The Free Press’s Helene St. James wonders aloud whether the Red Wings and Dylan Larkin can head-off their break-up:
Now [Yzerman’s] no longer running the team, and CEO Christopher Ilitch would be well served by reaching out to Larkin to see if he’ll rethink his request. For Larkin, too, this is a way to not be seen as the villain of his hometown NHL team, of abandoning the team that drafted him in 2014 and named him captain in 2021. He’s from here. His family is here. He’s built a life here.
For the Wings, it might also mean Patrick Kane returns. He and Larkin are very tight (and share an agent). Kane has talked at length about how much he has enjoyed his time in Detroit and playing for the Wings and how much his young son loves the team (specifically, getting “knucks” from players as they come off the ice from warmups). Kane reportedly is considering the Chicago Blackhawks (where he forged his future Hockey Hall of Fame career − but they’re far from looking like a playoff team these days). There’s also the Buffalo Sabres, his hometown team.
With Larkin and Kane back, the Wings look much more stable. Yes, the next general manager will need to find ways to add more quality players, but that’s been an issue for years.
Can a reconciliation work? Of course it can. Ilitch and Larkin hold a joint press conference, say they’ve decided to move forward, shake hands and pose for pictures. Or do what Columbus Blue Jackets star Zach Werenski and GM Don Waddell did when a rift erupted there: put out joint statements explaining they’d made up.
Continued (paywall); I’m sorry, but I just don’t believe that it’s gonna happen.
