The NHL Draft has wrapped up, and the Detroit Red Wings raised some eyebrows by drafting German defenseman Moritz Seider with the 6th overall draft selection.
However, they had 10 additional picks, and GM Steve Yzerman made it clear that he wanted players that were going to be difficult to play against. Hakan Andersson, director of European scouting, echoed that sentiment.
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“Yzerman has been pretty strict – he wants competitive players,” Andersson said. “So, there are no dogs. Like sometimes you draft a guy with high talent but they don’t compete.
“These guys, they work for it, too.”
One name that Red Wings fans should start acquainting themselves with is Albin Grewe, who was Detroit’s third round selection.
“Albin Grewe is an outstanding competitor,” Andersson said. “I can see how he pictures himself after Brad Marchand. He’s very competitive. Out of the Europeans, probably the most competitive player in the whole draft – and in many years, I would say.”
Of course, Marchand is one of the best pests in the NHL and a player that the opposition absolutely loathes.
Andersson then recounted a story of a Swedish team that Grewe played on.
“The senior coach in Djurgarden, a top team in the senior league, one of the better ones, said, ‘I didn’t realize it until I started to look around, but every time this kid (Grewe) came up and practiced with the men’s team, the whole intensity of the practice, the physical part of the practice, would go up,’” Andersson said. “At first, he didn’t know why. Then he realized every time this kid came up, he just brought the whole pace up.”
