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Red Wings Prospect Excited to Again Don Winged Wheel
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- Red Wings Prospect Excited to Again Don Winged Wheel
The post Red Wings Prospect Excited to Again Don Winged Wheel appeared first on Detroit Hockey Now .
Beckham Edwards
Beckham Edwards is unique among the 2026 draft selections of the Detroit Red Wings in that he's already worn the iconic winged wheel jersey in game action.
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As the weekend's NHL Entry Draft was fast approaching, Beckham's buddies kept reminding him of that fact.
"I had a lot of friends back from Novi texting me about saying how I better get drafted to Detroit," Edwards said. "And now that I have, it's really special."
For the 2023-24 season, the 6-foot-1, 187-pound center decided to relocate from his Komoka, Ontario home to the Detroit suburbs. He'd play that season for the Little Caesars 15U AAA club in the youth hockey organization operated by the Ilitch family, owners of the Red Wings.
"With Little Caesars, for our third jerseys, we wore the Red Wings jerseys," Edwards said.
Now he's in line to wear it for the big club. Edwards was the 143rd overall selection by the Red Wings.
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When he arrives for development camp on Monday, he'll be one of the few newcomers on familiar ground.
"I've been inside the (Red Wings) locker room (at Little Caesars Arena)," Edwards said. "I've been in the Belfor training center a bunch. So I think being familiar with the rink in the area of Michigan and Detroit, yeah, it's awesome."
College Dream Brought Red Wings Hopeful to Detroit
It was the desire to play NCAA hockey that encouraged Edwards to make the move to Michigan.
"I moved into a billet in Novi, Michigan," Edwards said. "I wanted to play college hockey."
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Edwards spent the past two seasons with the OHL's Sarnia Sting. He scored 25 goals as an OHL rookie and tallied 19 more this season. However, it's his world-class speed that makes Edwards stand out. He uses his blazing blades to close down space and be a persistent, disruptive presence in opposition offensive forays.
"I think I try to model my game and take bits away from (Montreal Canadiens captain Nick) Suzuki," Edwards said.
"My skating is something that is a really big strength of mine, and my hockey IQ, how I think the game. I like to play a full, complete game, kind of in the offensive zone and the defensive zone.
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"And I think I'm very versatile as well. I can play everywhere."
He'll be living out his NCAA dream this fall. Edwards will be attending Notre Dame.
"I'm going to Notre Dame this upcoming year, and then I'll play there, and then, hopefully, play here in Detroit as fast as I can," Edwards said.
And yes, in case you were wondering, his given name is a tribute to UK soccer legend and pop culture icon David Beckham.
"My dad played soccer growing up in college, so that might have been how I got the name Beckham," Edwards said.
The post Red Wings Prospect Excited to Again Don Winged Wheel appeared first on Detroit Hockey Now .
