Simon Edvinsson still doesn't have a new contract, and training camp is closing in fast for the Detroit Red Wings.
The 23-year-old defenseman put together 25 points in 72 games last season, holding down real minutes on the back end.
He finished at a plus-12 rating, a number that jumps off the page on a team that finished at minus-17 as a group.
All of that came on a cap hit of just $894,166. That number is not going to last much longer.
Detroit closed out last season 41-31-10, good for 92 points, a middle-of-the-pack finish that left plenty to fix.
The last 10 games of that season went 2-6-2, ending with an 8-1 road loss to the Panthers.
According to hockey insider account RinkyReport, Edvinsson is heading toward restricted free agency with camp less than two weeks away and still no deal in place.
Edvinsson's deal tangled in Red Wings front office drama
The same report raises a bigger question, suggesting his side doesn't even have a clear negotiating partner to sit down with right now.
Is that really where a young, cost-controlled defenseman's camp should be two weeks before puck drop? It shouldn't.
Letting your cheapest, most productive piece on the blue line sit unresolved this close to camp is a bad look, no matter who's making the calls.
It's the hockey version of showing up to close on a house and finding out the seller's agent quit the week before.
Edvinsson wasn't just keeping the seat warm last season either. He chipped in three assists over his final 10 games.
Todd McLellan has run this bench since December of 2024, and he's leaned on Edvinsson as a real piece of his rotation, not a project.
A $894,166 cap hit for this kind of production won't exist much longer once a new deal gets signed. That math only moves one direction.
Camp opens soon, and Edvinsson still doesn't have a number attached to his name. How Detroit handles the next two weeks will tell the real story.
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Should the Red Wings have Simon Edvinsson's contract done before worrying about their captain's future?
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