Seider Keeps His Minutes and Morale High (+)
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The correct answer to the query about how many minutes Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider can log in an NHL game is actually another question.
How many minutes does his team need him to play?
“He’s like a diesel engine,” Detroit coach Todd McLellan said. “They just keep running and running. Yet he’s a greyhound. He can go and it doesn’t faze him. I can’t remember seeing him bent over in a shift where the legs are just so stiff and he can’t move. I can’t remember seeing that. And he’s been caught out there a few times for lengthy ones. So if I was picking somebody on our team that would run marathons or ultra marathons, it would be him. Incredible athlete,”
Seider, 25, ranks third in the NHL in average time per game (25:46), but no on the Red Wings roster doubts he could lead the league in time played if coaches would let him. He never seems winded or spent. He is always ready to double shift.
With the Red Wings scrapping for a playoff spot, Seider has been in the 28- or 29-minute range in seven of Detroit’s last nine games. His minutes are always tough minutes, his matchups always against the opposition’s best players
“He does do everything. . .,” McLellan said. “It’s actually quite remarkable when you think of his age and what he’s already accomplished. And he’s getting better, which is a real good sign for him and us, but real solid. “
Now in his fifth season, Seider is key member of the Red Wings’ leadership team. He sets the tone in the locker room and during practice.
“Our practice (Wednesday) helped us for the game (against Philadelphia ),” McLellan said. “We talked about that a little bit, but I thought he was excellent in practice. His leadership was real good when the mood was kind of iffy to begin with. I thought Mo did a real good job of setting the tone there and it carried over into the game.”
Seider’s Passion to Play
Seider’s reputation for being a rugged competitor started almost from the day he played his first NHL game. But this season, it he has taken it to another level. With his offensive game also improving, there is plenty of conversation about Seider being one the league’s top all-around defensemen. The Seider- Simon Edvinsson combination is already considered one the league’s beastly defensive pairings.
The improvement in Seider’s defensive game was on display Thursday when he put up his first five-point game (one goal, four assists). It was the franchise’s first five-point game by a defenseman since Reed Larson had three goals and two assists in 1985. Nicklas Lidstrom never had a five-point game.
Seider (201 career assists) is now the eighth defenseman in Detroit history to reach the 200-assist mark, joining Lidström (878), Larson (382), Niklas Kronwall (349), Red Kelly (310), Gary Bergman (243), Marcel Pronovost (217) and Steve Chiasson (200).
Matches Lidstrom Feat
With 60 points now, Seider is also became the first Red Wings blueliner to reach the 60-point mark since Lidstrom (62 in 2010-11).
Seider is like the morale officer of the Red Wings. While the Red Wings’ playoff probability is low, he works to keep the optimism high. He believes it can still be done. Seider said he stays positive because he loves playing the game.
“I come to the rink with a big smile on my face and don’t take it for granted,” he said.
He added: “Even though times aren’t always as bright as you want them to be, I think you just have to realize the opportunity that is (there),” Seider said. “Maybe sometimes it’s a little forced, but if you can get a smile out of someone else and it sweeps over in the locker room, then I think I did my part.”
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