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Nick Seeler Reflects On 'Life-Changing' Contract, 'Extremely Excited' For Future Of Flyers Group
Nick Seeler, with his hard-nosed style of play, propensity for blocking shots, and no hesitation when it comes to defending his teammates, established himself as an irrefutable favorite amongst his teammates and fans.
The appreciation for Seeler was reflected in a four-year contract extension, with an AAV of $2.7 million—but for the man himself, it meant more than signing a piece of paper.
"It means everything to me," he said. "I've just been fighting for that contract my whole career, and it's life-changing. It means the world to me to be in a place where I feel respected and the direction this group's going, I'm so excited to be a part of it. The contract extension this year meant the world to me."
The season wasn't a walk in the park for any Flyers player, but Seeler faced a huge loss when defensive partner Sean Walker was traded to the Colorado Avalanche in March, splitting up what many saw as a pairing with incredible consistenty and chemistry.
"Anytime you have a guy like [Sean Walker] get traded, it's gonna impact your back end," he said. "[Walker] was a big part of our group here and a big reason for the success we had, but Danny made the decision because we're in a rebuild and he thought that's what was best for the team. You need to trust in that, but it doesn't mean that didn't affect the back end and obviously we played together the whole year, but that's part of the business we're in. We missed him as a group, but [we have a] 'next man up' mentality and the young guys did a really good job stepping up for us when we had some injuries and at the trade deadline, so there's a lot of positives there."
With Walker being traded, the Flyers have experimented with having Seeler paired up with 22-year-old Jamie Drysdale, who arrived to the team in January, hoping that Seeler's experience will help Drysdale grow as a defenseman.
"We had that tough one in Montreal, but I thought we played well together in the three games after that and just started trusting each other a little more," he said. "As we play together more and more and stay connected—obviously I was with [Walker] for most of the year, and we didn't really have to say much, we knew where each other were gonna be, and that's nice. That's where I'm hoping me and Jamie can get to, is where we just know where we're gonna be at on the ice. He's a heck of a player, he has the ability to skate up the ice and move the puck really well, and I think we'll match well here."
The Minnesota native wasn't exempt from the hurdles the defense faced over the course of the season, working through some injuries that kept him off the ice for periods of time. However, as an experienced veteran in the NHL, Seeler knows that the Flyers weren't the only team dealing with the physical toll of a season.
"Any team at this time of year is gonna be banged up and fighting through stuff, especially our top guys," he said. "[Travis Sanheim and Cam York] are playing a ton of minutes and playing really, really well with those minutes. It's tough to sit here and say, 'Oh, we were banged up,' [because] every [team] is banged up. It's something you have to work through and be able to push through those physical ailments or whatever you're going through. You've just got to do the best you can and go out there and do your job. The last three games, we really came together as a group and played well."
Even though they were able to power through many of their obstacles, Seeler, like the rest of his teammates, expressed frustration that the Flyers narrowly missed securing a spot in the playoffs, but also expressed optimism for the lessons the team was able to learn from the season as a whole.
"It's frustrating," he said. "It's disappointing how things played out at the end of the year, but I'm sure when a few weeks go by and we look back on the season...it's important for this group to go through what we did, especially the young guys, in knowing that every game is important. Think about how tight it was in this race and, in hindsight, you win a game, win a game there, get one point, and you're in the playoffs. It's important for the group as a whole to play in these important games, and I thought we did a really nice job bouncing back from a tough run in Montreal and it kind of showed we had no quit and resiliency that we've shown all year.
"I'm so excited about where this group is going and so happy to be a part of it. Just think of the strides that a ton of guys on our team took this year. Obviously, the young guys, the young forward group, but also guys like [Cam York]—he had a heck of a year, and I'm just proud of how he handled himself. He played like he was a lot older than he is. What is he, like, 23 years old, and he's playing top minutes, he's blocking shots. Guys like [Tyson Foerster] and [Owen Tippett]—you can go down the list—but we have a lot to look forward to in this group. I'm extremely excited for it."
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