No contract, no insurance means Germany will be without top defenseman

Germany will be without one of its best players in the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship, which begins on Friday and runs through May 26, in Prague and Ostrava, Czechia, because of insurance.

Or, rather, the lack of it.

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider's three-year, entry-level contract ran out at the end of his season.

Seider, 23, won the Calder Trophy as NHL Rookie of the Year in 2022 and was second in the league in blocks with 213 during the 2023-24 regular season, in which he also had nine goals and 42 points. Seider has also not missed a game, playing in 246 consecutive contests, in his first three seasons.

The sixth pick in the 2019 draft almost certainly will sign a lucrative deal with the Red Wings that will make Seider one of the highest-paid defensemen in the National Hockey League at some point during the offseason.

But he does not have a contract now.

So, Seider would have no protection if he got injured during the tournament. He tried to get an insurance policy for the World Championship but was unable to do so.

But Seider's Red Wings teammate, left wing Lucas Raymond, will play for his native country, Sweden, in Czechia.

Raymond, who had a breakout campaign during the regular season with 31 goals and 72 points, is in the same contract situation as Seider and is also a near-lock to sign a big contract with Detroit.

However, Raymond was able to secure an insurance policy through the Swedish Ice Hockey Association.