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Seider A Shocking Selection At Six |
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You think you were surprised when German defenseman Moritz Seider was selected sixth overall by the Detroit Red Wings in Friday’s NHL entry draft.
You should’ve seen the look on Seider’s face.
“Shell shocked,” was how he described his emotions to Detroitredwings.com. “My legs are still shaking. I looked to my mom, she was so shocked. I think she was way more nervous than I am before.”
Seider had himself slotted into a ballpark area of the draft where he figured he should be prepared to hear his name called. Sixth wasn’t even in the same zip code as that area.
“I would say somewhere between 15 and 20,” Seider estimated pre-draft as his likely landing zone. “That was I hoping.
“Now it’s a little bit different. I think I’m pretty happy with that.
“There was a little percentage. We got a couple of good meetings with Detroit and (Wings GM) Steve Yzerman wanted to know every single thing about me. But I mean when you saw a couple of rankings there, I wasn’t that high on any of them so yeah, I’m just excited. Still, it’s an unreal moment.”
Yzerman was intrigued by Seider’s size (6-foot-3, 208 pounds) and the fact that he’s a right-hand shot also played a role in the outcome.
“We felt the top five kind of went somewhat as we expected, and this next group of players, including Moritz, they’re very good prospects,” Yzerman told NBC Sports. “Ultimately, what we liked is he’s a big defenseman who can skate and has excellent hockey sense.
“There’s a lot of players to choose from. It wasn’t a no-brainer, but we’re excited to get him.”
Seider’s hockey resume is already impressive. He spent the season in the DEL, Germany’s top division. He was named rookie of the year and his club, Adler Mannheim, won the league championship.
“It was a huge step for me, stepping into pro hockey, measuring up with a lot of good guys in Germany. You just learn how to prepare yourselves for important games, especially playoff games, so I think that was a huge step for myself.”
Seider played for Germany at the world championship, helping his country reach the quarterfinals.
“It was great to mesh with some of the best guys in the world and I think I did a pretty good job,” Seider said. “There was the first exhibition game in Mannheim (against Team USA). I was a little bit nervous. Got toe dragged by (Patrick) Kane.
“At the moment I realized, ‘okay, just play your game. Play simple hockey.’ I finished pretty strong.”
Here’s his own scouting report on his game:
“I would say smart, two-way defenseman, who loves to join the rush and creating space for his teammates but also is not afraid to play the body on the ice,” Seider said.
Seider also offered a piece of self-criticism, analyzing what he’ll need to improve in order to make it as an NHLer.
“Probably acceleration is one of the key points,” he said. “For this summer, getting quicker in the first few steps. Getting shots through. It’s a little more difficult in North America because the blueline is way further than it is in Europe. That’s going to be a big challenge.”
Seider will begin the process of working on those aspects of his game next week at the Wings’ development camp in Detroit.
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