Tag Archives: Tobias Rieder

Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL

Edmonton Oilers: I’m Not Worried About Nicholson’s Comments and Neither Should You

Yesterday, the Edmonton Oilers swept their season series with the Columbus Blue Jackets by tuning them in 4-1, but you would probably never know that as the fanbase was all in a huff because the CEO of the team went too far in regards to a question from a season ticket holder regarding one specific player.

“Toby Rieder … came here for one year because he wanted to play with Leon Draisaitl, who he plays with on the German national team. He thought if he wasn’t playing with Leon, he’d be playing with Connor. He’d score 15-16 goals, and instead of making two million, he’d sign a four-year deal at $3.5 million.”

From my gathering, Rieder is a solid guy with a good head on his shoulders and I love his optimism and long-term planning, but for the love of the Gord himself, can you tell me what he was thinking when he thought he was going to be getting top-6 minutes after being let go by the LA Kings? Did the management group tell him that to get him to sign for only $2M?

Toby isn’t a top-6 scoring winger, he’s a solid middle/bottom-6 checker who contributes on the penalty kill. This is a player that should’ve scored AT LEAST 10 goals this year but has found himself stapled to the boards all year. I think I could count on one hand the number of times he’s found his way to the slot all season…

“Toby Rieder hasn’t scored a goal.”

True. It’s hard to do that when your ass is glued to the wall (or the bench).

“Toby Rieder has missed so many breakaways.”

Not lying here. No reason to get upset with this comment.

“Toby Rieder will not be signed by the Edmonton Oilers at the end of this year.”

Some took offense to this but anybody who watches the game would come to this conclusion as well. Rieder was a calculated gamble, not a guarantee.

I imagine that there will be some analysts that believe Edmonton should try to re-sign him (good luck with that) on the cheap (say 800k or so) and bet on him rebounding. You could do that but he’s not shown to be more valuable than the late-season call-ups from Bakersfield.

0 Goals
11 Assists
-7
-4.2 CF% Rel (2nd worst for regular skaters)
-4.2 FF% Rel (Worst for regular skaters)

Stats courtesy of Hockey-Reference

I think Edmonton tried to trade him at the deadline but there was no interest. Shocking.

“If Toby Rieder would have scored 10 or 12 goals, we’d probably be in the playoffs.”

Can you figure out where he went offside in amongst those quotes?

Now, I made a comment on Twitter yesterday defending this and it was hard to do in 280 characters. But I found this post and it talks about the value of a win in the NHL? And what I took away from it is that 4-5 goals should equate to a win.

So if Toby Rieder scores 10-12 goals, does that equal up to six more points for the Oilers? If it does, that means the Oilers are in the playoffs today.

It’s not this simple. I’m aware of that. What I’m saying is that if Rieder (or anybody for that matter) scores an extra 12 goals for the Oilers, are they still -35 in goal differential? If Rieder or Lucic, Puljujarvi or Brad Malone was scoring, would that have permeated the into the psyches of the other players thus allowing them to reach their scoring potentials as well?

We can bring up if the goals were scored in a blowout for the other team or if they were GWG, EN goals, game-tying goals, shorthanded, powerplay, or ones scored while blindfolded and skating backwards on one leg, but at the end of the year when they are all tallied up, who cares? You need to score goals to win games.

Was what Bob Nicholson said really THAT bad… Terry Jones was far more cutting in his article this morning.

How marvelous is McDavid, how dynamic is Draisaitl and how nifty is Nugent-Hopkins if the Oilers keep playing Tobias Rieder on one of their lines and he hasn’t been able to score one single, solitary goal?

Here’s what the CEO of the Dallas Stars said about the team’s two superstar players that are actually scoring goals earlier in the year…

“They are fucking horse-shit, I don’t know how else to put it,” Lites said. “The team was ok. But (Tyler) Seguin and (Jamie) Benn were terrible.” – Dallas Stars CEO Jim Lites (source)

That’s bad… But the Stars are most likely going to be in the playoffs this year barring some mad collapse on their part. So you can’t say successful organizations never make these sort of comments.

