Simon Edvinsson’s name was in the mix for an offer sheet this summer, even if nothing ever got over the finish line.
Aftonbladet’s Anton Johansson reported that the Red Wings defenseman said there was interest from other teams, though he wouldn’t expand on which clubs were involved. Earlier talks before Steve Yzerman stepped away as general manager apparently never got very far, with only a short-term offer on the table that didn’t lead anywhere.
That leaves Detroit in a tricky spot. The Red Wings still don’t have a full-time GM, and while acting GM Shawn Horcoff can handle smaller business, a contract for Edvinsson is the kind of decision that will wait for the next top executive.
Edvinsson has become a major part of Detroit’s blue line in a hurry. The 23-year-old put up nine goals and 16 assists in 72 games last season, blocked 148 shots, and averaged more than 22 minutes a night. He’s looking more and more like the top-pairing defenseman the Red Wings believed they were getting when they picked him sixth overall in 2021.
For now, the contract standoff is more about organizational limbo than a player trying to squeeze out extra money. Edvinsson said earlier this week that he plans to do something rare for a restricted free agent: show up to training camp without a contract.
In this case, though, that’s not tied to a holdout. Detroit simply doesn’t have the person in place yet to finish the deal.
A preseason appearance also sounds unlikely. Under the new rule, veterans with 100 or more games of NHL experience can play no more than two preseason games, and even that would carry injury risk that could complicate talks.
With Tuesday’s deadline to sign an eight-year deal approaching, an agreement on that length now looks increasingly unlikely. Once Detroit hires Yzerman’s replacement, Edvinsson’s contract will be the first major item on the agenda so he can be locked in before the regular season opens on October 2nd.
In Other News...
Red Wings Next GM Walks Into An Immediate Contract Crisis
The next general manager walking into the Red Wings job is not getting much of a runway. Before there is even time to settle into the office, there is a pile of contract business waiting, starting with defenseman Simon Edvinsson and the need to sort out his next deal while the organization also takes stock of its current hockey operations structure and staff. Add in the broader pressure of keeping the roster moving in the right direction, and the first stretch on the job already looks like a test of timing as much as judgment.
Alex DeBrincats extension situation adds another layer of urgency, because a stalled negotiation around a top winger is the kind of issue that can shape how the rest of the roster is handled. There is also the matter of Dylan Larkin, whose future has become part of the conversation as well, making the incoming GMs first months less about long-term planning in the abstract and more about sorting through a series of decisions that could define the franchises direction quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Remember A Former First Rounder For Far More Than Hockey
Brent Peterson was remembered this week as much for what he meant away from the ice as for his place in Red Wings history. Detroit drafted him in the first round in 1978, and he went on to play parts of four seasons with the club before continuing his NHL career with the Sabres, Canucks and Whalers, building the kind of steady hockey resume that kept him around the game for years.
Peterson later moved into coaching and was working as an assistant with the Predators when his life took a different turn after a Parkinsons diagnosis. He spent the rest of it pushing to help others facing the same disease, and the foundation he launched with his wife became a major part of that effort, a reminder that some of the most lasting legacies in sports have little to do with goals, assists or draft position. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Just Turned Dylan Larkin Into An Offseason Question
The Red Wings made a notable change to the heart of their leadership structure this week by moving Dylan Larkin out of the captaincy, a decision that lands squarely in the middle of an already unsettled offseason. For a franchise that has leaned on Larkin as the face of the room and the standard-bearer on the ice, the announcement adds another layer to a summer defined by transition and uncertainty.
Larkin said he will be at training camp and acknowledged recent conversations with team leadership, but he did not directly address the captaincy switch. The bigger question now is where this goes from here, because the organization has made clear that any further discussion about his future will wait until a new hockey operations leader and general manager are in place, leaving a key piece of Detroits identity hanging as the next front-office regime takes shape. [Read more 🡒]