Sarnia Sting standout Beckham Edwards eyes a sentimental Detroit return as the Red Wings consider using their 47th pick on the high-scoring Little Caesars program alumnus.
With the draft fast approaching, the Detroit Red Wings made sure they left no stone unturned at Saturday's NHL Scouting Combine in Buffalo.
Despite not picking until 47th overall in the second round, the Red Wings were active in the meeting rooms all weekend, and one name that stood out from their sessions is London, Ontario native Beckham Edwards, a player with a personal connection to the Motor City that makes the fit all the more compelling.
Edwards is a Little Caesars 15U Alumni who knows Detroit well, having spent his OHL draft year in the city and recorded 97 points in 64 games with the Little Caesars 15U AAA program.
The six-foot-one, 187 pound center is known primarily for his top end speed and brings enough physicality to complement it, and it showed this past season with the Sarnia Sting where he finished with his second straight 45-point OHL season before preparing to make the jump to Notre Dame next year.
When speaking on his Combine experience with The Hockey News, Edwards made clear that his chat with Detroit carried a little extra weight compared to some of the others.
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"Really good experience, obviously here we get to talk to the scouts, talk with Steve Yzerman," Edwards said. "You want to get yourself out there a little bit, you want to crack a couple jokes, you want to get your name out there, but yeah, good experiences overall."
His laid back and personable approach in the meeting room could work in his favor, as Edwards is projected to come off the board somewhere in the late 40 to early 50 pick range, a window that lines up directly with Detroit's 47th overall selection. When asked specifically about the possibility of returning to Detroit, Edwards didn't hide what it would mean to him.
Although Edwards will be heading to Notre Dame next season to continue developing his game against older competition in the NCAA, the path back to Michigan may not take long.
A strong college season could accelerate his timeline toward a professional contract, and with the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins serving as Detroit's primary development affiliate, Edwards could find himself back in the state of Michigan sooner than expected.
For a Red Wings organization looking to add talent at center, bringing back a player who got his start in their own backyard would be a story worth watching on draft night.
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