Detroit Red Wings defenseman Simon Edvinsson is still not signed, and he has until Dec. 1 to sign, or he can’t play in the 2026-27 NHL season. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said on Monday’s 32 Thoughts: The Podcast that Detroit has moved off the bridge deal it had been pushing and has made longer-term offers. A trade is still live anyway, because Friedman also reported on Oct. 3, on Sportsnet’s Saturday Night Hockey, that Edvinsson prefers to be moved.
Edvinsson is just 23 years old. During the 2025-26 NHL season with the Red Wings, he appeared in 72 games. Edvinsson scored nine goals and recorded 16 assists, along with a plus-12 rating. With him not being signed, there are NHL teams that would be interested in trading for him.
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Eric Cruikshank of The Hockey News wrote about three potential destinations that Edvinsson could be traded to. He thinks that the San Jose Sharks could be a potential destination for him. Cruikshank said,
The Sharks‘ wealth of high-end prospects is well documented, but not every drafted player will make their lineup. If GM Mike Grier wants to leverage his young talent and draft capital in favor of acquiring a young, established defender, Edvinsson may be a perfect fit.
There’s a real absence of puck-moving abilities from the back end on this roster, and Edvinsson’s age fits the developmental timeline of this team’s most important players like Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, Michael Misa, Sam Dickinson, and Ivar Stenberg.
Adding Edvinsson to a talented young roster in San Jose could do wonders for this hockey team on the back end. They are still trying to build for the long haul.
The Sharks would potentially have to trade a first-round pick in 2027, a fourth-round pick in 2027, and a second-round pick in 2028. Trading those three draft picks alone would be an expensive price for San Jose to pay. As for prospects, Detroit should ask for either defenseman Keaton Verhoeff or defenseman Ryan Lin, the ninth and 21st picks in the 2026 draft. The other player that the Red Wings should ask for in return is center Cole McKinney, a second-round pick in 2025.
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McKinney is currently playing college hockey for the Michigan Wolverines. San Jose has a deep prospect pool. This may need to be the return for the Red Wings in order for the Sharks to acquire Edvinsson.
