Red Wings Prospect Pipeline Deep Dive: Theodor Niederbach

The Detroit Red Wings have plenty of top-tier players in their pipeline – and one who has garnered a lot of attention from the fanbase: Theodor Niederbach.

2021 Statline

MoDo (HockeyAllsvenskan)

Game Played: 15

Goals: 3

Assists: 6

Frolunda J20 (SHL Juniors)

Games Played: 19

Goals: 13

Assists: 22

Frolunda

Games Played: 20

Goals: 3

Assists: 2

Sweden U-20 

Games Played: 5

Goals: 2

Assists: 0

Measurables

RW/C

5-foot-11

172 Pounds

19-years-old

Scouting Report

Drafted in the second round of the 2020 NHL Draft, Theodor Niederbach is one of many Swedish prospects in the Red Wings organization.

Niederbach was seen as a bit of a risk in his draft year. In 2018-19, the year before he was selected by Detroit, he missed the entire season due to a knee injury. However, 15 goals and 33 assists in just 40 games with Frolunda U-20 was enough to quell most concerns about his play.

In his draft +1 year, Niederbach continued his production in the Swedish juniors, scoring 13 goals and 22 assists in 19 games. His impressive performance was enough to earn him a slot on Frolunda’s main roster in the SHL, where he put up three goals and two assists in 20 games. Niederbach also played in Sweden’s second-tier pro-league, HockeyAllsvenskan, scoring three goals and six assists in 15 games with MoDo Hockey.

Niederbach is a playmaking center. He has raw puck/stickhandling skills that have fooled defenders since the juniors. Niederbach is most dangerous when he’s driving the net; it’s a lose-lose for any opponent forced to stop it. If the defender focuses on his teammates coming up the wing, Niederbach will slip past with a  slick deke or maneuver; if the defender commits just to defending Niederbach, he’ll sling a tap-to-tape pass to a fellow teammate for a dangerous scoring chance.

Niederbach is also fantastic in the offensive zone. He has great puck movement, is great in tight spaces and can capitalize on a given chance. This skillset also makes him a lethal advantage on the power play.

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Niederbach’s biggest flaws are his skating and defense. However, both took large steps forward in 2021. His skating isn’t terrible, it just doesn’t quite match the other skills in his offensive toolkit. Defensively, Niederbach can make clean defensive zone exits and steals with his raw skills, but he lacks consistency in coverage.

ETA: 2023-24

It’s hard to predict when a prospect will finally make their entrance into the NHL, especially in an organization that tends to over-ripen their players as much as Detroit.

Niederbach will likely take a bit longer than some expect to transition to Detroit. This season, he still played a good amount of games in the juniors – this year will be his first full season in the pros with Frolunda. In 20 games with Frolunda this season, Niederbach struggled a bit to fully transition his skillset, but an offseason and a bit of experience under his belt could lead to a breakout year in 2021-22. If this is the case, Niederbach could make Detroit as soon as next season. However, it’s more likely his growth is linear and not exponential; when he heads over to North America next season, he’ll likely spend time in Grand Rapids.

Niederbach is one of the more exciting prospects coming down Detroit’s pipeline. With raw talent, great hockey IQ and the ability to play at center, Niederbach could be play an important role in the Red Wings’ future.

Stats sourced from EliteProspects.com