Some oversensitive fans in Edmonton just can’t have enough blood. Two sacrifices were made this year in Peter Chiarelli and Todd McLellan and it’s not enough. Every day there’s some new excuse as to why Bob Nicholson should be the one to go. He’s not going anywhere in my opinion.

Supporters of the team are worried that he’ll make the same mistake again and hire another bad GM. Now, they’re worried that free agents aren’t going to come to town and that’s a bunch of BS too.

Nicholson isn’t the one that is going to be signing players to new contracts unless he appoints himself GM of the team and there’s a better chance of John Tavares going back to the Islanders than the CEO of the Oilers becoming the boss of hockey ops in Edmonton.

Who he hires as GM and head coach of the team will directly affect the quality of free agents that come to town. Full stop. I mean Nicholson isn’t even supposed to be working in hockey operations as it is. From the get-go, he was to be on the “business” side of things and Kevin Lowe oversaw the hockey ops. Then that job was passed on to Peter Chiarelli as POHO.

He was the overseer until Chiarelli was dismissed.

Anybody that has been following the Oilers shouldn’t even be worried about free agents anyhow. The team doesn’t have the money to spend on the good ones and the players they have signed (including Rieder) don’t inspire confidence that they’ll be able to reverse the trend.

Alex Chiasson and Kevin Gravel are probably the exceptions.

Speaking of free agents, not long ago there was a bit of chatter pertaining to the return of Taylor Hall to Edmonton…

Darren Ferris represents Hall as well as Rieder.

I do have a bone to pick with that release though. Ferris would’ve known about the comments as soon as they went out publicly if not before. Surely he would’ve had media (like Rishaug) calling him, right? So he had the whole day to figure out what to say in response and when to release the comments… Ferris lets the day go by and allows the talk shows to dig in to see how the public reacts, then he allows his response to go public late in the evening close to the end of the Oilers game. Was his hope that the media would pick up on it and ask the players about it? What was the motivation there?

The Oilers are not having great luck with agents this year… At all…

I reached out to a person that is close to the organization and asked what they thought of the chances Edmonton would have in the Hall sweepstakes now should there be one and I was told that only time will tell…

You would have to think that Nicholson would have been more tempered in his comments but should he be crucified for making a mistake? I don’t think so. He’s already apologized to Rieder and both he and the German had a good laugh about it by all accounts.

This from Mark Spector’s post-game article from last night,

“I screwed up,” Nicholson told me before the game Thursday. “I promised I’d talk until all the questions were done. I don’t look back on that in a negative way. But where I got offside in my comment is that Toby wouldn’t be here next year. That, if he would have scored 12 or 15 goals, we’d be in the playoffs.

“That’s wrong for me to say that.

“Now you’re saying the reason you’re making the playoffs is because of Toby Rieder, which is the furthest thing from what I meant to say,” rued Nicholson. “I take the blame. I said it. I phoned the player and apologized. He chuckled and said, ‘Don’t worry about it Bob.’”

Bottom line, Rieder is just as frustrated as his boss and Bob made a boo boo, but he did the right thing and made amends immediately.

As a hockey guy himself, he should’ve known better than to throw one of his own under the bus like that. You can be sure that he’s learned from this and any comments coming from him in the future will likely be more guarded.

The Oilers are still playing meaningful hockey and that shouldn’t be glossed over. Like it or not, Bob Nicholson is driving the bus right now and this isn’t the mishap that the former head of Hockey Canada should be judged upon during his tenure in Edmonton.

On a more positive note, the focus is off the GM search and onto the team’s CEO search…

This fanbase never ceases to amaze me.

“Always drink upstream from the herd.” – Will Rogers

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors, Trades

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: Oilers Trade Deadline Thoughts and Rumors Heading Into the Final Hours

Here we are, the 2019 NHL trade deadline is upon us and the Oilers could make some big moves but are unlikely to do so. Interim-GM Keith Gretzky’s mandate is to clear cap space NOT make a big splash and Bob Nicholson is overseeing everything like a David Hasselhoff protected beach. Nothing is getting by him.

From what I understand, the following players are being shopped heavily as you read this but according to my sources, the Oilers are likely to be quiet today.

