Moritz Seider
The much anticipated debut of Moritz Seider should occur next month when the Red Wings begin the regular season against Tampa Bay. Seider is the most important prospect in the Detroit system. Since he was drafted, Seider has played exceptional hockey.
At 18, Seider was coming off his first year of professional hockey in the DEL. He played 49 games for Grand Rapids (AHL) where he scored 22 points. Last year, Seider was loaned to Rogle (SHL) where he scored 28 points in 41 regular season games and five points in 13 games in the playoffs. For his efforts, Seider was named as the Top Defenseman in the SHL.
Seider played in the World Championships for Germany. In the tournament, Seider scored five points in 10 games and was once again voted as the Top Defenseman.
During the summer, the Red Wings made a trade for veteran defenseman Nick Leddy. It is expected that Seider and Leddy will play as the top defense pairing for the Red Wings this year. The emergence of Seider should take some of the pressure off the returning Detroit defense.
It appears that Seider is ready to make the next step in his hockey career. It should be fun to watch the big German defenseman play in the NHL for Detroit.
Alex Nedeljkovic
Alex Nedeljkovic was traded to the Detroit Red Wings before the Entry Draft. This may turn out to be the most important trade of Steve Yzerman’s tenure as General Manager in Detroit.
Nedeljkovic finished his junior career in my hometown in St. Catharines, ON when he played for Niagara (OHL). Since turning professional, Nedeljkovic has been outstanding.
In 2019, he helped Charlotte (AHL) win the Calder Cup Championship. He won the award as the Top Goaltender in the AHL and led the league with 34 wins.
Last year Nedljkovic played 23 regular season and nine playoff games for the Carolina Hurricanes. He was named to the All-Rookie team when he posted an impressive record of 15-5-3. He also had the lowest GAA (1.90) among qualifying goalies. Nedeljkovic also had the best SV% (.932) for goalies in the NHL last year.
After being a RFA, Nedeljkovic signed a two-year contract extension to play for Detroit. At 25, Nedeljkovic needs to prove that he can play at a high level for the Red Wings. He has a terrific mentor in Thomas Greiss, but don’t be surprised to see Nedeljkovic play 50-60 games for Detroit this year.