Regarding Dylan Larkin: Irony is dead, and a history lesson

A couple of days ago, I posted this on the platform formerly known as Twitter, mostly amused in the Alanis Morissette sense of the term “ironic,” a.k.a. “darkly funny.”

You really can interpret this post as you will. Pat Brisson has been one of the NHL’s most prolific and powerful agents over the course of the last 30 years, representing everyone from Mario Lemieux, Fedorov and Sidney Crosby to people like Dylan Larkin, Quinn Hughes and dozens of others.

Some of Brisson’s clients have been shepherded through the ask-for-a-trade and/or “sign elsewhere” process; other clients have remained with their employers throughout the duration of their contracts, and have even spent their entire careers with one organization.

I don’t know whether having the same agent is the reason that Larkin is divorcing the Red Wings, which still strikes me as quite similar to Fedorov’s decision to walk away from Detroit after both his 1998 holdout and the 2003 free agency dispute with Mike Ilitch’s management team.

I just know that it’s out there, as a data point, and that it’s really effing ironic, perhaps in the Alanis Morissette sense of the term. It’s not THE REASON why Larkin is asking for a trade, but it’s certainly worth noting.

I do know that Brisson is the reason that people like Pierre LeBrun, the Free Press’s Helene St. James and the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan (among others) were able to corroborate Elliotte Friedman’s initial report that Larkin had asked Detroit for a trade to the release of Larkin’s “short list” of destinations, as well as the possibility of adding new teams to the list.

Why? Because the Red Wings’ management team simply does not speak with the media until Steve Yzerman decides that it’s time to hold a press conference, and Larkin’s an unlikely source as a disgruntled party, too. The information has to be coming from somewhere, and it’s likely Brisson who’s sharing these nuggets of joy with the Wings’ beat writers and some carefully chosen genuine “insiders.”

Continue reading Regarding Dylan Larkin: Irony is dead, and a history lesson

There is no such thing as a no-fault divorce

The Friday morning after Dylan Larkin’s request for a trade was made public has yielded a significant amount of the “blame game” going around the internet and sports talk radio.

Whose fault is it that the Red Wings’ home-grown captain has chosen to leave his team? Is it Larkin’s fault for being a 29-year-old turncoat, if not someone for whom the rebuild has passed him by? Is it Steve Yzerman’s fault for not bringing the rebuild to fruition sooner? Is it the fault of Larkin’s teammates, good or bad, for not holding up their end of the performance bargain? Or could it even be the fault of the coaching staff for not getting the best out of their players for two Marches in a row?

Folks, when a player-and-team divorce of this magnitude happens (and there are few divorces that are uglier than this one in terms of professional sports), everybody has egg on their faces, and there’s more than enough blame to go around. Attempting to dump all one’s frustrations and disappointment on one party just isn’t useful.

Is Larkin at fault for losing patience with the rebuild and wanting “out” for selfish reasons? Of course.

Is Steve Yzerman’s laconically slow rebuild to blame, given that Larkin was 19 when he joined the Red Wings, and is 30 years old on a still-rebuilding roster? Of course.

Continue reading There is no such thing as a no-fault divorce

The logo on the front vs. the name and number on the back, or why Dylan Larkin’s jersey’s going on clearance soon

There’s a real rule for fans of rebuilding teams, and it should be placed somewhere near the team store, frankly.

“There’s going to be a lot of roster turnover as your team rebuilds, so don’t spend all your money on the team’s current roster players. If you’re considering spending a lot of money on an authentic jersey with authentic name and numbering, purchase an alumni jersey, with only one or two exceptions.”

When Dylan Larkin was at the heart of the Red Wings’ rebuild in his mid-20’s, Detroit was a team that surrounded Larkin with a core of players like Tyler Bertuzzi, Anthony Mantha and Andreas Athanasiou, and, slowly but surely, the Lucas Raymonds and Moritz Seiders of the world.

But just about everyone not named Larkin, Raymond or Seider has been traded, allowed to “walk” or retired, regardless of whether they’ve been players or members of the coaching staff.

That’s supposed to be the way of the world for all sports teams, but rebuilding teams specifically, and as the teams begin to exit their rebuilds, the rosters are supposed to slowly but surely stabilize. No more Bert-Ehn-Erne lines, no more Nedeljkovics or Berniers in net, no more Ben Chiarot as your first or second-pair defensema…Okay, maybe there are some exceptions to the rule.

But the young players who the team drafted are supposed to remain as building blocks, as the real cornerstones of the franchise. Maybe only two or three will remain over time, but the whole idea is that they’ll provide the foundation upon which the team is built.

