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Moritz Seider

Atlantic Notes: Olofsson, Seider, Raymond, Bouchard

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Earlier this offseason, Sabres winger Victor Olofsson and his representatives expected a trade to be coming at some point before training camp.  However, Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News suggests that a move involving the 28-year-old is a lot less likely now thanks to the Achilles injury to Jack Quinn that will keep the youngster out for at least the first two months of the season.  Olofsson is now in the final year of his contract which carries a $4.75MM AAV which, in itself, makes a trade difficult despite coming off a year that saw him collect 28 goals, a new career high.  With Quinn out for a while, Olofsson could lock down a spot a little higher in the lineup after seeing time on the fourth line last season which would give him a chance to be a productive piece for Buffalo in the early going in 2023-24.

More from the Atlantic:

  • A pair of Red Wings in defenseman Moritz Seider and winger Lucas Raymond are eligible for contract extensions this summer. MLive’s Ansar Khan assessed both players to try to determine a rough idea of what a max-term agreement for each would look like.  In Seider’s case, Dallas blueliner Miro Heiskanen’s deal which carries an AAV of $8.45MM is a good comparable and a deal around that price point could keep him below Dylan Larkin’s $8.7MM price tag which could be a soft ceiling.  Meanwhile, Khan feels that Montreal’s Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield whose AAVs are just below $7.9MM might be the right spot for Raymond.  GM Steve Yzerman has a little over $54MM in commitments on the books for 2024-25 per CapFriendly which means that Detroit has more than enough wiggle room to do long-term agreements with both youngsters if they so desire.
  • Earlier this offseason, Tampa Bay hired Joel Bouchard as their new head coach with AHL Syracuse, taking the place of Benoit Groulx. Speaking with Herb Zurkowsky of the Montreal Gazette, Bouchard indicated that he wasn’t actively seeking another coaching position at this time and that he never interviewed for the job; it was simply offered to him by Lightning GM Julien BriseBois.  This is his third different AHL coaching position after spending time previously with Laval and San Diego.

Moritz Seider Will Attend World Championships

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Star Detroit Red Wings defender Moritz Seider will be a late addition to the German roster for the 2023 IIHF Men’s World Championships, the German Ice Hockey Federation announced today. Seider will join the German contingent on Wednesday, heading to the host city of Tampere, Finland, after initially planning not to go to the tournament due to injury concerns.

Seider overcame a slow start to the 2022-23 campaign to post similar numbers to his rookie season, playing in all 82 games yet again. The sixth overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft recorded five goals and 42 points, ending up with the team lead among defenders after Filip Hronek was shipped to the Vancouver Canucks late in the season. Averaging over 23 minutes a game, there wasn’t a sizeable sophomore slump on Seider’s journey to becoming a perennial All-Star defender.

He joins Germany’s team at the upcoming Worlds as the only defender with NHL experience. However, the team does boast John-Jason Peterka, Nico Sturm, and former NHLer Dominik Kahun on their list of forwards.

This is Seider’s third appearance for Germany at the Worlds. He posted seven points in eight games at least year’s tournament, which resulted in a quarterfinal loss for the Germans.

Award Notes: Jim Gregory Award Finalists, All-Rookie Team, All-Star Teams

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While there were five awards handed out on Tuesday, there is still one more to be announced.  That one is the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award.  It’s voted on by all 32 NHL GMs as well as some NHL executives at the end of the second round.  Not surprisingly, all three of the finalists, who were named during the NHL Awards show, were among the four to help lead their teams to the conference finals including Julien BriseBois of the Lightning, Chris Drury of the Rangers, and Joe Sakic of the Avalanche.  Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello won the award a year ago.  The winner for this won’t be announced until partway through the first round of the draft next month in Montreal.

More news from awards night:

Moritz Seider Wins The 2022 Calder Trophy

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On Tuesday, the final five NHL awards are being handed out.  The second award of the night was the Calder Memorial Trophy, handed out to the NHL’s top rookie.  Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider took home the trophy after a stellar first season.  Maple Leafs winger Michael Bunting and Ducks center Trevor Zegras were the other two finalists.

The 21-year-old was the sixth-overall pick by Detroit back in 2019 and spent his post-draft season with AHL Grand Rapids before playing in Sweden last season.  The extra seasoning certainly was beneficial as he led all rookie defensemen with 50 points (seven goals and 43 assists), the third-highest point output from a rookie rearguard in the last 30 years.  Seider also led all rookies (including forwards) in assists and power play points while logging more than 23 minutes a game to lead all Detroit defensemen, a franchise record for all rookies.