  • Matt Benning
  • Kyle Brodziak
  • Alex Chiasson
  • Zack Kassian
  • Milan Lucic
  • Tobias Rieder
  • Alex Petrovic

Now, the Oilers can offer these players out but that doesn’t mean they’re going to get traded.

I also hear conflicting reports on Kris Russell. Some say there’s no way he’s being moved and I’ve been told there’d been exploratory conversations with Columbus. Probably a summer move if he’s to be traded.

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If Brodziak didn’t have another year on his deal, he’d have been traded already. There are some retirement rumors floating out there. Not sure how legit those are.

Chiasson had been connected more prominently to the San Jose Sharks but then they went ahead and traded for Gus Nyquist. That said, I was told there’s still a small possibility he ends up there. Lowetide mentioned two players yesterday in his blog, Rourke Chartier and Antti Suomela. Both older forwards playing in the AHL at the moment.

I’m still waiting for Vegas to drop the bomb here. They play things tight to the chest but Edmonton was just scouting the Golden Knights recently too… It’d be great for the team if they could bring in Brandon Pirri and Daniel Carr.

Edmonton has been scouting Boston and Chicago A LOT this past month and it would surprise me a little if the Oilers didn’t make a deal with at least one of these teams.

I think that since there are a few more shoes to drop (Wayne Simmonds and Mark Stone namely), players like Chiasson and Kassian are likely to be dealt later in the day or not at all. The Oilers have been really impressed with their work ethic and compete and the team does need bodies on the roster for their game tonight.

https://twitter.com/TheOilKnight/status/1099850072005566464

SPR makes a good point here. The Oilers couldn’t give Kassian away earlier in the year (when he asked out) and now there are quite a few teams knocking on Gretzky’s door asking for Kass. I’m not sure if you want to deal him straight across for Cehlarik mind you but that gets the conversation going, right? Maybe Cehlarik and Zach Senyshyn for Kassian and Matt Benning?

I’ve been told that the fleet-footed Senyshyn can be had as he’s fallen out of favor in Boston to some degree. His development has stalled a bit since joining their AHL affiliate in Providence. But Keith Gretzky was all over that pick when he selected him for the Bruins in 2015 (instead of Matt Barzal, Thomas Chabot, or Brock Boeser…).

Either way, keep a close eye on any transactions coming from the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield. If a forward gets called up, that might mean that the Oilers have dealt a forward for picks and/or prospects.

Also, there are going to be a lot of players going on waivers today. We might see Edmonton dip their toes into that pool should the need arise.

JESSE PULJUJARVI

I found the timing of these rumors incredible when I discovered them. Jesse Puljujarvi is in NY getting a second opinion on his banged-up hip at the moment. I would think his agent, Markus Lehto, is there as well. Is it too convenient that these hot takes would get released now?

Lehto has clients in both Boston (Rask) and New York (Pionk)… #Weird

Interesting to read Jimmy Murphy say that the Oilers had been talking with Boston for a couple of months now. How long has Lehto wanted his client moved and has Jesse been dealing with this hip issue since then?

If you remember there was the game vs. Vancouver on January 16th where Puljujarvi only played 6 minutes and a bit of a huff was made over that. Was that the catalyst?

Would you have traded Puljujarvi for Ryan Donato? Or included him in a trade to move Lucic’s contract?

I think there’s a VERY outside chance he’s traded today but I wouldn’t bet on it. The best thing for him now is to get whatever procedure done that needs to be done, rehab, and come back stronger than ever next season either to win a spot on the Oilers or to increase his value enough to have him traded.

Just one last thing on this Puljujarvi mess. For those of you who think that the relationship is too far gone to repair, remember how rocky it got between Jacob Trouba and the Winnipeg Jets. Where there’s a will, there’s a way and you’d be surprised how fast minds change when winning is involved.

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I will say this though, if the Oilers don’t manage to make any more trades, I will view this effort as a fail on their part.

They’ve done well bringing in Gagner and Stolarz but they should absolutely be able to move some of the players I mentioned above to teams looking to add depth for their playoff runs.

Speaking of the runs, congratulations to Josh Currie on scoring his first NHL goal! Atta go to the net and make things happen bud!

