Report: Seider Set for Bigger Contract than Raymond

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet—the NHL's preeminent insider—provided an update on the status of Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond's contact negotiations with the Red Wings on the latest episode of his 32 Thoughts Podcast.

Friedman, in conversation with his new co-host Kyle Bukauskus, started the conversation by touching on Detroit's other restricted free agent, Jonatan Berggren.  "I think the think with Berggren—To me, Berggren's gonna be there," Friedman said.  "It just looks to me where it's one of those things where Berggren is kind of a little bit of a victim of 'okay, what's the number gonna be for Seider?  What's the number gonna be for Raymond?'  And then Berggren gets fitted in...I don't think Berggren's gonna miss camp or anything like that." Friedman noted that while the plan seems to have been to take care of Raymond and Seider then get to Berggren, that order might have to be inverted to get Berggren to camp on time.

As for Seider and Raymond, Friedman spent a good chunk of time speaking to Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman's style as a negotiator, saying, "Steve Yzerman takes a position and then it's almost impossible to budge him from the position."  "One of the places that Yzerman had to bend a bit was Dylan Larkin," Friedman continued.  "[Larkin] had more control because of the UFA status, and Yzerman had to bend on that one.  These ones, they're good players, they're important players, they're the cornerstones of the Red Wings, but because they're RFAs, Yzerman doesn't necessarily have to bend unless something forces him to do so."

Friedman pointed out that Seth Jarvis—who just signed an eight-year, $63.2 million deal to remain in Carolina last week—is a natural comparable for Raymond in the eyes of most observers, but Yzerman might not see things the same way.  He also noted that one GM advised him that "Seider is a bigger number than Raymond," adding "I think most people think that way."

From there, Friedman indicated that perhaps movement isn't especially close, because the threat of missing training camp pales in comparison to that of missing regular season games, which may be the only way to jolt Yzerman from his present stance.  "It's pretty clear that right now Raymond and Seider are [asking for a number] higher than Yzerman wants to go, and if he's dug into his position, you need something to get him to move," Friedman assessed.  "Either you bend or you wait for him to bend, and to be honest, right now, it isn't a pressure point.  The real pressure point is when you start missing games."  As one potentially complicating factor, Friedman also noted that Raymond and Seider will have to take care of their visas after their contracts, which might cause some minor delay as well.

Finally, Friedman closed his thoughts on Detroit by talking about the organization's broader ambitions, suggesting that despite Yzerman publicly indicating otherwise, there will be an internal emphasis on getting back to the postseason this year: "Yzerman always talks patience...but sooner or later, the Red Wings have to make the playoffs...I've got to think on some level, the pressure is gonna be to get there."

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