Could Erik Karlsson Be a Potential Fit in Detroit?

Since arriving in San Jose in 2018, Erik Karlsson has struggled to stay healthy, resulting in a massive drop in production up until this season. Through 18 games, Karlsson has taken the NHL by storm, matching his goal total (10) of last year and also adding 14 helpers. Karlsson’s resurgence, mixed with San Jose’s position in the face of a lengthy rebuild, has led many insiders across the league to speculate on a potential trade of the 32-year-old defenseman.

Sharks’ General Manager Mike Grier said he is willing to listen to trade offers on Karlsson earlier this week, “I’ll listen, but at the end of the day too, a lot will depend on Erik too.”

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that he believes the Sharks and Senators (Karlsson’s former team) had conversations regarding Karlsson, but his salary was a concern.

Wednesday on TSN, Mike Johnson named Detroit as a potential trade destination for Karlsson.

While Johnson is speculating, Detroit is a team in a position to make a move for a player like Karlsson. Karlsson is in year four of an eight-year contract that carries an average annual value of $11.5 million a season, which for nearly all Stanley Cup contenders would be impossible to fit under the salary cap.

Detroit is a team that aggressively made moves to be competitive this summer, signing the likes of Dominik Kubalik, Ville Husso, and Andrew Copp to provide secondary support to the core of Dylan Larkin, Moritz Seider, and Lucas Raymond. The Red Wings only have three defenders under contract in 2023 (Ben Chiarot, Moritz Seider, and Filip Hronek) and will likely look to bring in veteran help to insulate the next wave of defensive prospects, including 2021 sixth-overall pick, Simon Edvinsson.

Detroit has nearly $40 million in cap space heading into next offseason and, besides re-signing Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi, has plenty of room to make a splash. Karlsson would bring an elite level of offense Detroit has desperately lacked since Nicklas Lidstrom retired. A right side of Seider, Karlsson, and Hronek would likely be among the best in the NHL.

Ultimately, this is a move Detroit should avoid unless significant salary retention and pieces come along with Karlsson from San Jose. While Karlsson could be a Norris Trophy finalist, his age and contract make taking him on a significant risk for a team like Detroit, who, in the last two years of that contract, could be a salary cap team. With Moritz Seider and Filip Hronek already on the roster and Simon Edvinsson likely to make the jump next season, Detroit will have defensemen who should be able to create offense.

As fun as it would be to see another legendary Swedish defenseman in Detroit, Steve Yzerman isn’t known to make long-term gambles on aging players, which will likely rule out a potential Karlsson deal to Detroit.