Photo credit: Grace Beal/Michigan Daily
After four seasons of college hockey, Michigan defenseman Ethan Edwards signed his entry-level contract with the New Jersey Devils. With Edwards being 22 years old, the former Wolverine was only eligible for a maximum two-year contract under the current NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement.
A 4th-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, the Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada native played four seasons with Michigan and returned to school this season to complete his degree. In those four seasons, Edwards played in 130 Games for the Maize & Blue recording 56 Points (15 Goals & 41 Assists), and was a +17.
Coming in at #10 in my latest “2025 Spring Prospect Rankings”, Edwards posted career highs in goals (5), power-play goals (4) assists (16), and points (21) this season with Michigan.
Edwards saw a big jump in his game this season after the departure of Seamus Casey to the pros. Edwards took over the number defenseman role for Brandon Naurato, logging ~25:00 of time on ice against one of the toughest schedules in the country this season. While the Wolverines struggled to find quality ice time from their defenseman, Naurato was able to rely on Edwards.
Michigan’s season ended early after being swept at home in the Big 10 Tournament by Penn State, leading to the 18-15-3 Wolverines to miss the National Tournament for the first time since 2019-2019 (19-20 was canceled by Covid).
In his time in Ann Arbor, Edwards won everything but a National Championship. In his trophy case are two Big 10 Tournaments, three Frozen Four appearances with the Wolverines, 2nd Team All-Big 10, and two Big 10 All-Academic teams.
His skating is elite & brings a tremendous physical edge despite being 6’0 and 195 pounds. Edwards will be a perfect fit for the Devils transition style of play with their high-end talent on offense.
Making the jump to the pros he’ll have some familiar faces to lean on. Edwards was teammates with current Devils defenseman Luke Hughes from 2021-2023 and current Utica Comet, Seamus Casey, from 2022-2024 seasons at Michigan.
With his ELC starting next season (2025-2026), Edwards will play the remainder of the 2024-2025 season with the Utica Comets after signing an American Hockey League (AHL) Standard Player Contract, first reported by Ben Birnell of the Daily Sentinel.
With his signing in New Jersey Edwards continues the great tradition of Michigan players turning pro, becoming the 18th Wolverine to sign an NHL contract in the past three years according to the University of Michigan.
The Comets are back in action on March 28th with a three-game weekend. Expect to see Ethan Edwards and Seamus Casey re-uniting on the blue line as a defensive pairing under head coach Ryan Parent.
Edwards will be a dark horse to make the Devils roster out of training camp to begin the 2025-2026 season.
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