Continue reading The logo on the front vs. the name and number on the back, or why Dylan Larkin’s jersey’s going on clearance soon

The comeback plan

Blog news:

My health conditions continue to improve, slowly, over time. I’m getting more energy back as the days and weeks progress, and I am at least at an every-other-day-is-not-so-bad point right now. I can function for a day, and then rest for a day.

I would like to get back to full-time blogging by the start of the 2026 NHL Draft on June 26th and 27th, to try to carry through the Red Wings’ summer development camp and free agency, and then…

I hope to use the “quieter” (this is a relative term) summer months to build up endurance energy-wise to figure out how much I’m going to be able to return to every-day blogging come training camp and the exhibition season.

Put bluntly, I have four motivators:

  1. I miss blogging like crazy. It’s the only real outlet that I have aside from rendering care to my now 84-year-old aunt, and the blog gives me an identity, it gives me a voice, and it gives me a routine sharing coverage of the team I’ve been following since 1991.
  2. We’re at a point where following the team at an advanced level takes so much time that it makes little sense to not share what I’m reading from around the world with an audience. There’s so much Red Wings-related stuff on the internet right now that it’s a job to read and respond to it all, regardless of whether it’s being shared, so if I can have a figurative microphone with which to offer my thoughts and start conversations, that’s a logical place to be for me.
  3. Aunt Annie supports what I want to do, regardless of whether that’s being an every-day blogger or an every-couple-of-days opinion-sharing blogger (which may end up being what I do if the energy level never really returns to near-normal). Aunt Annie and my therapist alike know that this blog is good for my mental health, and as someone who deals with chronic mental illnesses, it’s not just a creative outlet or a, “Hell, might as well share the information that I’m reading” outlet–it facilitates my mental health.
  4. Finally, it’s too expensive to be a Red Wings fan following every source that I’ve subscribed to without doing this to at least “break even” money-wise. I can’t afford my subscriptions to MLive, the Free Press, the Detroit News, Detroit Hockey Now, The Athletic, ESPN, etc. etc. without your help, because I’m making minimum wage as a State of Michigan-employed caregiver for Aunt Annie, so it’s imperative that I provide coverage that’s worth both your time and some level of fiscal support.

As of June 4th, that’s where I’m at in terms of hoping and praying for and working toward a return to the blog. I hope that you’ll continue following as I make my way back behind the laptop over the course of the next month.

The captain and the conundrum

I am stunned and gutted by the news from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman that Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin has requested a trade from the team.

As a fan, I can’t tell you enough good things about Larkin. I believe that, over the course of his 9-year 11-year tenure with the team, he’s done nothing but give 100% for his coaches, teammates and fans, and he’s been bloody proud to wear the Winged Wheel and represent the team as its captain.

I don’t know where things went south between captain and team, though ESPN’s Emily Kaplan offered some significant hints as to why the relationship between the captain and the management team has gone sour.

All of that being said, as both a fan and a blogger, I believe that the Red Wings are in a tricky position right now–in terms of maximizing 29-year-old Larkin’s value, amidst a dry desert of a free agent marketplace.

Larkin is a #1 center in the right situation, and he’s a 65-to-75 point-scorer and 25-goal-scorer, and while he’s made his desire to leave the Wings for a fresh start clear…

We all know that GM Steve Yzerman isn’t going to be backed into a corner. He’s going to ask for a top-of-the-line return, which includes the usual: a strong roster contributor, a prospect, and a first-round draft pick.

Yzerman can ask for that much because of Larkin’s “motor,” on and off the ice, as a driver of play, and he cannot settle for less just because Larkin’s demands have become public.

He’s a trade asset now (and a trade asset with an affordable contract under the ever-expanding salary cap), and whether you loved him or loathed him, especially because the free agent marketplace is so incredibly dead, it’s going to be up to the Red Wings’ management to hit a home run while accommodating the captain’s wishes for a new start.

Again, as a fan, I’m genuinely sad and hurt about Larkin’s decision to choose a different path. But as a pseudo-analyst of the team, I want my team to do its damnedest to treat Larkin like nothing more than an asset that is to be leveraged for a maximal return.

Thanks, I hated it

Around October 3rd, as the Red Wings’ centennial season began, I got sick, and had to step away from the blog.

The problem has been that I never really got better. I’ve been battling through severe fatigue ever since.

I can take care of Aunt Annie, but in between our mostly scheduled caregiving times, I need to rest. And I can do “Tweetcaps” of games and be active on “X” during games, but I have to take entire days “off” (as much as a caregiver can rest and recover) when the Red Wings aren’t playing games.

