The Red Wings have been on a cold streak this season, failing to land the big-name blueliners available on the trade market.
To most pundits, the Wings were the ideal landing spot for Quinn Hughes. When that didn’t happen, the chatter honed in on Rasmus Andersson. In short, that didn’t work out either.
With no more big names seemingly on the market, the Red Wings did the opposite of what GM Steve Yzerman’s playbook says: Sign veteran players to long-term deals. Yet, that’s what they did by extending veteran blueliner Ben Chiarot on Wednesday.
The Red Wings announced the signing of Chiarot to a three-year contract worth $11.5 million. All right, so three-years isn’t exactly long-term. A $3.85 million cap hit isn’t going to break the bank.
But if there’s anything fans have learned this season, it's that cap space can evaporate quickly. The Red Wings are hardly in a cap crunch at this point. That’s the product of having several players on cheap deals on entry-level contracts.
That’s something that could change soon enough. Several key young pieces will need new contracts in the coming seasons. Simon Edvinsson and Jacob Bernard-Docker will need contracts next season. Then, Albert Johansson, Elmer Soderblom, and Marco Kasper will need deals in 2027.
That’s not taking into account that Alex DeBrincat will be eligible for an extension on July 1, and Patrick Kane is on an expiring deal. The Wings may also be looking keep Cam Talbot. As such, keeping Chiarot, a player who offers zero Wins Above Replacement (WAR), is something that has raised more than a few eyebrows.
The Red Wings may come to regret taking up valuable cap space on a defenseman who has been in decline for some time now.
Red Wings extend Chiarot amid lack of suitable alternatives
The reality is that the Red Wings stuck with a known commodity. Keeping Chiarot was a seemingly better option than trading for another veteran blueliner like Justin Faulk. The difference is that a player like Faulk has a reported high price tag.
That’s not something that Yzerman can readily stomach, and rightfully so. The Red Wings are not in a position to move pieces like, say, Nate Danielson or Michael Brandsegg-Nygard for a potential rental.
That said, the Red Wings could have done better than Chiarot on the open market. Chiarot ranks in the bottom percentile in WAR, while also falling off the charts in terms of his offensive and defensive play.
Ben Chiarot, extended 3x$3.9M by DET, is a physical veteran defenceman. Despite having good size, decent mobility, and some puck-carrying ability, his team tends to get completely wrecked when he's on the ice and his partners tend to fare much worse next to him. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/npltmqttg3
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) January 28, 2026
The free-agent market could have offered alternatives that don’t “completely wreck” teammates on the ice.
But there is something to be said about keeping Chiarot. He’s a veteran presence with whom the Red Wings’ largely young team can be comfortable around. He offers up-and-coming defenseman like Axel Sandin-Pellikka crucial mentorship. In a way, it’s like what the New York Islanders have done with Ryan Pulock and Scott Mayfield. Those vets have helped star rookie Matthew Schaefer ease into the NHL.
That’s what Yzerman and the Red Wings organization have seen in Chiarot. He’s a positive influence on young blueliners like Edvinsson, Johansson, and Sandin-Pellikka. Even if re-signing Chiarot is a failure on the organization’s part by settling, there’s at least a rationale behind the move.