Jordan Oesterle can stop pinching himself at least for a day: This memory isn’t about to fade.
The depth defenseman ensured the Detroit Red Wings have a chance to head into their All-Star Break on a good note, as they can carry a winning momentum into Wednesday’s game against the Los Angeles Kings. For the second time in a week the Wings rebounded from disappointment to pocket two points. Oesterle made his first goal in his hometown uniform a memorable one, scoring in overtime Monday at Little Caesars Arena for a 2-1 win.
“It’s been awesome,” Oesterle said. “It’s pretty surreal. I have to kind of pinch myself every day that I’m still in Michigan and play for the team you grew up watching. I’m pretty lucky.”
Oesterle scored in front of his wife, parents and a couple cousins. The Dearborn Heights native estimated he has a handful of people at every home game.
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Oesterle, 29, has had the unusual role of being on the top defense pairing opposite Moritz Seider — or a healthy scratch. Monday’s victory over the Anaheim Ducks was Oesterle’s 24th appearance in 46 games. General manager signed Oesterle last summer for two years, $2.7 million contract, adding a former Western Michigan product who has honed his NHL skills in Edmonton, Chicago and Arizona.
He has been with Seider partly to keep the other pairings intact, but also because Oesterle understands what his job is.
“I think what allows him to be successful in the role he’s in is that he’s been able to maintain his confidence,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “He hasn’t let my decisions at times to not play him shake his confidence, and I think that’s a huge thing and I think that’s a huge thing for these guys, and especially for guys that aren’t getting top minutes or in the lineup every night.
“You’ve got to find ways to not let other people’s decisions affect you and keep your confidence up. He’s done an excellent job of that. He’s gone in and he’s played with confidence. I think he believes he’s good enough to help us win every night and if I make the decision to put him in, he plays with great confidence, and if I don’t, he doesn’t let it drag him down.”
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Oesterle’s levelheadedness showed Monday: In the second period, it was his pass that the Ducks picked off to make it 1-1. Oesterle amended for that in overtime, after Larkin had won the draw. Oesterle got the puck, hesitated, and then ripped a shot past John Gibson.
“You have to be able to get past those things and you can’t let it shake you for the rest of the game,” Blashill said. “I thought for the rest of the game he played pretty well. Larks and Razor dug hard to help win that puck and good for him to shoot it in the net.”
Oesterle knew he needed to make amends.
“Whenever you have a turnover like that, you want to kind of redeem yourself and erase that mistake,” he said. “Lucky enough, I was able to. I was just hoping we’d get the win.”
Oesterle certainly has earned himself a spot in Wednesday’s lineup. He’s used to not making a game roster, too, and understands how to deal with it. That’s why he’s been such a good fit.
“I’ve gone through it before in my career,” Oesterle said. “It’s just staying level headed. We have a great group in there so it’s not hard to come to the rink and go to work with these guys and when your number is called, you just go and perform the best you can.”
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.