I’ve had blood tests done. I’ve had a colonoscopy. The only real answers I’ve gotten are that my iron levels are far too low, and, from a particularly ignorant doctor, that maybe I’m taking too many antidepressants (which is bullshit).

I’ve dealt with some episodes of severe depression because of this situation. I’ve battled through anxiety. My bipolar 2 doesn’t help the situation as it has very intense “middles” and deep “downs.”

But this is mostly physical, and it’s been horrible.

Continue reading Thanks, I hated it

Red Wings-Panthers Tweetcap: Florida embarrasses Detroit in game 82

The Detroit Red Wings concluded their 2025-2026 campaign by playing against the Florida Panthers on Wednesday night. Two teams without any playoff hopes = a game that can either be incredibly boring if the teams just “go through the motions,” and, if we’re lucky, a game in which players play for both pride and for jobs on next season’s team as they go out with a bang.

On Wednesday Night at Amerant Bank Arena, the Red Wings were roundly embarrassed, losing 8-1 to Florida’s “B Team.” Justin Faulk scored Detroit’s only goal, John Gibson was pulled due to taking a shot to the face, and neither he nor Cam Talbot were very good–but Detroit was -30, with Mo Seider of all people finishing at -4.

The Red Wings were totally out of gas mentally and out of gas physically, but there is still no excuse for the Red Wings’ struggles to even show up for the final game of the season.

PREGAME: John Gibson and Daniil Tarasov led their respective teams out onto the ice (and again, there’s no walk-out video from the Wings)…

Continue reading Red Wings-Panthers Tweetcap: Florida embarrasses Detroit in game 82

Red Wings-Lighting Tweetcap: Tampa Bay out-streaks resilient Detroit in overtime

The Detroit Red Wings’ playoff push is over, but two games remain on the regular season schedule, starting with Monday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning…

And it’s always instructive to see how a team responds when it’s got nothing to play for other than pride and jobs on next year’s team.

On Monday night at Benchmark International Arena, the Red Wings displayed all the good and bad points of their 2025-2026 regular season’s worth of play via a 4-3 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Wings took a 1-0 lead, gave up 3 straight goals to go down 3-1, rallied for a point with a late goal by Alex DeBrincat that happened to include Patrick Kane’s 1,400th NHL point…

But in overtime, a mess-up in terms of coverage in the offensive zone–much like several of the Wings’ coverage mistakes that resulted in goals against in regulation–yielded a 2-on-1 for Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point, and with Andrew Copp the last man back, Detroit and Cam Talbot stood no chance of stopping the Bolts from taking a 4-3 OT decision.

PREGAME: Cam Talbot and Andrei Vasilevskiy led their respective teams out onto the ice (and the Red Wings’ social media team didn’t do their usual goalie-leads-team Tweet, so here’s the Bolts’ Twitter video thereof…)

Continue reading Red Wings-Lighting Tweetcap: Tampa Bay out-streaks resilient Detroit in overtime

Red Wings-Devils Tweetcap: End of the line

Win and get help, or lose and golf. That was the equation for the Detroit Red Wings as they hosted the New Jersey Devils on Saturday afternoon.

At Little Caesars Arena, the Red Wings played the kind of game they have all season long. Detroit took 1-0, 2-1 and 3-3 leads over the course of the first, second and third periods, but managed to surrender three straight 3rd period goals to lose a 5-3 decision to New Jersey.

The loss eliminated the Red Wings from the 2025-2026 playoff chase.

PREGAME: John Gibson and Jake Allen led their respective teams out onto the ice…

Continue reading Red Wings-Devils Tweetcap: End of the line

Red Wings-Flyers Tweetcap: Detroit wins in a 6-3 romp over Philadelphia

The Red Wings needed to win Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers to continue their incredibly unlikely but possible playoff chase.

So, on Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena, the Red Wings got the job done, and did so in emphatic fashion, winning 6-3 over the Flyers.

Dylan Larkin scored a hat trick and had 4 points; Moritz Seider had 1 goal and 4 assists for 5 points; Patrick Kane had a goal and 2 assists for 3 points; John Gibson got the win by stopping 13 of 15 despite leaving after the 2nd period with an undisclosed injury, and Cam Talbot stopped 10 of 11 in relief.

PREGAME: John Gibson and Dan Vladar led their respective teams out onto the ice…

Continue reading Red Wings-Flyers Tweetcap: Detroit wins in a 6-3 romp over Philadelphia