Early success surprises Seidenberg
By Adam Wodon | Special to NHL.com
January 6, 2003
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Dennis Seidenberg's journey to the NHL has been as surprising as it was sudden. Considering he didn't even figure to get drafted just a couple of years ago, and considering he expected his first season in North America to be in the AHL, to see Seidenberg as one of the Flyers' most dependable defenseman has been a welcome sight for everyone.
With Eric Desjardins' future uncertain, the Flyers have been looking for another dependable puck-rusher and point shooter. Kim Johnsson was strong in the role last season, but couldn't fill it all by himself.
Fellow rookie Bruno St. Jacques was thought to have the inside track coming into training camp, after proving himself as a poised, steady player in various short stints with the big club. But Seidenberg's strong play in camp squeezed out St. Jacques, at one time considered a near-lock to make the team.
"He has so much poise for a rookie," said Flyers forward Jeremy Roenick. "He gets pucks to the net and has a hard shot, which creates chances for us in front."
Seidenberg has played so well this season, he took minutes away from veterans Dan McGillis and Chris McAllister. McGillis was recently traded to San Jose.
Flyers captain Keith Primeau said that Seidenberg rushed the puck as well as any of the team's defensemen, which is high praise on a team with Desjardins, Eric Weinrich and Johnsson. "He always gets to the red line and makes a good decision with the puck, in both zones," Primeau said.
Germany is not known for producing many NHL players, or being big in international play. For a while in the 1980s, New Jersey's Uli Hiemer was the only German-born NHL player. Today, there's Marco Sturm, Sven Butenschon, Jochen Hecht and some others, but they're still rare.
"The last three years, the national team did well on the international level," Seidenberg said. "Right now, it's on the rise a little bit. We have to keep it up. There's a lot of new rinks in the country. It's coming.
"I tried to follow the NHL. In Germany, 2-3 games are broadcast a week."
But the NHL still seems far away, even to the best German youngsters.
"I'm progressing every game I play and feel more and more comfortable the further the season goes on." -Dennis Seidenberg
"When they're starting to play hockey at first, most kids are just looking to get in the first league in Germany," Seidenberg said. "Then you see yourself as a player, and you know if it's your goal to play in the NHL. That was like me. I wanted to play in the first league (in Germany), and I did well, so I set my goals higher."
It nevertheless still seemed out of reach, as recently as two years ago. The season before Seidenberg's draft year, he had played just one full season for Mannheim in the German Elite League, putting up just seven points and six penalty minutes in 55 games in 2000-01. But something caught the eye of the Flyers, who selected him in the sixth round.
"I was playing at the World Championships that year in Germany, and I wasn't even on the draft list," Seidenberg said. "And one week before the draft, somebody told me I might be drafted. So I was on a lake in Germany when my manager told me I was drafted. I was pretty pumped about that."
His English is stunningly good for a rookie European, but he said he's always been around the language.
"I studied it in school for eight years," Seidenberg said. "And the last two years in Manheim, we had 14 North Americans and our coach (Bill Stewart) was North American, too."
His hockey knowledge was rapidly increasing, as well. His next season in Mannheim, Seidenberg busted out for 20 points in 55 games, and was ready for North America. Even still, few figured he'd jump into the Flyers' lineup.
"I expected to start out with the Phantoms and maybe get a few games with the Flyers. But I never thought I'd start out with the Flyers right away."
But as training camp went on, the Flyers couldn't deny the spark Seidenberg brought to the back line.
"Bruno got cut the last day, so I knew I was in the for the first road trip," said Seidenberg. "I can always be sent down, but I figure if I keep working hard, I'll stay. We have meetings some times ... they just tell me to keep skating, keep improving on the one-on-one and keep shooting."
Shooting has been one of the most impressive parts of Seidenberg's game so far, so much so that he's often found himself on the struggling Flyers' power play, simply because he can get a hard shot on net.
"I never really practiced my shooting. I just try to hit the net and shoot when I have the possibility," he said.
As training camp went on, the Flyers couldn't deny the spark Seidenberg brought to the back line.
Coming over from the German leagues, there were the usual adjustments. Flyers coach Ken Hitchcock had been concerned about playing Seidenberg too much coming off the shorter German league schedule, so he rested him often early in the season. But Seidenberg tended to have one bad game after sitting out, before bouncing back strong. And since he was so effective when he was in there, Hitchcock started figuring he'd just roll with it.
"I'm progressing every game I play and feel more and more comfortable the further the season goes on," said Seidenberg. "I really felt it at first, but after that, I think I adjusted to it pretty good, and I feel better the more games I play.
"The hitting, for sure, is an adjustment, as is the speed because the ice surface is smaller. Those are the most significant changes.
"In Europe you handle the puck more. You have more time to make plays. Here, you better know where you're going to make the play before you get it."
Seidenberg attributes much of his quick adaptation to playing in the World Championships the last two years for Germany.
"Swedes, Czechs, you didn't even know where the puck was because they were moving it so fast. So that's a really good experience."
Just the experience of playing with so many big-name players, and suddenly being thrown into the lineup with them was a bit overwhelming at first -- Primeau, Roenick, John LeClair, Mark Recchi and Simon Gagne. But if you want to be on the Flyers, you better get used to that fast.
"It's a good experience to play with all these big names, and strange, but after a while you get used to playing with them or hanging out with the guys," Seidenberg said. "So it's not a big deal after a while. It can't be if you want to be on this team."
The Flyers would say he's fit in just fine. Keep it up and he may be one of those big names soon.
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Jeremy Roenick 39GP - 14G - 15A - 29P - +/- 15
Wes Walz 42GP - 7G - 12A - 19P - +/- 9
Richard Park 43GP - 8G - 4A - 12P - +/- -5
Dennis Seidenberg 38GP - 4G - 8A - 12P - +/- 11
Minnesota Wild 43GP - 21W - 14L - 7T - 1OTL - 50P
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