The Detroit Red Wings are not in the best position regarding Simon Edvinsson. The young Swedish defender could still fall victim to an offer sheet, and one former assistant general manager has outlined how that would happen.
Steve Werier, former Florida Panthers AGM, explained why a team might want to convince Edvinsson to sign an offer sheet in October rather than in the offseason.
“Offer sheets have almost always been signed during the offseason months, including the two most recent examples,” Werier explains. “By waiting, a rival team can weaponize the calendar against the Red Wings and structure an offer sheet around a never-before-leveraged pressure point. Under the CBA, once a club matches an offer sheet, the player cannot be traded for one full calendar year. That’s 365 days, not simply ‘until July 1’ the following summer.”
“This means if a team signs Edvinsson to an offer sheet in the coming days, and the Red Wings match it, Detroit can’t trade him until October 2027 at the earliest.”
Detroit Red Wings Must Act Fast With Simon Edvinsson
Obviously, the Red Wings need to avoid an offer sheet situation at all costs. The Edmonton Oilers are still suffering the effects of losing Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg to the St. Louis Blues‘ dual offer sheet.
Edvinsson is a young and (very) capable defender; those kinds of players don’t grow on trees. Even if they decide to bite the bullet and get him signed to a bridge contract, that is more desirable than having to match or accept an offer sheet.
If he signs an offer sheet, he can’t be traded until October 2027.
However, even if they sign him to a bridge deal before a potential offer sheet, nothing stops them from trading him after that.
Simon Edvinsson Reaching His Boiling Point?
To compound the issue, Edvinsson has returned to Sweden, despite showing up to Red Wings training camp.
“Simon Edvinsson is back in Sweden. Training with Frölunda on Wednesday,” Andreas III Johnsson, a Swedish hockey reporter, wrote on social media.
He also added that Edvinsson did not speak to the media after the skate.
Another journalist took to social media to summarize everything going on with Edvinsson.
“Red Wings owner Chris Illitch has not committed to Horcoff being the long term general manager of the club… he’s the interim… which means (at least how I view it) he does not want an interim GM making long term decisions for the franchise. Which would include a long term contract on Edvinsson or a Larkin trade facilitation and every move would have to go through ownership approval,” Josh Berg wrote.
“With Edvinsson he WANTS to be there. He showed up to camp without a contract, skated with the team all offseason and training camp while unsigned. And because of the Red Wings dysfunction from top down… they have a young up and coming star unsigned back in his home of Sweden instead of in the lineup opening night and a disgruntled (former captain) still on their roster.”
One way or another, this situation with Edvinsson will only get worse the longer that it drags out.
For both Red Wings fans and Edvinsson, resolving this quickly and amicably should be the organization’s top priority.
Red Wings Simon Edvinsson Offer Sheet Threat Still Looms Large