Detroit Red Wings Take Simon Edvinsson with 6th Overall Pick

The Detroit Red Wings were linked with a number of players throughout the lead up to the NHL Draft, but Steve Yzerman and company went back to Frolunda and made their choice Simon Edvinsson.

The first five picks went like this:

• 1. Buffalo – Owen Power
• 2. Seattle – Matty Beniers
• 3. Anaheim – Mason McTavish
• 4. New Jersey – Luke Hughes
• 5. Columbus – Kent Johnson

Power went first to Buffalo as many expected. In the unpredictable 2-5, it went pretty close to what people thought. Beniers went second, but the first boom was lowered when McTavish went third to Anaheim. We mocked him at six, but it wasn’t shocking at all to see him go at three–his stock had been rising for months. Hughes went to New Jersey and then Johnson jumped to Columbus.

While Detroit fans were salivating over getting William Eklund, Yzerman again went defense and took Edvinsson.

What could the Red Wings hope for from Edvinsson

Going back to what Alex wrote on his player profile, here’s a snippet of what to expect:

"Standing at 6-foot-5 and clocking in at 207 pounds, he’s an imposing force on the blue line, with deceptively great skating (Especially for his size). If the more simple defensive tricks don’t work, he’ll get physical to halt oncoming offensive charges .Edvinsson possesses elite mobility for a defender of his size and some pretty tricky hands, too. Occasionally, he can put the two skills together and activate effectively on the offensive side of the ice.Just looking at highlights, Edvinsson seems like an elite defender with two-way potential at the pro-level. However, inconsistency is an issue. There are times where the decisions are down right terrible; opting for a little dump into the neutral zone and immediately turning it over, or panicking with the puck and forcing a quick, useless pass. For every few fantastic shifts, it seemed like there were at least a couple times where Edvinsson looked like one of the worst defenders on the ice."

How Edvinsson Fits into the Yzerplan

Well now it gets interesting with a blue line that is going to feature some big, young, very high IQ defenseman. Oh, it’s not the pick fans wanted as Eklund was hanging out there. But it fits the schematic that Yzerman wants for this team–building a strong blue line that can anchor this team for many years.

This is again where fans might be split. But it’ll take time and development to see–just like with Seider–if Yzerman hit another home run after taking a big swing.

Regardless, if the luck does indeed go Detroit’s way, man, what a blue line this organization is going to boast. Trust in the development, and the Yzerplan.