Wyatt Kaiser isn't a household name and he doesn't have as large of an impact on games as many do, but the 23-year-old defensive defenseman is quietly having a solid season and doing what he does well for how inexperienced he is.
Kaiser is just one of the many young defensemen in the Chicago Blackhawks' organization and he has held his spot on the second pairing all season long. In the first of a two-year, $1.7 million AAV deal, it's not tough to argue that he has outperformed expectations of the contract and for this season.
One key thing to note in his game is the defensive zone puck battles, in which he leads the league with 101. He is the only player above 100 in the NHL this season so far. In comparison to most of the Blackhawks' defensemen, he isn't big either, even though he is 6'0.
Kaiser starts the fourth-most % of draws in the defensive zone among defensemen who have played for Chicago this season. He has drawn 12 penalties, the second-most among d-men due to his strong play in the defensive zone and ability to win puck battles, and he's blocked 46 shots on top of that.
It's also not particularly close when it comes to takeaways among Blackhawks' defensemen as Kaiser has 25 and nobody else has 20 or more. The young d-man is a penalty killer, skates over 19 minutes per game, and has a firm grip of his role on the Blackhawks moving forward with so much competition.
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