Kevin Shattenkirk.jpg

St. Louis Blues defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk has one more year left on his deal. (AP files)

(AP File Photo)

On Wednesday, we took a look at some of the forwards the Detroit Red Wings are pursuing in free agency. Now, it's time to look at some defensemen.

The defensemen situation is a bit different, as only one of the players featured is an unrestricted free agent. Two of them still are under contract, and the Red Wings would have to make a deal with their respective teams to get them. The last player is a restricted free agent, meaning general manager Ken Holland would have to draw up an offer sheet for that player, but the player's team has the ability to match that deal.

Let's take a look at some of the top defensemen the Red Wings could acquire Friday with their score-, zone- and venue-adjusted five on five stats from the 2015-16 season:

5 on 5 (15-16) Cam Fowler Dan Hamhuis Jacob Trouba Kevin Shattenkirk GP 69 58 81 72 TOI (minutes) 1,116.91 939.26 1,359.58 1,162.15 CF60 57.54 54.68 58.82 57.00 CA60 56.76 55.68 56.34 52.10 CF% 50.34 49.55 51.08 52.25 Relative CF% -4.10 3.31 0.33 -0.18 xGF60 2.53 2.45 2.78 2.41 xGA60 2.68 2.52 2.51 2.39 xGF% 48.6 49.23 52.54 50.16 GF60 2.21 1.88 2.58 1.98 GA60 2.61 2.56 2.21 2.49 GF% 45.82 42.32 53.89 44.22

As you can see, Jacob Trouba stands out among the four defensemen. He played the most minutes and leads in Corsi for per 60 minutes, expected goals for per 60, expected goals for percentage, team goals for per 60, team goals against per 60 and team goals for percentage.

However, Trouba will be hard to acquire, as he is a restricted free agent, so the Jets can match any offer Holland gives him. Winnipeg certainly could trade Trouba, and with the recent extension for Dustin Byfuglien, that is a possibility. But the Jets will want a hefty return for the 22-year-old who shows promise.

The Red Wings also would have to compensate the Jets with draft picks if Winnipeg didn't match an offer sheet.

Kevin Shattenkirk looks like a solid option as well. He leads in Corsi against per 60 and expected goals against per 60.

Dan Hamhuis, the only unrestricted free agent, certainly is the weakest defenseman of the four. He had poor possession stats and poor scoring stats. Hamhuis would be more of a depth option than an answer to the Red Wings' struggling defense.

Let's take a look at the stats from the past three seasons:

5 on 5 (13-16) Cam Fowler Dan Hamhuis Jacob Trouba Kevin Shattenkirk GP 219 196 211 209 TOI (minutes) 3,523.17 3,258.18 3,462.64 3,291.01 CF60 56.42 56.98 61.26 59.09 CA60 56.00 55.06 57.48 50.25 CF% 50.19 50.86 51.59 54.04 Relative CF% -2.10 2.06 0.49 1.93 xGF60 2.57 2.45 2.74 2.58 xGA60 2.49 2.58 2.57 2.15 xGF% 50.75 48.62 51.59 54.46 GF60 2.28 2.54 2.49 2.41 GA60 2.32 2.51 2.44 2.13 GF% 49.57 50.36 50.43 53.08

Again, Trouba looks like the go-to player, but the gap is much smaller. Shattenkirk has better possession numbers and does a better job of defending than Trouba does.

Let's take a look at the radar chart:

Defensemen radar chart by Ryan Stimson.

Note: For an interactive view at the chart, click here.

The chart doesn't help the Red Wings' case to acquire Cam Fowler. The only metric close to the edge is Corsi of quality of teammates, which means he has played with top-line talent and hasn't been able to take advantage of that.

Shattenkirk appears to be the better all-around defenseman. He produces a lot of shots and keeps the shot differential in his favor, but doesn't reach the edge of the chart in any category.

None of these defensemen are game changers who can quickly turn around the Red Wings, but for the right price, they could help a unit that has struggled ever since Nicklas Lidstrom's retirement in 2012.

Note: All data taken from Corsica.hockey.

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