As a result, the vote wasn’t particularly close.  Of the 195 PHWA members to cast a ballot, Seider was ranked first on 170 of them while he was the only player to appear in the top three on every ballot.  That helped Seider become the first Detroit rookie to win the award since goaltender Roger Crozier back in the 1964-65 season.

The full results of the voting can be found here.

Poll: NHL Award Predictions

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Tonight’s the night that the stars gather to hand out some fancy hardware at the 2022 NHL Awards in Tampa. Kenan Thompson will return to host the show, which will be the first live award event since 2019, with the last two canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The event will announce the winners of the Hart Trophy, the Norris Trophy, the Vezina Trophy, the Calder Trophy, and the Ted Lindsay Award, five of the most prestigious individual awards in hockey. With just a few hours before things kick off, let’s see if the PHR community can predict the winners of each.

For the Hart, given to the player “judged most valuable to his team,” the finalists are Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, and Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers. Remember that these are all regular season awards with a vote before the playoffs begin.

 

The Norris, given to the defenseman “who demonstrated throughout the season the greatest all-around ability at the position,” is down to Roman Josi of the Nashville Predators, Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, and Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The latter two are doing battle for a much bigger prize but could still add some hardware to their cases tonight if they can topple the Predators captain.

 

The Vezina, given to the best goaltender in the NHL and voted on by the league’s general managers, will be given to one of Shesterkin, Jacob Markstrom of the Calgary Flames, or Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators. None of the three have won the award previously, meaning we’ll have a new name engraved this year.

 

Three very different rookies are on the ballot for the Calder, given to the top first-year player in the league. Moritz Seider of the Detroit Red Wings and Trevor Zegras of the Anaheim Ducks will battle with 26-year-old Michael Bunting of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who finally got a chance to play regular minutes in the NHL and responded well.

 

Given the prestige of the Hart, the Ted Lindsay is sometimes overlooked as a major award but it shouldn’t be. The player-voted “most outstanding” award is a huge honor given it comes from direct peers and does not always go to the same recipient as the Hart. This year even the finalists are different, with Matthews and McDavid being joined by Josi on the ballot.

 

Cast your vote and make sure to come back to leave a comment with how many you got correct!

2022 Calder Trophy Finalists Announced

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The NHL has continued to release the finalists for their major regular season awards, this time giving us the top Calder Trophy candidates. This award is given to the top first-year player in the league and is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

The finalists are Moritz Seider of the Detroit Red Wings, Trevor Zegras of the Anaheim Ducks, and Michael Bunting of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Seider, 21, was an absolute workhorse for the Red Wings from the moment he hit the ice this season, playing as a true rookie by making his debut and playing in all 82 games. The sixth-overall pick from 2019 appears to be a future superstar, with the ability to create positive effects in basically every facet of the game. He’s big–6’4″ 203lbs–fast, skilled, and confident, immediately grabbing hold of the Detroit blue line as if it had belonged to him for years. With 50 points, he tied Cale Makar for the second-highest scoring rookie season from a defenseman since 1993 (Quinn Hughes is first with 53). Adding in 151 hits, 161 blocks, and nearly two minutes of short-handed time every night shows just how well-rounded the young defender is.

Zegras, 21, is arguably the most exciting and highlight-worthy young player in the game, routinely doing things that have rarely been seen before. While he did play in 24 games last season, he retained his rookie eligibility and showed what he could do over a full year, potting 23 goals and 61 points in 75 games. The Ducks forward is the centerpiece of the next wave in Anaheim and will likely only get better as he matures in the center ice position. There’s no doubt that Zegras can do it all offensively, and his appearance at the NHL All-Star festivities even without being selected to play in the game show just how high his star will rise.

Bunting, 26, is a much different story than the other two. There was no early stardom bestowed on the 2014 fourth-round pick, as he toiled away in the Arizona Coyotes minor league system. It was after a 21-game showing at the end of the 2020-21 season that he caught the eye of the Maple Leafs, who signed him as a Group VI unrestricted free agent and proceeded to put him on a line with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. Bunting’s agitating, in-your-face style fit perfectly with the two offensive juggernauts, and it resulted in 23 goals and 63 points for the Toronto rookie. Bunting led the rookie scoring race by two points over Zegras (in four more games) but also has more than five years on his first-year counterpart.

