The Red Wings made a somewhat controversial signing in inking 31-year-old defenseman Ben Chiarot to a 4-year deal at $4.75 million per season on July 13th. As MLive’s Ansar Khan notes, the Red Wings believe that the big, physical Chiarot (6’3,” 231 lbs) will stabilize the team’s blueline:
Pairing the 31-year-old left-shooter with the 21-year-old right-shooting Seider, this year’s Calder Trophy winner as NHL rookie of the year, seems logical.
“Obviously, an impressive young defenseman,” Chiarot said. “Kind of does everything really well — offense, defense, plays physical, which you don’t see a ton of anymore with young guys coming in. Not too many have kind of an edge, but Moritz certainly does, and he doesn’t back down out there. He was a fun guy to watch this year, look forward to getting out there with him.”
The Red Wings had holes to fill on left defense with Danny DeKeyser (unsigned) and Marc Staal (signed with Florida) not returning. Chiarot and Olli Maatta, inked for one year at $2.25 million, filled those voids and will play in the top four.
“Kind of defense-first defenders, bigger bodies, get in the way, kind of hard to play against,” general manager Steve Yzerman said. “I don’t know what Derek (coach Lalonde) will ultimately decide, but I would expect those two guys to play with Moritz and Filip (Hronek) and be good complements for them. They have good length, they defend pretty well, can block shots and are big bodies that are hard to play against.”
Chiarot had nine goals, equaling a career high, and a career-best 26 points in 74 games last season, split between Montreal (54) and Florida (20). But he is a stay-at-home defender who is not expected to produce much offense in Detroit.
He aims to be “a stabilizing presence” for his young defense partner, whether it’s Seider or Hronek.