was expected to start on the third pair in the rotation of the other 75 or so defensemen the Red Wings had on the roster at the time. While he's had some rookie mistakes and nerves, he's largely been solid, albeit with extremely sheltered minutes. But Regardless he wasn't expected to be a top pairing, world-beater defenseman. Just a steady hand who you don't have to worry about when he's on the ice. While he's largely been able to do that, I'd be lying if I didn't mention that he does make one or two rookie mistakes every so often, but once again, that was largely what was expected from him this season.
Jonatan Berggren: While I was hoping that he would end up in the "Exceding Expectations" section, Berggren started off the season incredibly snake-bitten. Even with his fantastic chemistry with Marco Kasper, the two of them just couldn't get the puck past any goalie, no matter how good the chance or goalie. While the advanced stats may not favor him, the eye test easily does. He's playing at an incredibly high level and is regularly one of the only players not on the top line who has generated much of anything resembling sustained offense at 5 on 5.