Detroit Red Wings recall Simon Edvinsson, will make NHL debut Saturday

The Detroit Red Wings have recalled top defense prospect Simon Edvinsson from the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins, the club announced Friday afternoon.

Edvinsson and forward Austin Czarnik joined the Red Wings on emergency recalls in time for Friday’s practice at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde confirmed later that Edvinsson will make his NHL debut against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday.

The Red Wings originally selected Edvinsson in the first round (No. 6 overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft. The six-foot-four defenseman, who shoots left, has five goals and 27 points in 51 games with the Griffins this season.

Based on Friday’s practice, Edvinsson will likely skate on a pairing with Robert Hagg against the Avalanche while Gustav Lindstrom and Ben Chiarot recover from injuries.

The Red Wings and Avalanche will do battle in Detroit on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. ET. Edvinsson said after the skate that his parents and brother are flying in from Sweden for the game.

Through 67 games this season, the Red Wings rank seventh in the Atlantic Division with a 30–28–9 record. They established themselves as sellers ahead of the trade deadline earlier this month, moving on from Tyler Bertuzzi, Jakub Vrana, Filip Hronek, and Oskar Sundqvist.

But the Red Wings didn’t sell everybody. The team agreed to an eight-year contract extension with captain Dylan Larkin on Mar. 1, keeping the Michigan-born center with the team through 2031 at an $8.7 million cap hit.

Edvinsson is the latest in a long line of high picks to make the jump to the NHL in Detroit, joining Moritz Seider, Lucas Raymond, Filip Zadina, and Michael Rasmussen. Marco Kasper and Sebastian Cossa are still to come.