So enjoy the day and don’t get too pissy if the Oilers don’t make any moves. Everyone is saying they’ll be quiet but I for one will be hoping they make one notable roster transaction. At least something to really make watching them worthwhile for another 20 games.

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: Details on Chiasson Contract Negotiations, Oilers Shopping Wingers, and How Sekera Will Fit Back In

Alrighty, let’s make this Edmonton Oilers rumor update a quicky so you can get back to your lunch! But first, the preface!

  • Oilers offered Alex Chiasson a 3-yr deal worth $1.5M per year, Chiasson’s camp countered with $2M per year and Edmonton hung up the phone… 

I wouldn’t give this guy $1.5M per year… What in the world makes anybody think that he’s going to replicate this again? As much as I like Chiasson’s performances, he’s cooled off severely since his hot start, just as he said he would when he was getting interviewed at the beginning of the year. He starts off hot with new teams and then goes cold. IMO, if he doesn’t want to sign for $1M on a one-year deal, thank him for his services and move on.

  • Andrej Sekera is most likely making his return to the Oilers roster by the weekend and Edmonton is going to have to make a couple of roster moves to do that. Word is that they’ll waive Brandon Manning and Alex Petrovic in hopes that at least one of them gets claimed. 

JE-SUS… What a mess these boys have to clean up here. Now, you might be wondering to yourself, “Didn’t you support those moves?”

I tried to find the positive in the moves. To my eye, Manning has been way superior to Petrovic so far and that’s not a great thing for Josh Marshall’s good buddy. But it might not matter if they both hit the waiver wire.

They said before that the Oilers were working as a committee to get things done. For example, Bob Stauffer talked about Hall and Eberle being traded and referred to those trades as “organizational trades”. We remember when Hitchcock came in, he said he was the one that had Puljujarvi recalled. Then, later on, he thanked “Keith especially” after the Petrovic/Manning trades. Oh and don’t forget Bob Nicholson saying that Chia wasn’t the only person working on the Koskinen contract… Now we’re being told that it was all Chiarelli…

https://twitter.com/TheOilKnight/status/1095060072793665536

Well, I can pretty much tell you with a high degree of certainty that Chiarelli wasn’t working alone but that he made a lot of the final decisions on player acquisitions/contracts that a lot of the other members of the management team didn’t agree with.

A lot of folks get pissy at the pro scouting department but from what I’ve gathered, Chiarelli didn’t have time for those that opposed him. Going as far as removing them from meetings. Word has it that Peter preferred the word of his brother Mike when it came to scouting.

  • The Oilers are still taking calls on Cam Talbot.

Oh boy… I hope they get something good for this guy but I’m not hopeful on it. He’ll play great one game and shite the next. He does have a clause in his deal that gives him the choice as to where he’s traded but since that Chicago game (and subsequent trade demand), I don’t think he’s going to make a fuss about it.

I wonder if Columbus might make sense should they find a way to move Sergei Bobrovsky. Personally, Philadelphia makes the most sense to me. Their need for a mentor for Carter Hart and a goalie that could be a short-term stop gap for a couple of seasons while Hart gets broken in just tells me there’s a fit there.

  • Rieder and Kassian are bring shopped HARD. 

Kassian has been playing quite well as of recent. Well enough to get back on the 1st line with McDavid and Draisaitl at least. Whereas Rieder STILL hasn’t scored a goal. If there’s a team out there that’ll take either of these boys off the Oilers’ hands without Edmonton retaining salary, GET. IT. DONE!

  • Oilers like Zuccarello

This would be a fine acquisition if there weren’t rumors of him wanted to sign back in NY this summer… If those rumors are indeed true, his price won’t be high, so Edmonton might pick him up after all. I wouldn’t bet your house on it though.

  • Brodziak could be moved out for a younger 4C

Yeah… Not so sure on this one. I don’t know any teams that would want to pick Brodziak up really. If he does move, it’ll be right on deadline day and that trade will be a fallback deal for some team that missed out on another one.

I think they should go with Jujhar Khaira as 4C. I watched the Leafs do it with Frederik Gauthier and he’s a worse player than JJ in my opinion.

So there you have it. The latest up to date info on the Oilers! Have a great day!

