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Minnesota Wild: Weekly Roundtable, Who is the Breakout Star?

By Cody Defoe

WINNIPEG, MB - NOVEMBER 27: Head Coach Bruce Boudreau of the Minnesota Wild gathers his players at the bench for a pep talk during a third period stoppage in play against the Winnipeg Jets at the Bell MTS Place on November 27, 2017 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. (Photo by Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images)
WINNIPEG, MB - NOVEMBER 27: Head Coach Bruce Boudreau of the Minnesota Wild gathers his players at the bench for a pep talk during a third period stoppage in play against the Winnipeg Jets at the Bell MTS Place on November 27, 2017 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. (Photo by Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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Minnesota Wild
ST. PAUL, MN – MARCH 04: Minnesota Wild Defenceman Nick Seeler (36) is escorted to the penalty box after his fight with Detroit Red Wings Right Wing Luke Witkowski (28) during a NHL game between the Minnesota Wild and Detroit Red Wings on March 4, 2018 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, MN. The Wild defeated the Red Wings 4-1.(Photo by Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Sullivan Casey: Nick Seeler

For the majority of last season, the Minnesota Wild were without a true physical presence on the back end. Matt Dumba did his best, but he’s just too offensive minded to be a true tough guy in front of the net. Before last season, Marco Scandella filled the role pretty well, but even he seemed to lack that last bit of grit that this type of defenseman needs.

On the 13th of February last year, Nick Seeler made his NHL debut. The 6-2, 200lb defensemen isn’t the most physically imposing skater on the ice, but he is possibly the grittiest I’ve seen put on a Wild jersey in a while.

The fight he had against Luke Witkowski of the Red Wings? Nasty. We don’t see bouts like that too often anymore. It’s that special kind of mean that I saw in Seeler last season, and there’s no reason to believe he can’t continue it into this season.

However, I expect more from him than just grinding in the corners and chucking fists when necessary. For a rookie grinder, he showed great promise as a playmaker, notching seven assists in under thirty games and tallying a pair of playoff points.

He recorded an average of 14:32 minutes of average time on ice and racked up a +10 +/- in his stint with the Wild, very solid figures for a guy in his first quarter-season. Look for that number to get up to nearly 20 minutes this season, as he grows more and more confident with the puck on his stick.

Defensively, he showed promise as well. Of course, he made mistakes, some of which led to goals against. That happens to any rookie defenseman. But in other instances, his gap control and body position was remarkable for someone so fresh to the NHL.

I think as he develops this year, we could see him slide into a top-four role. If one of Ryan Suter, Matt Dumba, Jonas Brodin, or Jared Spurgeon go down with an injury, he would be my first choice as a replacement.

However, I could even see him cracking the top-four without injuries. I think that the combinations of Suter-Dumba and Spurgeon-Seeler would provide a very dynamic back four that is balanced and solid in all parts of the rink. For me, Brodin is sometimes too easy to play against, while Seeler offers a totally different style of play.

Nick Seeler is my pick to be the Minnesota Wild’s Breakout Player of the Year. I think he offers physicality that the Wild’s defense desperately needs, and the other parts of his game will continue to evolve to the point where by the end of this season, he is an excellent all-around defenseman.

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