The big questions headed into the offseason regarding Moritz Seider were how much and how long.
The Detroit Red Wings finally answered those questions Thursday, with a seven-year deal worth $8.55 million per year. Seider’s three-year entry-level contract had an annual salary cap hit of $863,334.
While it took longer than anyone would have liked – training camp began Wednesday – to come to an agreement, the bottom line is general manager Steve Yzerman has locked up the services of a 23-year-old Calder Trophy winner who in three years has cemented himself as a pillar of the rebuild.
Seider is the team’s workhorse, playing on the top defense pairing where he is tasked with containing opposing superstars, as well as seeing time both running a power play and manning a penalty kill.
KYLE OKPOSO RETIRES: Stanley Cup winner leaves NHL after 17 seasons
FIRST DAY OF CAMP: Bruins’ Jeremy Swayman among unsigned players
Seider was the first player drafted by Yzerman since returning to Detroit in April 2019, selected at sixth overall in 2019 on the strength of his standout performances for Adler Mannheim in his native Germany’s top hockey league.
Seider made an immediate impact on the Red Wings when he arrived in Detroit for the 2021-22 season, posting 50 points in 82 games and finishing by taking home top honors as the NHL’s rookie of the year. By then he already had played a season in the American Hockey League with the Grand Rapids Griffins (2019-20). Because of the pandemic, he spent 2020-21 in the Swedish Hockey League, where he was a league and team standout with Rögle BK.
Seider posted a 42-point season in 2022-23 and also had 42 points this past season. In each of his three seasons, he has averaged 22 to 23 minutes per game.
Seider was a restricted free agent without arbitration rights. That the deal took this long to close reflects Yzerman juggling the budget as he continues to try to reshape the Wings into a team capable of reaching the playoffs on a regular basis again. The less money Yzerman could persuade Seider’s camp to take, the more there is to spend on upgrades elsewhere.
The first maximum deal inked by Yzerman during his tenure in charge of the Red Wings was Dylan Larkin’s $69.6 million extension on March 1, 2023.
Contact Helene St. James athstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter@helenestjames.
The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast.Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.