NHL Rumor Roundup: The Latest On Simon Edvinsson And Alexander Nikishin

The Simon Edvinsson saga continues with no end in sight.

On Saturday, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported that the Detroit Red Wings defenseman still prefers a trade, but the club remains intent on re-signing him. He indicated that they're prepared to consider several contract terms for the 23-year-old restricted free agent.

Nevertheless, speculation persisted over potential trade destinations for Edvinsson if he and the Red Wings fail to agree to a new contract.

Sportsnet's Ryan Dixon believes the Red Wings prefer to get a promising young NHL center in return. He suggested Caleb Desnoyers of the Utah Mammoth, Berkly Catton of the Seattle Kraken, Dalibor Dvorsky of the St. Louis Blues, and Kent Johnson of the Columbus Blue Jackets as potential targets.

Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal believes the Oilers should look into acquiring Edvinsson. However, he doubted they had sufficient trade capital to do so. Matheson thinks a promising young forward like Ike Howard or Matthew Savoie would have to be part of the return.

Ethan Sears of the New York Post suggested the Islanders would have the cap space to sign Edvinsson to an offer sheet, with defenseman Alexander Romanov out for most of the regular season. He felt it would be a complicated path, but not impossible.

The Islanders are unlikely to go that route. Edvinsson wasn't interested in signing offer sheets during the summer, and his preference for a trade suggests his position hasn't changed.

Meanwhile, in Carolina, there's no sign that the Hurricanes are any closer to moving Alexander Nikishin.

The 24-year-old defenseman is a 10.2 (c) restricted free agent who requested a trade in June. He's ineligible to sign an offer sheet, and according to Sportsnet's Frank Seravalli, he doesn't face the Dec. 1 deadline to sign a new contract like Edvinsson does.

On Saturday, Elliotte Friedman said he didn’t see any trade possibilities for Nikishin on the horizon. He thinks the Hurricanes are willing to bring him back, but the two sides must first agree to a new contract.

Rumor has it Nikishin seeks a multi-year deal with an AAV of over $9 million. However, that would eat up almost all of the Hurricanes' $10.087 million in cap space. If he returns to Carolina, it could be on a one-year deal worth well below his rumored asking price.

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