How and why Alex Chiasson has found a net-front fit on the Red Wings power play

The Red Wings forward has seized an opportunity after Detroit traded Tyler Bertuzzi

I know, I wrote about Alex Chiasson last week.

And that story is still relevant, in fact you should read it if you haven’t.

But let’s talk about another key element to the Alex Chiasson story that’s unfolded since he signed with the Detroit Red Wings right before the trade deadline.

Since he signed, Chiasson has taken over as the Red Wings primary net-front presence on the power play and has cashed in with a pair of goals and an assist on the man advantage.

It’s a small sample size, it was just his fifth game in Detroit, but visually here is a pretty goo image of what Chiasson has done for Detroit. The top right quadrant is the impact on the power play.

Chiasson naturally downplayed the success, but Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde gave him some additional credit to Chiasson last week.

“It seems simple, but there's a lot that goes into that timing, taking the goalies eyes being able to make a play in the goal line,” Lalonde said. “We've tried other guys that just don't have the feel of when to have that presence, when to show puck support when to make a play. There's a there's a talent to it and he looks comfortable there.”

And good friend of the site, Prashanth Iyer, had a wonderful story idea on Sunday during the Red Wings 5-3 win against the Boston Bruins.

Prashanth Iyer @iyer_prashanth

please, please just clip what chiasson has done on the power play the last two games and show it as an example of what to do as the netfront presence

So let’s do just that, and look at how and why Chiasson has had success in front of the net.