Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman surprised many in the 2022 NHL Drat when he chose German defenseman Moritz Seider with the sixth overall selection, but the pick has paid off in multiple ways.
Not only did Seider win the Calder Trophy as the NHL's best rookie in the 2021-22 NHL Season, but he's become Detroit's top defenseman and routinely plays heavy minutes against the opposition's best players.
Seider is also set to compete for his native Germany in the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. The German roster will also be chalk-full of talented players included Leon Draisaitl, Tim Stützle, and Lukas Reichel.
Earlier this morning, Germany selected its preliminary six players for the #MilanoCortina#Olympics! pic.twitter.com/qVAcCOYg3U
— NHL (@NHL) June 16, 2025
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He and his countrymen hope to help their homeland make a name for itself in the upcoming tournament.
"I know we're a small country, but we want to challenge all the big names out there and just try to get better as a team, also as individuals," Seider said via NHL.com. "Honestly, you want to make a name for yourself overseas. Hopefully we have more and more people joining us and making it a little bit of a brand over there."
"I think it would be fun to have us all on one team eventually and show what we're capable of," Seider said. "It's a big credit to them in the first place. Overall, we want to make names for ourselves, be leaders on our own teams, and then if we have a chance to, then come together, and then it's even more fun coming here."
Red Wings Players to Watch in 2025-26: John Gibson Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman pulled off a pair of trades during the offseason, first trading the underperforming veteran Vladimir Tarasenko and his $4.75 million cap hit to the Minnesota Wild.
Seider already has considerable international experience, having captained Germany at the 2019 World Junior Championship Division IA tournament, and also played in the 2021 and 2023 IIHF World Championships.
Thanks to his natural leadership, Seider was named Germany's captain during the recent 2025 IIHF World Championship, helping them to a medal round appearance.
Unser Kapitäns-Team für die WM 🔥
— Deutscher Eishockey-Bund (@deb_teams) May 4, 2025
Moritz Seider wird die deutsche Männer-Nationalmannschaft 🇩🇪 bei der bevorstehenden IIHF-Weltmeisterschaft in Dänemark & Schweden anführen. An seiner Seite: Jonas Müller, Marc Michaelis und Dominik Kahun als Assistenten 💪🏻 #debteamspic.twitter.com/YkBBNbZFE8
During his time in the NHL, Seider has already climbed the list to become fourth in all-time games played by a German-born defenseman with 328. He's also demonstrated incredible durability, having not missed a single game in each of his first four seasons.
The Red Wings consider Seider a building block for their franchise, and made that clear when he affixed his name to a seven-year, $59.85 million contract extension last September.
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