The Detroit Red Wings may not trade Dylan Larkin after all.
Larkin reportedly requested a trade out of Detroit following the team’s failure to make the playoffs again. Yet, the NHL Draft went with no trade, and with the first wave of free agency done, Larkin is still a member of the Red Wings.
With that, NHL insider Chris Johnston said on ‘The Chris Johnston Show’ on July 2 that it’s likely Larkin remains in Detroit.
“With Dylan Larkin, right now, it’s to me, it’s Minnesota or the Red Wings. There could be a surprise; there could be a trade that opens something up, but Minnesota hasn’t done a lot on Free Agent Frenzy. They didn’t make a big signing; they need to protect their cap space,” Johnston said.
“They have a need for what Larkin is and a real desire to get him. Whether they get a third team in the mix, maybe it allows it to happen. It doesn’t seem like the Wild have the sort of pieces that would compel the Red Wings to pull the trigger. It’s going to have to be a patient summer.”
With the Wild not having the assets the Red Wings want, Johnston believes there’s a good chance Larkin is back in Detroit come training camp.
Larkin is entering the fourth year of his eight-year, $69.6 million deal with the Red Wings, so Detroit doesn’t have to trade him.
Red Wings GM Won’t Guarantee Larkin Gets Dealt
Although Larkin has requested a trade, Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman said the team doesn’t have to move him.
Instead, Yzerman said he will do what is best for Detroit, and not just what Larkin wants.
“Shortly after the season, I received a phone call from Dylan Larkin’s agent, informing me that Dylan would like to be traded,” Yzerman said. “A week or so after that, Dylan’s agent followed up with a short list of teams that Dylan would consider waiving his no-trade (clause) to go to.
“My job as the manager of the Detroit Red Wings is always to do what is in the best interest of the Detroit Red Wings, and I will act accordingly to that. I cannot make any guarantees, or did not make any guarantees, that that request could or would be met.”
Larkin and Yzerman have butted heads for a bit now. Two years ago, after Detroit didn’t do anything at the trade deadline and missed the playoffs, Larkin was critical of the front office.
Yzerman, however, said he felt like the top player should have stepped up and led the team to the playoffs. And it ultimately led to a trade request, which might not happen after all.
Detroit Has Quiet Free Agency
Although the Red Wings are in a lengthy playoff drought, Detroit had a quiet first day of free agency.
The Red Wings signed Viktor Arvidsson to a two-year, $10 million deal to be a top-six forward. Detroit then traded for Keegan Kolesar from the Vegas Golden Knights for a 2029 third-round pick and a 2027 seventh-round pick.
Detroit hasn’t made the playoffs in 10 consecutive seasons, the longest active drought in the NHL.
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