A new trade pitch aimed at the Red Wings, published Saturday, would see Detroit land Norris Trophy winner Quinn Hughes and forward Yakov Trenin. In return, the Red Wings send the Minnesota Wild holdout defenseman Simon Edvinsson, center Nate Danielson and a 2028 first-round pick. The trade pitch was assembled and posted using the roster construction site PuckGM.
Edvinsson is the motivating factor here. The 23-year-old remains unsigned, is not playing for Detroit and must sign by Dec. 1 to play at all this season, according to Pro Hockey Rumors.
Minnesota sheds roughly $10.4 million by sending out Hughes with his $7.85 million cap hit and Trenin at $3.5 million, and taking back Danielson, while Detroit absorbs the same amount. Before the deal, Detroit holds $16.941 million in space and Minnesota sits $1.419 million in the red, according to PuckGM.
Quinn Hughes, Simon Edvinsson and the Players in the Deal
Hughes, 27, was born in Orlando, Florida, and Vancouver drafted him seventh overall in 2018. He won the Norris Trophy in 2023-24 with 92 points, according to NHL.com, then moved to Minnesota last December for Marco Rossi, Liam Ohgren, Zeev Buium and a first-round pick. His younger brother, Luke, plays defense for the New Jersey Devils. Another brother, Jack, also plays for the Devils and became an Olympic hero by scoring the gold medal winning goal for Team USA earlier this year.
Quinn Hughes has 13 points in 11 games this season, according to Pro Hockey Rumors‘ Ethan Hetu. His $7.85 million contract expires after 2026-27, making him a pending unrestricted free agent.
Edvinsson, born Feb. 5, 2003, in Kungsbacka, Sweden, stands 6-foot-6 and 222 pounds. Detroit took him sixth overall in 2021. He has 60 points in 175 games and averaged 22:21 of ice time last season, second on the team behind Moritz Seider, according to NHL.com.
Danielson, 22, is a Red Deer, Alberta, native whom Detroit selected ninth overall in 2023. The center captained the Brandon Wheat Kings and totaled 217 points, according to Elite Prospects, in 199 WHL games. He has nine points in 36 NHL games and counts $909,166 against the cap through 2027-28.
Trenin, 29, was born in Chelyabinsk, Russia, and Nashville drafted him 55th overall in 2015. He signed a four-year, $14 million contract with Minnesota in 2024 after a season with a career-high 207 hits, according to the Wild. The deal pays $3.5 million annually through 2027-28.
Edvinsson Holdout and Who Wins the Trade
“I have zero interest in trading Simon Edvinsson,” interim general manager Shawn Horcoff said Oct. 14, as quoted by NHL.com. Horcoff added that he wants to sign the defenseman, who practiced at camp without a contract but never played in the preseason.
Edvinsson is believed to want more than $10 million per season, and the sides’ numbers reportedly have not been close. Detroit gave Alex DeBrincat $91 million over seven years on Oct. 13, and at least 10 teams, Boston among them, have asked about Edvinsson, according to Pro Hockey Rumors.
The Wild are 6-3-2 as Stanley Cup contenders, according to Pro Hockey Rumors. Hughes has said an extension will “be done whenever I feel like it needs to be done,” as quoted by Pro Hockey Rumors. The Wild “at least have to consider” trading him if he “remains unwilling to engage in contract discussions,” according to The Athletic.
Detroit would be adding a 27-year-old Norris winner to a defense led by Moritz Seider, who produced 60 points in 82 games last season, according to Detroit Sports Nation. The Red Wings opened with Albert Johansson on the top pair beside Seider.
Minnesota would receive Edvinsson, who produced 25 points in 72 games last season, plus Danielson and a first-round pick, while surrendering the Norris winner it acquired for Rossi, Ohgren, Buium and a first. By production, Detroit gets the best player in the deal. By assets, Minnesota recoups a center and a first-round pick, while Detroit takes on an expiring contract with no extension in place.
As a fix for the holdout, the deal sends Edvinsson to a team that would face the Dec. 1 deadline and his reported $10 million-plus asking price. As a rebuild move, it runs the other way. Detroit would give up the players it drafted sixth and ninth overall, plus a first-round pick, for a 27-year-old who can reach free agency next summer.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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