from Ansar Khan of Mlive,

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.

Chariot and Maatta were part of Yzerman’s free-agent signing spree that included center Andrew Copp, wingers David Perron and Dominik Kubalik and defenseman Mark Pysyk. He also traded for goaltender Ville Husso and signed him to a three-year extension.

“A lot of good, young players. Obviously just needed some help, a little more depth,” Chiarot said. “I think that’s what they’ve done, bring in some veteran guys to kind of help along the younger guys. It should be a nice mix for us this year.”

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