Moritz Seider's iron-man streak passed Nicklas Lidström for second in franchise history

Moritz Seider has not missed a game to start his career. He is currently tied with former Detroit Red Wings superstar defenseman, Nicklas Lidström, at 284 consecutive games. The road game versus the Winnipeg Jets leaves him in second place in the historic Detroit Red Wings' history for consecutive games played to start his career.

This idea would be an impressive feat for anyone, however, it’s the physical style of play that really highlights Seider’s durability and leaves me wanting to compare his productivity against his peers. Most of the pertinent defensive stats were not tabulated in the first four years of Lidström’s career, so instead I will use current active players. For the purposes of the iron-man streak, I am going to compare Moritz Seider’s stats against the top-25 defensemen in the league determined by most time-on-ice since the start of the 2021-22 season.

Here's how Moritz Seider stacks up against the best defensemen in the NHL

Of the top 25 defensemen who have the most time on ice (TOI) since Seider joined the NHL, the ranks (from the NHL website as of Monday, January 6, 2025):

1. 11th in Hits: 666 (behind MacKenzie Weeger: 668, ahead of Alexander Romanov: 653)

Rarely do I see Seider venturing out of his way to hit someone. Almost all of his hits are solid defensive plays meant to separate the man from the puck. He doesn't leave his position or abandon his duties to make unnecessary, open-ice hits intended to injure an opponent, which gets him style points for that in my book.

2. Third in blocked shots: 654 (first Brayden McNabb: 673, second Jacob Trouba: 667, fourth Colton Parayko: 629)

These blocks are often preserving a lead in a big way for the team. Just the other day at the Washington Capitals game I sat behind the Detroit Red Wings net and watched Seider on the penalty kill block three consecutive Alexander Ovechkin blasts from his patented one-timer position to preserve a 3-2 lead which the team later converted into two points. The following game, a goal-line left pad save from Seider on the Pittsburgh Penguins, Anthony Beauvillier, at the end of the second period to preserve a 2-1 lead with Alex Lyon down and out, scrambling to get back into the net.

3. 27th in takeaways: 126 (behind John Marino: 127, ahead of Roman Josi: 125)

This category is dominated by the offensive-minded defenseman. Here we see that the top three in takeaways are also three of the top six point-getters by defenseman as well. Seider is not the offensive juggernaut that the others are, but holds his own in this category, ranking 15th in points scored among the top 25 TOI leaders.

4. 59th in giveaways: 177 (behind Justin Faulk: 178, ahead of Brett Kulak: 175)

I’m pretty impressed by this stat as well. I couldn’t find stats on this, but I’d be willing to bet the Detroit Red Wings are bottom three teams when it comes to time spent in their own zone. So, for Seider to be fifth in giveaways on a team that spends as much time in their own zone as they do, that’s pretty good too.

Seider is also the youngest player among the players on this list.