BOSTON — Moritz Seider has established himself as one of the NHL’s better defensemen in his five seasons with the Detroit Red Wings.
But the 24-year-old German hasn’t done much fighting in his career and it showed on Saturday night when he squared off against Mark Kastelic.
The Bruins’ veteran pugilist roughed him up in a one-sided scrap in the first period on Saturday.
After Kastelic finished a heavy check on Seider in the corner behind the Red Wings’ net, the Detroit defenseman took exception. Seider shoved him once and then gave Kastelic a forearm in the cheek, followed by a gloved hand to the face.
That was enough to kick Kastelic into action. The Bruins forward landed a short left and a straight right before his gloves even came off. Seider tried to wrap him up, but Kastelic showed him off and came up swinging.
He landed three heavy right hooks to the Red Wings defenseman’s face as the TD Garden crowd came to life. The final one sent Seider crumbling to the ice.
Both players received 5-minute fighting majors with 25 seconds left in the first period.
It was just Kastelic’s second bout of the season and first since tangling with Utah’s Liam O’Brien.