And with that, the Detroit Red Wings have all of their restricted free agents signed. The team agreed to a seven-year deal with defenseman Moritz Seider on Thursday – the opening day of training camp.
IT’S MO-TOWN, BABY 🙌
The #RedWings have signed Moritz Seider to a seven-year contract with an AAV of $8,550,000. pic.twitter.com/WuZRSGRC3z
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) September 19, 2024
Seider’s new contract comes with an $8.55 million cap hit – just $150,000 below captain Dylan Larkin’s AAV. He’ll earn $8.55 million in salary the next seen years – no signing bonuses or salary fluctuations. The powerful blueliner can now report to camp with his pact finalized.
It’s been an uncertain summer for Red Wings fans. Most expected Seider and Lucas Raymond to be signed before the 2024 NHL Draft. Ultimately, Raymond agreed to a deal on September 16 and Seider put his signature on a contract extension three days later – one that was very close to the eight-year, $8.5 million AAV deal that my contract model projected back in January.
Win-Win for Red Wings & Seider
It wasn’t that long ago when a comparable deal was signed. When the Minnesota Wild inked top defenseman Brock Faber to an eight-year, $8.5 million AAV contract extension, most figured Seider’s next pact would be similar – perhaps a little higher.
That’s exactly what happened. Agent Claude Lemieux got Seider $50,000 more per year. It’s also a year shorter than Faber’s deal – likely to reduce the cap hit to below that of Larkin.
Seider will now be paid like a true No. 1 defenseman. In addition to Faber, the terms of Seider’s contract are also in the neighborhood of those signed by Ottawa’s Jake Sanderson and Buffalo’s Owen Power – two players with similar draft slots and pedigrees.
On Detroit’s side, their top blueliner and franchise cornerstone is now locked up long term. Paying your best defenseman—one of the NHL’s best defensemen—less than $9 million per season is an absolute steal – especially when you factor in the upcoming salary cap ceiling increases over the next few years.
Related: 3 Red Wings With Something to Prove In 2024-25
Another added benefit—one that colleague Devin Little recently suggested as a possibility—is that Seider and Raymond’s deals will expire one summer apart. The Red Wings will be able to negotiate their next contracts separately – a much less strenuous activity than discussing both players at the same time.
What’s Next for Seider
Entering his fourth season, Seider will continue to serve as Detroit’s go-to, all-situations defenseman. He now has a contract that reflects this role.
One area where we could see Seider’s ice time increase is on the power play. Shayne Gostisbehere is no longer with the Red Wings, and Seider could step into his old role as the quarterback of the first power play unit. He lined up there a bit last season, but spent most of the year on PP2. This year, it’ll be Seider and Erik Gustafsson manning the two power play units.
Data courtesy of PuckPedia.