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Armchair GM, Bakersfield Condors, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, Lindsay Ryall, NHL

Edmonton Oilers Off-season Moves Show Well, But Will Chia Get Any Credit?

Prior to the start of the 2018-19 season it seemed the fate of Oiler’s coaching and management was set  – at least if you believed the venom of fans and bloggers on social media and radio.

McLellan was given a reprieve with a new stable coaching support, but as for Peter Chiarelli, there was no relief.  The Oiler’s had spent to the cap due to questionable FA signings, seemingly lopsided trades, and poor player management.  All these combined to put Chia in an exclusive section of Oiler hades (Where Peter Pocklington resides).

With little to work with, it appeared the pre-season PTO’s and signings would be superficial not impactful.  if anything, the Oiler’s GM had dug his team in deeper . . . or did he?

Doing a lot with not a lot

The completion of the 2017 – 18 season, left many holes in the Oiler’s line up.  Gaps on the wing, veteran leadership, and of course, defence.  The need on Defense ultimately remains a festering sore, but overall there have been some pleasant surprises from Chia’s off-season tinkering.  Here’s my review so far.

Mikko Koskinen (rating, B+): The Oiler fan base exhaled a collective sigh of disbelief when Chia chose to go out on a limb and sign the 30 year-old KHL all-star.  Things looked even dodgier when Koskinen was lit up in the pre-season, but since then his record and play has steadily improved to where he is providing positive competition for Cam Talbot.  It’s early days, but in 4 games he has 3 of the Oiler’s 8 wins including a shutout.  If he continues to improve it will give the Oilers real options in goal and justify his salary.

Alex Chaisson (rating, A): Prior to the season start there were a lot of unknown’s around Chiasson’s signing.  Injured at the beginning of the season there were some questions as to why he was there.  But since hitting the ice, Chiasson is letting his play do the talking.  With 6 goals in 10 games, he’s doing everything Milan Lucic should be doing at a fraction of the cost.  He’ll pay the price by going to the hard areas of the ice and he’s been rewarded – both in production and in the coaching staff’s confidence.  Chiasson does have consistency issues, but If he scores even 15 goals he’ll provide excellent value and a stop-gap for when the prospects can catch up.

Tobias Rieder (rating: B): Rieder has no goals in 16 games but he does have 7 apples and with his speed provides the speed component when teamed with countryman Leon Draisaitl.  He seems to have good chemistry with LD and on a team where there is a lack of pure speed (save Captain Connor).  Overall he seems to be providing what was expected.

Kyle Brodziak ( rating -B): It’s my belief that when the Oilers traded Matt Hendricks it left a large “lead by example” gap in the dressing room.  Brodziak does not embody the same level of leadership, but he is a veteran professional who brings a strong work ethic to the rink every day.  He’s a good example to the young players and has the skill to make timely contributions from the fourth line.  Typically you can’t expect too much from a fourth-line add, but so far so good.

Jason Garrison (D to C-): Garrison was never a fast player, and now he’s even slower.  As a result, he is often a defensive liability but, when he is playing well positionally he can survive and, more importantly, he provides a cannon on the 2nd powerplay unit.  It may not be enough to keep him in the lineup, but when he is, he will fire away at will.    It’s good to see because there are far too many passes on the Oilers power play in my opinion.  The good news is, he is not costing the Oilers a lot and can fill a role.

Tyler Benson fights for the puck

Help on the way?

For the first time in recent memory the Oilers have a farm and prospect system that appears to be in a position to support the big club.  On the Bakersfield Condors farm team the kid line of Marody, Hebig, and Benson are producing at a  ppg or better.  Chiarelli did not physically scout all these players but Cameron Hebig was a very shrewd signing that is paying nice dividends so far.

It’s difficult to project prospects but Marody has already shown well on a brief call-up, at least one of these forwards could be with the big club next year, maybe more.  Add standout prospects like Ryan Mcleod and Kirill Maksimov ( non-first rounders ) and you have to say the Oilers have the looks of a legitimate farm system for the first time in . . . well, I can’t recall when the Oilers have had a well-stocked system, to be honest.

