The Athletic’s Max Bultman does some heavy lifting this morning, wondering aloud what the Red Wings’ new management group should do given that Dylan Larkin has not rescinded his trade request nearly two months after the disgruntled captain asked the outgoing GM for a trade.
Bultman argues that it’s a little too early to be planning a warm, fuzzy reunion between Larkin and the new management group, given that we still don’t know who the hell the new management group will consist of, so, for the present moment, it’s about examining what options are open between the estranged captain and a general manager who’s about to assist in the selection of his replacement.
Bultman wonders aloud whether the Red Wings really could convince Larkin to remain a Red Wing somehow, and whether that would even matter given that the rest of the Atlantic Division improved, while the Red Wings…
Waited for a Dylan Larkin trade that did not materialize, treading water otherwise:
The Red Wings made some targeted additions in Viktor Arvidsson and Keegan Kolesar, but appear to be losing veteran scorers Patrick Kane and James van Riemsdyk. They look like they’ll mainly be relying on internal improvement to compete for a wild-card spot.
In other words, even if Larkin does stay, it’s entirely possible the Red Wings are looking at another year outside the playoffs. Is that worth all the boos [Larkin will receive from Red Wings fans]?
From the Red Wings’ standpoint, it may well be. Larkin is a No. 1 center, and it’s likely they’ll “lose” any trade for him. That’s what tends to happen when you’re giving up the best player in a deal. Even if they miss the playoffs again, having him would mean a chance to compete.
There’s no doubt in my mind that any trade in which Larkin is the best player in the trade is a “loss,” which is why I’ve argued that the Red Wings may need to “lose the Larkin trade with dignity” in order to move forward…
But only Larkin can answer that question for himself, and the premise also assumes that’s what the Red Wings’ next general manager wants — which is not a given.
The Red Wings have Seider, Raymond and DeBrincat in their primes, and Simon Edvinsson, Marco Kasper and Emmitt Finnie all getting set to enter theirs. They also have a wave of young players on the way. For that reason, a new general manager doesn’t need to blow it all up.
But a short-term re-tool for the next year (or maybe two) feels like an entirely real possibility for the Red Wings. In fact, it may be the smartest approach, painful as it may be for a franchise with the league’s longest active playoff drought.
If that’s the case, consider this alternative impact of a new general manager: even if it doesn’t convince Larkin to stay, a new voice in charge has the potential to change the outlook on this trade standoff by turning down the temperature. Whereas Yzerman appeared to take a hard line in such talks, even implying he may not honor Larkin’s request, a new manager could come in and strike a more constructive, collaborative tone to get a deal done.
Continued (paywall); we’re all Bultman fans here, but we all write articles, columns and opinion pieces where we’re stabbing at multiple hypotheticals, too.
I would argue that the usage of the old, “If ‘if’s and but’s’ were candies and nuts, we’d all have a Merry Christmas” line is appropriate here.
In other words? There are a whole lot of hockey pucks bouncing in the air here, and while it is admirable as all hell get out that Max is courageous enough to ask all the hard questions when we know none of the answers…
We still know none of the answers. Max’s best guesses are probably better than yours and mine, given that he’s not worried about taking his aunt to the ER for a set of medical tests today…
But we’re not going to receive any tangible answers here until the Red Wings name their next hockey executive(s), we’re not going to receive any tangible answers until the Red Wings explain what their plan is for negotiating with Larkin to either remain here or expand his list of teams to which he’s willing to be traded (if they explain anything at all–the Ilitch teams don’t have a great track record when it comes to “laying it all on the line” publicly)…
And we’re not going to receive any tangible answers until the situations reach resolutions, which may take days, weeks, or even months to truly resolve.
Until then, best guesses are all we’ve got.
