OctoPulse podcast: Seider's Norris Trophy candidacy, Doug MacLean interview

Ted Kulfan previews the Red Wings' season opener in New Jersey and ex-Red Wings assistant general manager Doug MacLean is the podcast guest.

Thursday's game against the Devils marks the third season for Moritz Seider, who earned 1,853 votes to win the Calder Trophy as top rookie defenseman in 2021 but hasn't received even one vote for the Norris Trophy as best defenseman in his first two seasons.

In two years in the NHL, the 22-year-old German native has never missed a game and has averaged a team-high 23:06 of ice time with an average of 46 points per season and a -20 plus/minus rating playing against the other team's top players.

In addition, Seider's 207 hits last year tied a franchise record set by Justin Abdelkader in 2015 and his 190 blocked shots were the most in team history.

In the preseason, he was shooting more with two goals (he's scored only three power-play goals in two years) and his 13 shots were tied for the team lead with Alex DeBrincat, Daniel Sprong and Simon Edvinsson.

"As long as he's healthy, I think Seider will get some Norris votes this year," Kulfan said on the podcast. "It'll be interesting to see what kind of contract he gets. You saw Rasmus Dahlin (Buffalo Sabres) get 11 million dollars per year. Where does Seider fall into that (pay scale)? That'll be interesting to watch down the line.

"If that Larkin-DeBrincat combo can really flourish, I think that's an even bigger main goal than Seider. They (Red Wings) really need DeBrincat to become that 40-goal guy and Larkin to flourish even further. If that happens, that'll get them closer to the playoffs."

Also on the podcast, MacLean talks about a proposed Red Wings' trade in 1992 for Eric Lindros which would've seen Sergei Fedorov, not Steve Yzerman wind up in Quebec.

In MacLean's new book, "Draft Day: How Hockey Teams Pick Winners or Get Left Behind," MacLean said the Red Wings offered captain Yzerman, $15 million dollars, forwards Gerard Gallant, Martin Lapointe and Mike Sillinger and defenseman Yves Racine.

Quebec Nordiques GM Pierre Page said no to the Yzerman deal. He wanted Fedorov instead.

"I hate it when I saw it (Yzerman deal turned down) because here we go, it's a knock on Stevie Y but it really wasn't," MacLean said. "It was just that Fedorov looked pretty spectacular in those early couple of years in Detroit. I didn't really like to see it come out saying that they would rather have Fedorov than Stevie but that's exactly what Pierre told us."

Page eventually traded Lindros to the Philadelphia Flyers for goalie Ron Hextall, forwards Peter Forsberg and Mike Ricci, defensemen Kerry Huffman and Steve Duchesne (a future Stanley Cup champion with the Red Wings in 2002), two draft picks and $15 million.

Yzerman and Fedorov went on to provide a one-two punch at center to rival Forsberg and Joe Sakic in Colorado. The two teams combined to win five Stanley Cups in a seven-year period, including Detroit's first championship in 42 years in 1997.

Here are other highlights of episode 94 of OctoPulse, The Detroit News/Red Wings podcast:

1:45: Slim chance of making the playoffs

4:45: Offense ranked 24th last year

6:20: Doug MacLean interview

29:35: Oilers predicted to win the Stanley Cup

33:30: NHL award predictions

35:17: Seider's Norris Trophy candidacy