The Detroit Red Wings have nicked defensive depth by signing Jacob Bernard-Docker to a two-year contract extension worth $3.2 million, the team announced on Wednesday. The deal carries a $1.6 million annual cap hit and runs through the 2027-28 NHL season, after which the 25-year-old will be eligible for unrestricted free agency.
Bernard-Docker has played 55 games this season, amassing four assists, a +5 rating, 37 shots, 83 blocked shots, and 58 hits while averaging approximately 15:00 of ice time per game. Among Detroit defensemen with at least 50 appearances, his average ice time ranks seventh. He has also racked up 18 penalty minutes and spent most of his ice time at even strength, maintaining a 51.0% expected goals share with Albert Johansson.
Defensively, Bernard-Docker has held up well, as indicated by advanced metrics, including a career-best 95.0% on-ice save percentage at even strength, the highest among Red Wings players this season. While his special teams usage has been limited, he has seen his role expand over the course of the season after starting as a sixth defenseman.
Originally selected 26th overall in the 2018 NHL Draft by the Ottawa Senators, Bernard-Docker has hit the ice for 199 career NHL games across runs with Ottawa, the Buffalo Sabres, and Detroit, accumulating six goals and 22 assists for 28 points. During the 2023-24 season with the Senators, he set career highs with 74 games played, four goals, and 14 points.
Bernard-Docker joined the Red Wings on a one-year, $875,000 contract in July 2025 after Buffalo declined to issue a qualifying offer. With the extension, Detroit now has nearly its entire blue line under contract for next season, leaving only restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson and unrestricted free agent Travis Hamonic without deals.
