Moritz Seider has a 75% chance of leaving the World Championship with a medal.
The Detroit Red Wings’ top defense prospect helped Germany top Switzerland in quarterfinal action at the event in Riga, Latvia, on Thursday. Seider topped 23 minutes as the Germans rallied from 2-0 to earn a 3-2 victory in a shootout.
“I think we were the better team from the beginning,” Seider told IIHF media. “There was no doubt that we were going to win that game. We can be very proud of ourselves, and now we go to the semis.”
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The winner of the semifinal advances to the gold-medal game, while the loser advances to the bronze-medal game. Other Wings at the tournament included the Czech Republic’s Jakub Vrana, Filip Zadina and Filip Hronek, and Canada’s Troy Stecher.
Seider, 20, has four assists in eight games. He went to Latvia after his season ended in Sweden, where he was named defenseman of the year. Seider recorded seven goals and 21 assists in 41 games with Rögle, plus a goal and four assists in 13 playoff games. He’s essentially a lock to make the Wings next season, with the only question being how much of an impact he’s able to make right away. Seider is 6-foot-4 and 207 pounds, and shoots right. He’s adept at playing in key situations, and projects to become a significant factor in the rebuild.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.