What’s a fair assessment of Chiarelli’s Work

To be fair, Chiarelli has more than earned much of his criticism.  The Griffin Reinhart trade could go down as one of the worst in NHL history.  Many would give the Taylor Hall trade a similar critique, although the question would also need to be asked, what would the Oiler’s Blueline look like without Adam Larsson?  Personally, I would have liked to have seen more in return for Larsson, but in my view, it’s clear: Tylor Hall would not have reached his potential here, and may have negatively impacted Mcdavid’s.  Lucic?  Well, we all liked the signing at the time, now, not so much.  For the Oiler’s, bold moves, are not likely.  Instead, strategic value signings, good drafting, and a well-stocked prospect system, and farm are how the Oilers will move forward.  And on those points, Chia is doing ok.

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Edmonton Oilers, NHL, NHL Entry Draft, Prospects

TPE Hockey 2019 NHL Draft Profile: Moritz Seider (D) – German Destroyer

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In the past few years, a new force in hockey has risen. At the Olympics, in early 2018, Germany took the tournament by storm and got second only to the stacked Russian team. Despite the lack of NHL players in the tournament it still left an important impact on German hockey. The Olympic success showed the larger trend of the growth of German hockey in the past years.

In the history of the draft 72 German players have been picked and at least one from every draft since 2014. The first German player ever drafted, Orest Romashyna, was taken 3rd overall all the way back in the first draft in 1963. Although I won’t count that pick since the draft in 1963 was a joke, Romashyna didn’t play a single game and retired after finishing college at the Univ. Of Waterloo.

Other than Romashyna only five Germans have been picked in the 1st round and two in recent memory. In 2014, the Oilers very own Leon Draisaitl was taken 3rd overall and became the first highly touted German prospect in the modern era. Draisaitl was one of the first Germans to take the CHL route to the NHL. He came over to North America after being drafted to the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL through the CHL Import Draft. The other major prospect coming from German was Dominik Bokk in this past 2018 draft. Bokk took a different path than Draisaitl after going to Sweden to play for the Växjö Lakers (pronounced Vek-wah) in Sweden’s junior system. Bokk was drafted in the CHL Import Draft but was picked by the Prince Albert Raiders, the same team that Draisaitl played on. Although the belief is that Bokk only wanted to play for an OHL team rather than Prince Albert who play in the WHL.

Check out this shift-by-shift from Prospectshifts.com

This all brings us to the next top German prospect in Moritz Seider. Seider has decided to take a different path than either Bokk or Draisaitl. Despite being picked by the Owen Sound Attack of the OHL, Seider has chosen to remain playing in Germany. The German route to the NHL is pretty untested as the last high draft pick to come out of the German system was Marcel Goc back in 2001.

Last season Seider played in the DNL. “What’s the DNL?” I hear you asking, well the DNL is the under 19 German junior league. It’s part of the fairly weak main junior hockey circuit in Germany which explains why Seider is such an obscure prospect. He’s played in an unknown league where he hasn’t gotten much exposure. With that in mind, Seider played with Jungadler Mannheim in the DNL which is the best team in German junior hockey. They are the best team for the development of young players in the DNL. They’ve won the DNL title seven consecutive times and in the 18-year history of the DNL championship, they were the champions 15 times. They’re basically the London Knights of the DNL.

Seider will not remain playing for Jungadler Mannheim next year though. If all goes well he will play for the big club in Adler Mannheim of the DEL. The DEL is the top professional circuit in Germany. The DEL is actually quite a good league. Right now the Champions Hockey League is going on. The Champions League takes the best teams from around Europe (except the KHL) and puts them in a singular league. Currently, EHC Munchen of the DEL leads their group over big teams like TPS Turku and the Malmö RedHawks. So the DEL is a respectable league and seeing a 17-year old competing there will put Seider on the map.

Now that we know where he’ll play, let’s find out what he has achieved. Being German, Seider hasn’t gotten international exposure but has competed in World Junior tournaments. Seider got to play as a 16-year-old on Germany’s U18 and U20 World Junior teams. Both teams competed in the 1A division of IIHF competition which is the division right under the division with Canada, USA, etc. They played teams like Kazakhstan and Latvia who won gold and silver while Germany won bronze. For the U18 squad Seider recorded three assists and for the U20 team he put up one goal.

