The Red Wings may not be racing toward a Simon Edvinsson extension, but that doesn’t mean the sides are drifting apart.
For now, the holdup appears tied to the front office shuffle in Detroit. The club is still searching for its next general manager, and Edvinsson’s camp is waiting for that hire before putting the finishing touches on a new deal.
“We are patiently awaiting for a new general manager,” said Edvinsson’s agent, Peter Werner.
That lines up with reporting from the Swedish newspaper Expressen, which says the defenseman and the organization are on the same page and that the wait is more about timing than tension.
Edvinsson wrapped up the final season of his entry-level contract last year and produced 25 points in 72 games. Expressen projects his next deal somewhere in the $7.5-8M per year range, a number that would give Detroit a major piece of value if that’s where the contract lands.
There’s also a bigger picture here for the Red Wings. A deal in that neighborhood would help keep the books manageable as the salary cap continues to rise. If Edvinsson signs at $8M, he, Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond would combine for $24.625M against the cap, which comes out to roughly 23% of the team’s total salary.
That kind of structure matters because Detroit still has more business ahead. A longer Edvinsson extension would help lock in the top of the blue line for the next five seasons, and the next major contract issue on the horizon is Alex DeBrincat’s. DeBrincat has already said he’ll stay with the Red Wings if they give him a fair deal.
From a roster-building standpoint, the defense is starting to take shape. Edvinsson, Seider and Albert Johansson give Detroit a young core on the back end, and once Axel Sandin-Pellikka arrives in the NHL, that group could grow to four long-term pieces.
Ben Chiarot and Justin Faulk are still in the mix, but Faulk isn’t expected to be around much longer beyond this coming season. Chiarot’s future is murkier. The veteran can still be useful as a bottom-pairing defenseman, but he’ll be 38 when his contract expires, and the mistakes are becoming harder to overlook.
There are also younger names pushing up behind him. Anton Johansson and William Wallinder are both waiting in the wings, which only adds to the questions about where Chiarot fits as the rest of his deal plays out.
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