For Independence Day, the Detroit News’s Bob Wojnowski wonders aloud whether the Red Wings or Pistons could deliver summertime trade fireworks to the Detroit sports scene.
Wojnowski suggests that the Dylan Larkin situation provides Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman with an inflection point…
Possible Wings firework: Trade Larkin to Minnesota, one of his preferred destinations, but only if the Wild surrender young star Matt Boldy, 25. Minnesota reportedly is saying no way, at least not yet, instead offering less-enticing names such as Danila Yurov and Charlie Stramel. I doubt Yzerman will let the Larkin situation simmer into training camp, but he can’t (and shouldn’t) cave. Larkin, 29, reportedly is coveted by a couple of teams who lack the prime assets to make a deal, so it could take time.
- I don’t think that the Wild are trading Matt Boldy for Dylan Larkin. No matter what. As far as I’m concerned, trading Matt Boldy is to Minnesota what trading Moritz Seider is for Detroit–unthinkable.
- But wait, there’s more:
Yzerman still has a chance to turn a disaster into an opportunity. He signed tenacious free-agent forward Viktor Arvidsson and rugged forward Keegan Kolesar, both addressing a gnawing need: Toughness. In addition to missing the playoffs for 10 years, the Wings often get pushed around like empty jerseys.
The roster needs a purge, and if that means the departure of 37-year-old Patrick Kane, so be it. It wouldn’t be ideal – and Yzerman has said he wants to keep him — but way too many veterans are clogging the ice and the salary cap. Yzerman is mostly to blame for his lack of trade chips, so he can’t blow the one that was handed to him by Larkin’s demand.
I don’t usually disagree with “Wojo,” but I think that the Red Wings have more “trade chips” than one would imagine. The problem is that they’re not on Steve Yzerman’s mind as “trade chips,” but instead, as prospects and possible roster contributors.
Anyway…
When the NHL was free-spending and salary cap-less, Mike Ilitch’s Wings dominated, and the Tigers were wildly competitive. That advantage is gone. In a more-balanced environment with players more in control of their movement, Detroit’s GMs and owners need to be shrewder, and bolder, and I think Tom Gores and Chris Ilitch have started to recognize that. This goes for the Tigers and Lions too, but we’ll deal with them later.
Sparklers are safe — nobody gets burned and the damage is minimal — but maneuvering in the margins can be tedious. I understand no Big Booms means no Big Busts, and panic moves often solve nothing. But when you’ve finally found your way to contention (Pistons, Tigers, Lions), or completely lost your way (Wings), sometimes you have to light a fuse.
Wojo continues (paywall) at length, and I am curious as to your take on the situation, and whether any of us really think that a Larkin trade will return more than future assets and a step back.
I certainly hope not, but with Patrick Kane’s departure feeling more and more like a reality every day, I’m hoping against hope that the Wings can avoid a setback in terms of their rebuild by losing both Kane and Larkin.
It is up to Yzerman and the Red Wings’ management team to do his damnedest to avoid a setback, even if it feels inevitable right now.
