Which Red Wings Defensemen Are Most Impacted By Jeff Petry Acquisition?

The Detroit Red Wings have made another move and acquired Jeff Petry and won another trade, but some might also question the need for them to add another defenseman. Petry comes in as the likely 2RD behind Moritz Seider and can provide 22+ minutes of ice time per game, helping out on both special teams units, but is also past his prime and 35 years old.

The Red Wings signed Justin Holl and Shayne Gostisbehere this summer after re-signing Jake Walman and Olli Maatta in February of this year. The team has seven, even eight capable defenseman to slot into the lineup on any given night, which makes line combinations and playing time interesting.

With Petry coming in and slotting in on the right side of the second pairing, this moves Justin Holl down, which could actually be good for him and the team. He was given a fair bit of responsibility in Toronto and became the whipping boy. He is now paid more, so more would be expected of him if he were to play in a top-four defensive role.

Adding Petry all but determined Simon Edvinsson's fate to start the season if he's healthy. As the only defender who can be sent down without going through waivers, he'll likely hone his skills and develop more as the top defender in the AHL. That is better than serving as the eighth defenseman in the NHL. As for Maatta, he is seemingly pushed out to the seventh spot and will get significantly less playing time if everybody is healthy.

The power play also changes a bit. Petry can serve as a good second unit option, so he will likely play with Seider. Gostisbehere is the go-to option on the first unit as he's a power-play specialist. Even though it might hurt a couple of the defensemen's chances at more playing time this season with the Red Wings, the Petry addition makes the team better. I don't think they will be good enough to make the playoffs, but they at least have a chance and a strong defensive unit all the way through.