The Free Press’s Helene St. James wrote a column in which she assesses the state of the Red Wings, as well as a Dylan Larkin update:
First and foremost, Larkin has a no-trade clause, which means his request to be traded included the places he wanted to land: the Florida Panthers, Minnesota Wild and Vegas Golden Knights. The Wings have had discussions with those three teams, as well as Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill, who worked for the Wings for a long time and is close with many within the organization.
Then there’s Larkin’s contract: The 30-year-old has five years left on a deal carrying an $8.7 million annual average value, which looks more and more favorable as the salary cap ceiling rises to $104 million in 2026-27 and players such as Leo Carlsson and Connor Bedard drive individual salaries into the $18 million range. Not only is the cap hit friendly, so are the actual annual salaries left on Larkin’s deal, as the Wings paid him $10 million in 2023-24, $11 million in 2024-25, and $10 million in 2025-26, adding up to $31 million paid out on the $69.6 million extension he signed on March 1, 2023. The most he makes in actual salary in his remaining years is $8 million a year, in each of the coming three seasons.
Then there’s the fact the Wings really want value-now players in return, not draft picks or prospects who’ll take years to develop and may not even pan out. To accept the latter would be sending a signal to core players like Raymond (under contract through 2030-31 at $8.075 million annually) and Moritz Seider (under contract through 2030-31 at $8.55 million annually) that the Wings are in rebuild mode again, not aiming to end a 10-year playoff going into next season.
That’s the gist of the problem with trading Larkin: The Wings need a first-line center in return, and Larkin’s selected teams aren’t willing to part with their own players who fit that bill. The best course still seems to be a reconciliation.
Owner Chris Ilitch is fronting the search for new management, which could well end up being split between a president of hockey operations, who would oversee all facets of the organization, and an analytics-driven general manager who handles personnel.
The sooner there’s new leadership in place, the sooner those people can start the effort to restore calm to a chaotic situation and provide hope that the playoff drought isn’t going to keep growing.
Continued (paywall)
