State Your Case: Seider or Raymond more important for Red Wings?

The Detroit Red Wings have a bright future, led by two young stars who made their mark as rookies in 2021-22 and are only going to get better. Defenseman Moritz Seider won the Calder Trophy as the top rookie in the NHL last season, and forward Lucas Raymond was third among rookies in scoring, behind forwards Michael Bunting of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Trevor Zegras of the Anaheim Ducks.

Seider and Raymond return to work after the All-Star break Tuesday when the Red Wings (21-19-8) host the Edmonton Oilers (28-18-4) at Little Caesars Arena (7:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+, HULU, SN, SN NOW). Detroit is seventh in the Atlantic Division, seven points behind the Pittsburgh Penguins for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
But which of the two, Raymond or Seider, will end up being the more important building block for the Red Wings in the next five years?
That's the question before NHL.com writers Mike Morreale and Amalie Benjamin in this installment of State Your Case.
Morreale: It appears Raymond will surpass his season totals from a season ago when he finished fourth in the voting for Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year. Yes, I know Seider won that award, and deservedly so, but there are several reasons why I believe Raymond will turn out to be the more important building block five years from now in Detroit. For starters, the 20-year-old, who can play either right or left wing, has been playing a prominent top-six role in his two NHL seasons. After getting just two assists in his first seven games this season, Raymond is second on the Red Wings with 30 points (15 goals, 15 assists) and first with 14 power-play points (five goals) in his past 41. He's gaining confidence and earning key minutes (17:06 of average ice time) in big situations. In case you've forgotten, Raymond had 57 points (23 goals, 34 assists) and 18 power-play points (five goals) in 82 games as a 19-year-old last season.

Benjamin: I did not forget how good Raymond was last season. He was a revelation and, clearly, will be an important piece for the Red Wings going forward. But the more important building block is Seider who, as you mentioned, won the Calder Trophy last season after he had 50 points (seven goals, 43 assists) in 82 games and averaged 23:02 in ice time per game. Though the points have fallen off a bit this season -- Seider has 24 points (three goals, 21 assists) in 48 games -- he is still playing 23:01 per game and is a crucial piece for a team that's on the upswing. Seider is 21, still very young for a top defenseman, and will mature and improve ahead, as the Red Wings have acknowledged. But he's the type of player who has the confidence, skills, physicality and defensive acumen to anchor their defense for a new age in Detroit.
Morreale: As Amalie states, Seider continues to be a crucial piece and is earning a lot of ice time. But I do anticipate defensive help on the way, perhaps even next season, in the form of Simon Edvinsson (No. 6 pick in 2021 NHL Draft), the organization's No. 1 prospect in the pipeline. The 20-year-old defenseman has made great strides on the back end in his first season in North America with Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League. That said, Raymond will continue to be the young, improving offensive sniper on a team in need of a forward capable of depositing the puck in the net with regularity. He's arguably the most important forward under the age of 21 in the organization and, since Oct. 29, hasn't gone longer than three games in a row without a point. Raymond is relied upon in the offensive zone a lot more than the defensive zone, but I expect that. He might not be the most physical player out there, but he is among the top three on the Red Wings in takeaways and will develop into a much more consistent scoring threat and power-play specialist in the coming years.

Benjamin: Those are all valid points and offense is and will continue to be important as the Red Wings attempt to climb the standings this season and in future seasons. But I am still going with Seider, for a couple of reasons. First, Edvinsson is promising, but you never know how well a prospect is going to turn out until they start playing under the pressure of the bright lights in the NHL. Seider has handled that, with aplomb. Second, it's difficult to find young players with the kind of confidence that Seider has, the ability to lead a team, the ability to make an impact both on offense and defense. The Red Wings have given Seider a tremendous amount of responsibility since he began playing in the NHL and he's been comfortable with that. The good news for the Red Wings is that they don't need to choose. Right now, they have both players, though ultimately between the number of minutes he'll play, the ways he'll impact the game and the higher ceiling that I think belongs to Seider, I'm going defense over offense on this one.