By Luke Sims -
The Minnesota Wild only acquired prospects and draft capital at this year's trade deadline. However, a move they made at the end of January may pay dividends for a long time to come.
The Winnipeg Jets graciously put one of their young defensemen, Declan Chisholm, on waivers. Because of the Wild's precarious standing situation, they scooped up the Ontario native.
Minnesota’s defensive core has been shaky all season long, with Jared Spurgeon suffering a season-ending injury and Jonas Brodin and Jake Middleton missing time. The Wild have had to rely on Brock Faber’s stellar play to provide stability on the backend.
The Wild's defensive core is not known for its offensive output. Minnesota had a defender in Calen Addison, who was seen as a powerplay specialist. However, management soured on him because of his lapses in the defensive zone, and they traded him to the San Jose Sharks.
Chisholm is a similar player. Chisholm’s offense is his strength. The left-shot defenseman racked up 91 points over 146 AHL games with Manitoba. Chisholm also was over a point-per-game player as a defenseman in his final year in juniors.
At 6-foot-1, 190 lbs., Chisholm is the prototypical NHL defender. His size makes it harder for opponents to move Chisholm off the puck and gives him a little more oomph behind his physical play.
During his time in Minnesota, Chisholm has been on the second or third pair while quarterbacking the second powerplay unit. Jonas Brodin and Jon Merrill have been his main defensive partners. While one of those partners is elite and one isn’t, Chisholm has put up respectable numbers in his short stint with the Wild.
Five points in 13 games doesn’t seem impressive. But that’s 32 points throughout an 82-game season, which would be third on the Wild behind Faber and Brodin. Chisholm is willing to get pucks to the net and has an absolute howitzer of a shot. He’s not quite Brent Burns, but Chisholm puts enough behind his shot to make goalies respect it.
Chisholm has the highest expected goals for per 60 minutes (xGF/60) on the team at 2.88. He’s also turning a positive on the Corsi meter every night. Chisholm has controlled possession with aplomb when he is on the ice, with a 52.17% Corsi For %.
But what about his defensive numbers? If Chisholm is going to stay with the Wild, he must improve his defensive game.
Chisholm’s defensive metrics aren’t incredibly encouraging, but they ain’t all bad. Chisholm has a goals against per 60 (GA/60) of 2.51, the third highest on the team behind Faber and Middleton at 5v5.
Chisholm has done a solid job not allowing shots. The youngster is first on the team when it comes to shots against per 60 minutes (SA/60) with 22.74. The goaltending with Chisholm on the ice has done him no favors. The team save percentage is just 89.68 when Chisholm is on the ice.
His work in Minnesota has given the Wild plenty of reason to want him back this offseason. Chisholm would cost almost nothing to re-sign and provides more than Alex Goligoski, Merrill, or Dakota Mermis, and he’s still young enough to improve. Goligoski, Merrill, and Mermis are what they are or getting worse at this point in their careers. Chisholm still has some room to grow. It makes sense to invest in the younger, higher-upside player.
The former fifth-rounder could be a piece of the Wild’s defensive core now and in the future. Assuming that Spurgeon comes back healthy next season, their fully healthy defensive core could look something like this:
Faber - Brodin
Spurgeon - Middleton
Chisholm - Bogosian
The Wild could have their two powerplay guys in Faber and Chisholm while not sacrificing as much at 5v5 as they were with Addison. Merrill and, god-willing, Daemon Hunt can work in if there are injuries or Bogo’s play falls off, which is typical of 35+ physical defensemen tend to do.
Minnesota got good value on claiming Chisholm. The Jets buried him in the AHL and never gave him a shot in the NHL. Now, with the Wild, he’s getting that chance and making the most of it. Minnesota bet on Chisholm, and he’s proving them right so far.
All stats and data via HockeyDB, Evolving Hockey, Natural Stat Trick, and CapFriendly unless otherwise noted.
Think you could write a story like this? Hockey Wilderness wants you to develop your voice, find an audience, and we'll pay you to do it. Just fill out this form.
-
5
Recommended Comments
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.