Germany, Switzerland, Russia Announce Members Of 2022 Olympic Team

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The first three members of each participating Olympic hockey nation are being announced this week, with top names like Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, David Pastrnak and Victor Hedman already locked in to compete for their respective countries. Today, Germany, Switzerland, Slovakia, Latvia, Denmark and Russia all revealed the first three names on their roster sheet.

For Germany, it comes as no surprise that Leon Draisaitl leads the way. The Edmonton Oilers superstar is one of the most dangerous playmakers in the world, winning the Hart and Art Ross trophies in 2020. He’ll be joined by Philipp Grubauer, who gives the German squad an elite goaltending option for the tournament.

The third member is an interesting choice though, as Moritz Seider, the Detroit Red Wings prospect who has yet to even make his NHL debut, has already locked in his spot at the Games. The 20-year-old defenseman was the sixth-overall pick in 2019 and has is expected to make an impact for the Red Wings in short order.

Switzerland has a trio of impressive NHL talents, starting with Nashville Predators captain Roman Josi. The 31-year-old defenseman won the Norris Trophy in 2020 and has helped his small country take home two silver medals at the World Championship. In fact, in 2013 when Switzerland came in second, Josi was named tournament MVP. Josi will be joined by Timo Meier of the San Jose Sharks and Nico Hischier of the New Jersey Devils, two established NHL forwards that have represented Switzerland on several occasions in the past.

The Slovaks may now have quite the same star power, but there’s still plenty of NHL experience announced today. Andrej Sekera, Erik Cernak and Jaroslav Halak will all be donning their nation’s colors next year, bringing the building blocks of a strong defensive unit. Cernak, 24, has developed into an extremely valuable and versatile player for the Tampa Bay Lightning, winning two Stanley Cup championships in his first three years of NHL action.

Latvia and Denmark, who don’t usually have much of a chance at a medal actually have some NHL talent of their own to announce today. Rudolfs Balcers, Zemgus Girgensons and Kristians Rubins will take part for Latvia, while Oliver Bjorkstrand, Nikolaj Ehlers and Alexander True make up a great start for the Danes.

It’s Russia that will draw the most attention today though, as the three players announced have all been considered among the best in the world at some point. Alex Ovechkin, a player who is chasing down history by attempting to catch and break Wayne Gretzky’s NHL goal record, Nikita Kucherov, the 2019 Hart Trophy winner and Andrei Vasilevskiy, the most recent Conn Smythe recipient, make up a trio that’s hard to match. Russia, who will be competing as the “Russian Olympic Committee” is the reigning Olympic champion after taking home the award (then as the Olympic Athletes from Russia) in 2018 when the NHL did not participate.

Atlantic Notes: Cozens, Seider, Sogaard

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With the never-ending rumors of Jack Eichel’s eventual trade on top of the departures of several other core Sabres this summer, its fair to wonder who will fill the leadership vacuum in Buffalo. However, young standout Dylan Cozens is more than ready to take on that role. Appearing on WGR 550 in Buffalo, the 2019 seventh overall pick stated that he is confident in his ability to lead this next generation of Sabres. “I think definitely I could go out and be a leader on this team,” Cozens said. “Just by the way I play, leading by example and being a voice in the room. I think it’s something I’m ready to do. I want to lead by example and be a guy that guys can look to if they need anything or look to to inspire them. That’s what I’ve always been growing up – the guy that wants to lead and do things the right way.” Part of what makes Cozens a great candidate to lead Buffalo for years to come is an optimism that has been missing from other core members through a dark stretch for the franchise. “I think that we’re going to surprise a lot of people this year,” Cozens believes. “Everyone’s doubting us because we’re a young team, but if you look at the second half of last season, we were beating those veteran teams. So I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people and we’re going to have a good year.”

