The Athletic’s Corey Pronman has ranked the Red Wings’ pool of players aged 23 and under as the 2nd-best in the NHL, and he discusses several of the Red Wings’ top prospects this morning:
It’s been a painful stretch for Detroit fans, but it looks like there’s a light emerging at the end of the tunnel. Led by Calder Trophy winner Moritz Seider and rising star Lucas Raymond they have one of the best collections of young talent in the league with significant skill at all positions
Key Graduates: Michael Rasmussen, Gustav Lindstrom
Key Additions: Marco Kasper
2021 ranking: No. 9
He ranks 15 players/prospects and 8 more players who he believes “have a chance” of playing in the NHL, and you can guess which player is at the very top of his list:
Moritz Seider, D
21 years old | 6-foot-3 | 208 pounds | Shoots right
Drafted: No. 6 in 2019
Tier: Bubble elite NHL player and NHL All-StarSkating: NHL average
Puck skills: NHL average
Hockey sense: Above NHL average
Compete: Above NHL averageAnalysis: Seider’s first NHL season was the best-case scenario. He stepped in right away and was an impactful defenseman for the Wings. He’s a tall, mobile right-shot defender who plays the game hard and with skill. Defensively he’s a rock due to his length and skating combined with an edge he brings to his game. He closes on checks at a high level and breaks up a lot of plays. The offensive parts of his game continue to improve and look like a clear strength. He ran Detroit’s PP1, showing instances of high-end skill and playmaking at both ends of the rink. Seider looks like a player who will be a star defenseman in the league for a long time and will likely get Norris votes in his career.
Continued (paywall); I have a bit of a bone to pick with the concept that Seider’s skating is only at the NHL’s average skill level, but we can talk about that at another time.
