A mock trade sending Simon Edvinsson to the Toronto Maple Leafs lit up hockey Twitter this morning.
The pitch from IceMetrix ships Easton Cowan, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, a 2027 second-round pick and a 2028 fifth to Detroit. Toronto gets one piece back.
The caption asked who says no. Detroit does, and it's a short phone call.
Edvinsson went sixth overall in 2021. He's a 6-foot-6 left shot, and nobody hands those out at the deadline.
Last season he put up 25 points in 72 games. He also finished plus-12 with 75 penalty minutes, so the snarl comes standard.
Over his NHL career, the big Swede has 60 points through 175 games. And he's still only 23.
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Shawn Horcoff holds every card in this Edvinsson debate
Horcoff is running Detroit's front office on an interim basis. He inherits a club sitting at 3-3-3.
The Red Wings rank 24th overall with a minus-5 goal differential.
Goals are the issue. Detroit averages 2.6 per game, and that's exactly where Cowan becomes tempting.
The 21-year-old has 10 points through 11 games for Toronto.
Two of his goals have been game-winners. He's also chipped in a shorthanded marker, which isn't something you see from many kids his age.
And he's doing it on a $900,000 cap hit.
Then there's Ekman-Larsson, and this is where the whole thing falls apart.
The 35-year-old veteran has one assist this season. He carries a $3,500,000 cap hit.
Taking him on is like buying a house and agreeing to keep the previous owner's broken furnace.
A second and a fifth don't close that gap. Not for a defenseman who's still climbing.
From Toronto's chair, the logic is obvious. The Leafs are giving up 3.2 goals per game.
Chris Tanev is on injured reserve. Morgan Rielly has been held without a goal and sits at minus-4.
Jake McCabe hasn't registered a point yet. That's a blue line asking for help, loudly.
But would Jim Hiller really sign off on losing a forward producing at nearly a point a game?
The Leafs host the Rangers tonight riding two straight wins, including Tuesday's 6-2 rout in Columbus.
Detroit continues its road trip in Vancouver tonight, still chasing its first road win after going 0-0-2 away from home.
These teams haven't met yet. The first of four meetings lands Dec. 22 in Detroit, and Toronto's blue line problem won't wait that long.
Should the Maple Leafs give up Easton Cowan to land Simon Edvinsson?
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