Red Wings Shifting Toward Long-Term Extension With Simon Edvinsson

It’s been a year-long saga at this point that still hasn’t seen Detroit’s top-pair defenseman signed. Different opinions on everything from salary to term have led to pretty heated negotiations that have now seen Simon Edvinsson open up to the idea of being traded.

The Red Wings maintain that they’re looking to compete this season, and statements from Chris Illitch on social media also claim they’re looking to build for championships. Both would be easiest with Simon Edvinsson signed to a long-term deal, and the Red Wings brass has made some effort to give in to Edvinsson’s demands a little more.

What We Know So Far

Simon Edvinsson and his camp have been nothing but patient for the Red Wings to figure out their internal problems. The team spent most of the summer trying to find a replacement for general manager Steve Yzerman. Amidst the drama, Edvinsson refused to humor any offer sheets and decided to stand pat until Detroit found themselves someone to lead negotiations.

Edvinsson even took his allegiance to the Red Wings one step forward by showing up to training camp despite not having a contract; something not even Moritz Seider did initially. For all intents and purposes, Simon Edvinsson has been nothing but gracious to Detroit.

When interim general manager Shawn Horcoff was named, negotiations were rumored to start immediately, and Red Wings fans had hope this would be handled fairly quickly. Simon Edvinsson entered negotiations looking for a long-term deal at around the $10M AAV mark.

The number seemed high, but given some of the other contracts given out this summer, it wasn’t anything unheard of. Notably, Zeev Buium got over $9M, and he’s only played one season, and it saw him record fewer points than Simon Edvinsson in his rookie season while being worse defensively.

The Red Wings, on the other hand, were looking to bridge Simon Edvinsson, which is one of the most baffling choices to come out of this management group, which is saying something. Short-term deals are good for either saving money or to let a player you’re unsure of prove themselves before signing long term.

Neither of those stipulations should be a problem for Detroit regarding Simon Edvinsson. Detroit has nothing but cap space, and through a little over two seasons, Edvinsson has been comfortably Detroit’s second-best defenseman.

The word Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman used was frustrated in regard to how Simon Edvinsson was feeling. I’d imagine Edvinsson was feeling more disrespected than anything because after the negotiations he went back home to Sweden and then made it clear he was open to a trade.

As brutal as that sounds, what has changed?