    • The Detroit Red Wings are looking forward to prodigious defenseman Moritz Seider developing into a leader for their club in the future. Yet, he was nowhere to be found on the team’s roster for the upcoming Traverse City Prospects Tournament. However, Red Wings Director of Player Development Shawn Horcoff tells The Athletic’s Max Bultman that this is actually an endorsement of Seider’s position in the organization rather than an indictment. Although Seider has yet to see any NHL action, Detroit is so confident in his ability to make the roster this season that they did not feel they needed to use a roster spot on him in the development tournament. “With Moritz, he’s played two years of pro now – he spent a full year in Grand Rapids, spent a full year over in Europe playing,” Horcoff explained. “Frankly, there’s some younger players that we wanted to see on the (Traverse City Tournament) roster and we just wanted to make sure that Mo was ready to go for main camp.” Fear not, Wings fans; the team clearly has no concerns about their top prospect stepping into the NHL lineup and making an impact this year.
    • The Ottawa Senators could face a difficult decision with young goaltender Mads Sogaard this season. As Bruce Garrioch details for the Ottawa Sun, the impressive prospect keeper could very well be in line for a roster spot at the Olympics for Team Denmark, making their first men’s hockey appearance at the Winter Games. Sogaard served as the team’s backup in qualifying tournaments this summer and while the those contests were played without presumptive starter, the Carolina Hurricanes’ Frederik Andersen, Sogaard is still likely to be the Danes’ first choice at third-string behind Andersen and qualifying starter Sebastian Dahm. The problem is that the AHL does not have an Olympic break like the NHL. While Ottawa’s players will have full flexibility to attend the Games if selected, Belleville’s may not. Garrioch points out that the farm team has ten games during the NHL’s Olympic break and, depending on how the organization’s goalie depth plays out this season, that could be a number of missed starts for Sogaard and a detriment to Belleville as well. The massive 6’7″ keeper had a strong first pro season last year and if fellow promising youngster Filip Gustavsson cracks the Ottawa roster, Sogaard could be the starter for Belleville. Will the Senators allow him to leave the team for an extended period in order to ride the bench for his country?

Expansion Primer: Detroit Red Wings

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Over the next few weeks, we will be breaking down each team’s situation as it pertains to the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. Which players are eligible, who will likely warrant protection, and which ones may be on the block to avoid the risk of losing them for nothing? Each team is required to submit their protection lists by 4:00 PM CDT on July 17th. The full eligibility rules can be found here, while CapFriendly has an expansion tool to make your own lists.

The last time we gathered here to determine the Detroit Red Wings’ expansion draft considerations, the team was in a steep downward decline. Yet they still ended up losing a bit of a diamond in the rough, as the Vegas Golden Knights selected forward Tomas Nosek. Nosek’s been a contributor in a bottom-six role every season in Vegas’ history, robbing Detroit of some quality depth. Now, with Detroit having hit the rock-bottom of their rebuild, their expansion situation looks fairly clear-cut this time around. With a lot of young talent exempt (and no Jimmy Howard/Petr Mrazek goalie controversy), the Red Wings and general manager Steve Yzerman are in a good position coming into 2021’s Seattle expansion draft.

Eligible Players (Non-UFA)

Forwards:
Riley Barber, Tyler Bertuzzi, Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri, Dylan Larkin, Frans Nielsen, Richard Panik, Vladislav Namestnikov, Michael Rasmussen, Givani Smith, Evgeny Svechnikov, Hayden Verbeek, Jakub Vrana

Defense:
Dennis Cholowski, Danny DeKeyser, Christian Djoos, Filip Hronek, Gustav Lindstrom, Troy Stecher

Goalies:
Kaden Fulcher, Thomas Greiss

Notable Unrestricted Free Agents

F Valtteri Filppula, F Sam Gagner, F Luke Glendening, F Darren Helm, F Bobby Ryan, D Alex Biega, D Marc Staal, G Jonathan Bernier

Notable Exemptions

F Joseph Veleno, F Filip Zadina, D Jared McIsaac, D Moritz Seider, G Filip Larsson

Key Decisions

The key decisions start with Detroit’s young forward group. They’ll undoubtedly be going with the seven forwards/three defensemen protection scheme. Four of those forward spots are relatively clear-cut, with Larkin, Bertuzzi, Fabbri, and recent acquisition Vrana being protection locks. That leaves three spots remaining, but with a mix of four veterans and young forwards competing for them.

The veteran of those candidates is Namestnikov. Signed to a two-year, $4MM deal prior to 2020-21 to provide some veteran presence during their rebuild, Namestnikov had his worst offensive season to date with just 17 points in 53 games. His defensive metrics were mediocre, which is on-brand for the versatile Russian forward. Detroit was Namestnikov’s fourth team since the beginning of 2019-20, and if left unprotected, Seattle could be his fifth.

However, there’s a trio of three younger forwards who could also vie for those spots. Erne, Rasmussen, and Svechnikov all looked good with the Wings this season. It was an especially important season for Svechnikov, who’s struggled with frequent injuries. He rebounded this year for eight points in 21 games while posting incredibly impressive possession metrics. Erne had a nice rebound season after a ghastly 2019-20 performance, scoring 11 goals and 20 points in 45 games. While his 15.5% shooting rate doesn’t scream sustainability, the 26-year-old showed nice flashes this season. There’s also Rasmussen, who’s still a developing project despite already playing in over 100 NHL contests. Drafted ninth overall in 2017, Rasmussen’s now totalled 30 points in 102 NHL games, including 12 points in 40 games last season. He’s consistently posted decent possession results, suggesting that the goal-scoring touch he had in juniors could be coming.

