Bleacher Report’s Sara Civian offers “1 word for every team’s status after 2026 free agency and the draft,” and while I generally agree with Civian’s observant opinions, I disagree with her assessment of the state of the Red Wings’ franchise on July 7th, 2026:
Detroit Red Wings: Miserable
Steve Yzerman can play hardball all he wants, and as justified as he may be in reminding us that Dylan Larkin has a contractual obligation to report to training camp, he can’t force Larkin or any of us to enjoy what the Red Wings have (or haven’t) become under his leadership.
It’s been eight years of missed playoffs and lack of action from the Yzerplan, and doubling down as the captain and first-line center is just not the move.
- I’m not miserable. I’m apprehensive. To quote Merriam-Webster, I have significant “anxiety about the future” of the Detroit Red Wings. I am not “in a pitiable state of distress or unhappiness,” though I know that some of you feel that way.
- This concept that Steve Yzerman and the Red Wings’ management team should simply take whatever trade he can for Dylan Larkin in order for the franchise to “move on” is both naive and inappreciative of the situation. Yzerman and the Wings’ management need to maximize their return for Larkin, whether the assets they acquire in return consist of “futures,” or whether they consist of present-day help.
There’s just no way around the fact that the approach that the Red Wings take regarding trading Dylan Larkin could define the team’s rebuild, and quite possibly set it back by several seasons, especially if Yzerman and the Wings “settle and move on.”
I appreciate Civian’s acerbic wit, observant nature and wise writing 99.999% of the time, but here, I feel that she’s being a bit obtuse as to her understanding of the particulars of the situation from Detroit’s perspective.
