Pros and Cons of a Simon Edvinsson and Moritz Seider Defense Pairing

Moritz Seider lobbied for the Red Wings to pair him with rookie defenseman Simon Edvinsson next season. Here are the pros and cons of what that pairing could bring Detroit.

The moment that Simon Edvinsson entered the lineup for Detroit after the trade deadline, he immediately brought juice to the lineup. His stick effortlessly broke up possessions, and he laid out to block shots. He maybe didn’t flash all his skills offensively, at least from a production perspective, but he showed how far his shutdown skills have come.

Even Moritz Seider had to admire, pondering what a pairing with Edvinsson could look like.

“I would hope to maybe get a chance playing with him one day,” Seider said Thursday. “Obviously, I think it would be pretty cool, and then you just got to see if that works out or not. I think it could be a pretty cool D pair for the Red Wings.”

Pretty cool, but also pretty useful. Two trees between 6-foot-4 Seider and 6-foot-6 Edvinsson, they both have the sort of size tangibles that make them so effective on the ice. They both possess shutdown traits with their shot blocking and physicality, and each has more offensive upside that could grow in the future. Since they were both picked at No. 6 overall in 2019 and 2021, such a pairing together has been a dreamy vision of the future. They would also be one of the higher draft pedigree pairings in the league at a combined 12 overall, the 20th highest possible combination among defensemen who played together this season.

So does putting Edvinsson along Seider make sense? They both bring similar defensive capabilities to the lineup that could lead to overwhelming control when they’re on the ice. But, they could also be more effective split apart.

There are caveats to frontloading such a strong first pairing. Putting two young and dynamic defensemen together means that they’re on the ice together, as opposed to a less relenting wave after wave with at least one of them on the ice. This might not seem as substantial a problem now — Edvinsson hasn’t proven himself to be the kind of player who can run his own pairing. But, as he develops next season, such a concentrated pairing might be easier for opponents to scheme around.

Then again, how do you scheme for Edvinsson and Seider? If they’re both on the ice, it’s hard to imagine opponents getting a whole lot of space in the offensive zone. What few shots they manage to take have a high chance of meeting a body in front. Seider blocked 2.59 shots per game this season and finished second in the league in blocks. Edvinsson came in with 1.56 per game in a smaller sample size, including a span to end the season where he led the team in blocked shots. If he sustains that later form, his blocks can be expected to increase.

As much as the two defensemen provide a shutdown presence in their own end, the question is whether the Red Wings want more offense out of them. Seider finished this season with another 42-point season, while Edvinsson had a pair of points in his 14-game call-up. Seider believes there’s more in the tank offensively, and Edvinsson’s scoring abilities have been more pronounced at other stops in his career than his scoring showed during this call-up. Putting them together might facilitate better chances as they both create plays from the back end, but this can also lead to deference to one offensive player while the other plays more of a defensive assignment. This might not be ideal, especially compared to the effect of splitting them apart with different pairings.

There’s also one huge consideration at play: Edvinsson is still developing. Does it make sense to put Edvinsson with Seider when he’ll make rookie mistakes, which could bring down the effectiveness of the unit?

Seider, for one, was impressed with Edvinsson’s call-up, saying “I wasn’t really surprised, to be honest. I think everyone kind of knew what he was gonna bring to our team. I mean, he’s a big strong skater. He can pass the puck really well, isn’t afraid of blocking shots, of throwing his body around and also has a little dynamic element for his offense, and that’s definitely something that helped us.”

However, Edvinsson’s abilities aren’t at the elite level that one might expect of him considering all the hype. A strong full rookie season could really help him, as could an offseason of applying the lessons his call-up taught him. Facing a little bit weaker competition might also help him grow.

Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde saw success from splitting the two defensemen up this season, with Seider alongside Ben Chiarot and Edvinsson on the left of Jeff Petry through the end of the season. Both pairings played in key top four minutes, stacking shifts together that opponents struggled to overcome. Edvinsson and Petry, for one, had the second best xG for per 60 of any Red Wings pairing this season, while Chiarot and Seider logged minutes against opponents’ top lines. Maybe this is an indication that they’re more effective split up.

But there’s always the thought that maybe Edvinsson and Seider could play together and dominate — so much so that even Seider wonders what it could look like. Maybe he’ll get his wish, or maybe they’ll play apart. Either way, the Red Wings’ defense can enjoy the skill that each defenseman brings to the lineup, and that’s ultimately to their benefit.

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