 In league play, Seider played quite well. He spent most of his time in the DNL where he scored 13 points in 14 games. He led all defensemen his age in points per game and was 10th among forwards and defensemen in points per game of players his age. He was also heavily relied on for huge minutes and played both on both the penalty kill and power play top pairing. Seider also got a short stint in the DEL playing four games and went pointless. He debuted in the league in late December of 2017 at 16 years old. Despite going pointless Seider still competed at that level while getting extremely sheltered minutes.

Moritz Seider’s accomplishments are good but not outstanding, his game is where he thrives. The two most notable attributes to him are his physicality and passing. His physicality is immediately noticeable. He’s a big guy at 6’4” (192cm) and 183lbs (83kg) and he uses that size very well. Seider loves to lay a huge hit, but sometimes take himself out of position. He is a feared player on the ice and you can’t put your head down around him. His physicality also helps him in the d-zone as he is a force around the front of the net. He’s also strong on his skates. Seider makes it hard for a forward to put up a screen as he can body them out since he’s so strong on his feet.

https://twitter.com/JanikBeichler/status/957275165750104064

Seider’s second notable attribute is his passing ability. The most pivotal part of his passing is his stellar ability to start a breakout with a great first outlet pass up the ice. He’s such a smart passer because he sees the ice so well. In an interview with his DEL team, Adler Mannheim, he said this about it. Keep in mind that the interview was in German so all quotes are translated and aren’t perfect.

“I would say that I have a good understanding of the game. I play a good first pass, engage in the offensive and see the open spaces where my teammates can run. The game with the puck and the game on offense are characteristic of my style of play.” -Moritz Seider

Seider is a very smart passer and rarely makes a bad decision with the puck. The only issue with his passing is that sometimes he takes too long to make his move. Otherwise, he stands out as one of the better passers in the draft.

 While passing and physicality are the most notable parts of his game, there is a lot more to him. Seider talked about his hard-working attitude and dedication to the game in that same interview.

“You just have to work harder than everyone else and I think that’s the case with me. While many of my teammates drove home after three or four hours, I pushed extra shifts. But you also have to be crazy about the sport. At home, I watched a lot of videos of my role models and paid attention to what differentiates them from other players, what they do better. I think that you also have to deal with your sport away from the ice. But I’m also very ambitious, never give up.” -Moritz Seider

Seider also talked about his role models, one of which is former Devils star Scott Neidermayer. Seider says he works to emulate is game after Neidermayer and play just like him. Another player he watches is Zach Werenski. He says he enjoys Werenski’s offensive prowess and considers his focus to also be on offense.

The focus on offense brings us to Seider’s offensive skill. His passing is the biggest attribute to his offensive game, but he is also a solid goal scorer. 6 of his 13 points in the DNL season were goals. His big body and strength allow him to really rip the puck. Other offensive strengths include his puck protection, top speed, play with the puck, and especially his play on the rush. Seider can start a rush with his outlet pass or take the puck up himself. He doesn’t have great explosiveness or acceleration, but once he gets up to top speed he is near unstoppable. Even with all this offensive skill, Seider is still more of a two-way defender with prowess in both zones.

Seider is all upside though. The biggest flaw in his game is his play away from the puck. When the puck isn’t on his stick or around him he doesn’t contribute much. In the offensive zone when the puck is deep in the zone he doesn’t do much at all. You can often catch him standing still and not contributing at all. While this isn’t a game breaking flaw it defiantly holds him back. We see with others top defensive prospects like Quinn Hughes they are always involved in some way no matter the situation. This is a part of Seider’s game that could make him great rather than good.

This all brings us to his draft position. Where does he go in 2019? Scouts are split right now. Many don’t know who he is and others have trouble judging him after he mostly played in an unremarkable league. Future Consideration is the only major scouting bureau with him listed in the first round at the #30 spot. Personally, in my upcoming rankings, he barely slides into the first round at #31. It’s very hard to analyze him at this point after spending last season in the DNL. Next year, likely in the DEL, we will get a better look at him and learn what he’s truly about.

*This profile is courtesy of Max from TPE Hockey. You can follow him on Twitter here for more coverage on NHL prospects!*

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