Detroit faces a similar quandary on defense with three names fighting for two spots. Hronek’s protection is a foregone conclusion, but Stecher, Cholowski, and Lindstrom are names that could fall into those last two spots.

Stecher sits as effectively a more impressive Namestnikov. Joining Detroit as a free agent prior to this season, Stecher settled nicely into a top-four role, posting admirable defensive metrics considering the hacked-together situation that was Detroit’s defense. However, like Namestnikov, he’s under contract for just one more season and there’s no guarantee that he stays. There’s also a pair of younger defenders in Cholowski and Lindstrom. Cholowski was a first-round pick in 2016 and showed great potential in his 2018-19 rookie season, but has stagnated at all levels since then. Detroit is willing to play the wait-and-see game with the young defender, who may see a full-time role again next year after just 16 games played in 2020-21. Lindstrom’s a year younger and doesn’t have as much upside, but he’s cobbled together four assists in 29 NHL games and could have third-pairing potential.

Projected Protection List

F Tyler Bertuzzi
F Adam Erne
F Robby Fabbri
F Dylan Larkin
F Michael Rasmussen
F Evgeny Svechnikov
F Jakub Vrana

D Dennis Cholowski
D Filip Hronek
D Troy Stecher

G Thomas Greiss

Skater Exposure Requirement Checklist

When Vegas had their expansion draft, a minimum of two forwards and one defenseman had to be exposed that were under contract and played either 40 games in the most recent season or 70 over the past two combined.  Due to the pandemic, those thresholds have been changed to 27 games played in 2020-21 or 54 in 2019/20 and 2020-21 combined.  In creating our expansion list for each team in this series, we will ensure that these criteria are met.

Forwards (3): Vladislav Namestnikov, Frans Nielsen, Richard Panik
Defensemen (1): Danny DeKeyser

There are very few pickings here that the Kraken would be interested in, and Detroit is likely to emerge from the expansion draft unscathed. While Detroit will have some depth forwards exposed, Seattle can likely find cheaper and better options elsewhere. Seattle could end up taking an AHL skater with limited upside like Lindstrom or Smith, or take a pending UFA like Glendening if they really don’t like any of their options.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Snapshots: Larsson, McIsaac, Bergman

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While the Edmonton Oilers have much bigger free-agent fish to fry, there seems to be some life in their contract negotiations with defender Adam Larsson. The Fourth Period’s Dave Pagnotta reports that the Oilers and Larsson’s agent are to resume talks this week.

Larsson, of ’the trade is one-for-one’ fame, was an understated piece of the Oilers’ defense this season. After being plagued by injury in 2019-20, Larsson stepped up in a big way to help offset Edmonton’s loss of Oscar Klefbom. His 128 blocks this year were the same amount he had in a full 82-game season in 2018-19, while he ramped up his offensive production to four goals and 10 points. Talks about his extension first surfaced in May, where Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported a four-year deal was a likely outcome. It goes without saying that Edmonton would love to retain the 28-year-old Swede.

  • The Detroit Red Wings organization received some good news today, as defense prospect Jared McIsaac has a clean bill of health, per the team’s website. McIsaac, as the piece by Josh Berenter mentions, has been on the wrong end of three shoulder injuries in the past two calendar years. Drafted 36th overall by Detroit in 2018, he’s part of a prospect stable on defense that includes SHL standout Moritz Seider and Gustav Lindstrom. Before encountering his injury troubles, McIsaac had 62 points in just 53 games with the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads in 2018-19. If he’s able to regain that form, a healthy McIsaac could prove to be a solid piece of Detroit’s rebuild.
  • Per a news release from the team’s website, SHL club Brynäs IF has signed former NHL prospect Julius Bergman. A 2014 second-round pick of the San Jose Sharks, Bergman was dealt three times over the course of his entry-level contract despite never playing an NHL game. Originally sent to the Ottawa Senators in the Mike Hoffman trade, he was then sent to the Columbus Blue Jackets along with Matt Duchene in February of 2019. He was dealt just three days later to the New York Rangers in exchange for Adam McQuaid. With Bergman’s offensive production declining sharply after his 30-point campaign with the San Jose Barracuda in 2016-17, it’s unlikely he sees NHL ice at any point during his career.

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