I think you and I are very much on the same wavelength here. I do believe that Holl was basically the easy guy to blame for the Leafs and their fanbase. Despite it all, I think he could be a very solid, simple two-way guy eating minutes with the right partner is a far less pressure situation like Toronto. Playing the steady man on the right side, seems like a near ideal spot.
I don't think that Chiarot has found his footing here in DET, and I hope that him and Holl together, playing a 2nd/3rd pair stay-at-home, and far less offensively aggressive game allows them to just keep focused and be very good complement to one another. I don't see anything wrong with either physically, they both have good speed, strength, power, passing, etc. Hopefully a new coach (Boughner), a simpler more defensively geared system, and better chemistry between them turn them into a "sum greater than the parts.." kind of deal.
That being said, I think the hold here is still waiting at least another year and if the kid forces the issue, great, but I don't get the impression that they are in any rush to push Ed up. I said last year I think AlJo gets his foot in the door sooner than he does and I don't think either become fixtures pre-2024. As the same thing with Leddy when everyone wanted to light him on fire for being the worsest worse ever on the worst defense ever and he should just be cut:
Veteran defenseman who can play minutes, aren't total offensive black holes (i.e. have more than 15pts a season), still have their legs/joints/hips/etc. , and are under 5M a season are always highly coveted. Always. So despite us not loving Chiarot, he will be worth assets back at some point and having him in the lineup now probably means a lot more to Stevie and Lalonde than we want to admit as well. Which is why I sooner see them sending off Mattaa (positionally sound, lots a step, 28, cheaper deal, less term, doesn't have a M-NTC) to free up some space on the Left side - over moving Chiarot who can play both, still has three years, etc.
But I am rooting for a good Chiarot - Holl pairing and think they are going to surprise folks this next year