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For the Red Wings, the team’s unresolved offseason revolves around the unresolved Dylan Larkin matrix…I mean situation.

Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin examines 5 important offseason storylines which remain unresolved, and in Detroit, we’re familiar with storyline #1:

1. Dylan Larkin’s trade request

The hammer dropped in June when Detroit Red Wings captain Larkin, fed up after 10 consecutive playoff misses, asked for a ticket out of Hockeytown, requesting he be traded to the Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights or Florida Panthers. Then-Wings GM Steve Yzerman publicly dug his heels in, insisting Larkin had five years left on his deal and that Detroit was under no obligation to force a trade if it didn’t feel right. But now Yzerman is out as GM, having stepped down from the post last week. Given Larkin had a frosty relationship with Yzerman, does his departure increase the odds of Larkin staying? He’s a Michigan native, don’t forget. Then again, given the fan base’s understandably charged reaction to him asking out, there may be no turning back. Still, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to see it happening before training camp. For one, Detroit, uh, needs a GM in place to make the trade. Secondly: Larkin’s three-team list, which expanded to four with the Stars, consists of four teams who are seriously lacking in cap space at the moment, meaning they’d have to move some important players out to make a deal work. The Wild still seem like the frontrunner.

Continued;

  1. I don’t believe that the Red Wings and Larkin are going to mend fences. I’m certain that the organization will try to rectify the situation in any means possible, but once somebody asks “out” of Detroit, it’s hard to get back “in”;
  2. Yes, the Red Wings need to get a new management team in place ASAP, for both Larkin, Simon Edvinsson, Alex DeBrincat, etc. etc. There are many reasons for the Wings to expedite their GM search, but going too fast is a little dangerous in my opinion.
  3. If you’re interested in GM candidates, the Hockey Writers’ Tony Wolak posted a fine 10-candidate list of potential hires this morning;
  4. And it’s unofficial at this point, given that we don’t know what Vegas or Florida would offer, but the fact that The Athletic’s Michael Russo and Joe Smith keep insisting that the Wild are still interested in acquiring Larkin = the only information we have regarding any potential trade leads. All leads (the ones we’ve got) point toward Minnesota, for now, anyway.

There’s a reason we should call general managers’ regimes ‘management teams’–being a GM isn’t just about being one genius any more

The Athletic’s Sean McIndoe wrote a column focused upon whether the “failure” of the “Yzerplan” in Detroit is illustrative of any particular narrative regarding general managers’ abilities to pull off a strong “second act,” or the lack thereof.

McIndoe offers 5 potential explanations as to why even a Steve Yzerman can star in one team’s front office and struggle in another team’s front office, including the following:

Lesson 4: The NHL evolves faster than we want to think. This is a different way of looking at the problem. Maybe it’s not that the smart GMs get dumb. Maybe the [Glen] Sathers and [Ken] Hollands and [Brian] Burkes and Yzermans of the hockey world really were as smart as we all wanted to think, and maybe they stayed that way. The problem wasn’t that they changed, but that the league did.

In other words, maybe expecting Yzerman to be as good a GM in 2026 as he was in 2016 is no more unrealistic than expecting him to lace up the skates and go be the player he was in 1996. What works today won’t work tomorrow, and everyone gets left behind eventually. [Carolina GM Eric] Tulsky is making this all look easy now, but maybe in a decade he’ll be the old and out-of-touch guy struggling to keep up with these new-fangled ideas as he guides the Houston Scarlet Aeros to another last-place finish.

Continue reading There’s a reason we should call general managers’ regimes ‘management teams’–being a GM isn’t just about being one genius any more

A middle-of-the-night ramble about a very slow news cycle gone wildly mild

It’s been a very, very long day and going into a very, very long Thursday night here at Providence Hospital.

Aunt Annie is doing OK. She’s had a high pain day, and we’re still trying to rectify her UTI, so we’re in process, not necessarily making progress some two days into what will probably be a 3-to-4 day stay.

So I’m gonna vent for a moment.

Continue reading A middle-of-the-night ramble about a very slow news cycle gone wildly mild

Red Wings prospects Hurlbert, Plante finding chemistry at the U.S. WJSS camp

Red Wings prospects JP Hurlbert, Victor Plante and Brent Solomon are taking part in a pre-camp held by the U.S. World Junior Summer Showcase team at Little Caesars Arena’s BELFOR Training Center this week, ahead of next week’s WJSS in Windsor, Ontario.

Today, the Detroit News’s Connor Eargood reports that Hurlbert and Plante are skating on a line together at the BELFOR, and that they’re looking good:

Detroit draftees J.P. Hurlbert and Victor Plante played with 2027 draft-eligible Sammy Nelson and looked like a strong group as Team USA evaluates a 48-player group contending for December’s 25-man World Junior roster.

Hurlbert and Plante, drafted by the Red Wings in the first and second rounds, respectively, last month in Buffalo, bring strong offensive toolkits to the grouping. Nelson dominated drills at both ends of the ice at Little Caesars Arena’s Belfor training center. The group played with an attacking mindset, and that meshed well with the identity Team USA is preaching at this early camp.

“There’s a lot of good players out there, and it’s going to be competitive to make the team for sure,” said USA coach Adam Nightingale, the head coach at Michigan State. But definitely, some guys you can tell are starting to step off the page a little bit.”

If Nelson and the Wings fit that bill, then their performance is more of a reunion tour than a breakthrough debut. The line skated together with the U.S. National Team Development Program before Hurlbert spent last season with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers. All that earlier experience is something the group can draw on.

But it’s a summer evaluation camp, and kids will be, well, kids:

Continue reading Red Wings prospects Hurlbert, Plante finding chemistry at the U.S. WJSS camp

Tweet of note: Nicklas Lidstrom chats with the NHL Alumni Association about hanging out with the Stanley Cup

It’s a short clip, but it’s a good one:

Pat Brisson discusses Patrick Kane’s decision-making process in returning to Chicago

The Athletic’s Scott Powers spoke with Patrick Kane’s agent, one Pat Brisson, regarding Kane’s decision to leave Detroit and re-sign with the Chicago Blackhawks. Normally, this isn’t much of anything to take note of, but, given that Brisson is the agent for one Dylan Larkin, let’s take a look at a couple of paragraphs from Powers’ story:

The Blackhawks weren’t Kane’s only option. Brisson didn’t want to get into specific teams, but he said there were 10 legitimate suitors for Kane at the start of free agency. Kane’s history with the Blackhawks offered him something the other teams couldn’t, but he still had a lot to weigh as he was potentially deciding on his final NHL team.

Most NHL free agents decide on a destination and agree on a contract within a day or two of free agency beginning. Brisson often advises his clients to take that approach, too. But it was different with Kane. Kane didn’t want to rush into anything.

“After July 2nd or 3rd, he said, ‘Why don’t I take my time?’” Brisson said. “I said, ‘You can take your time, you should take your time.  … You’re arguably the best American player that’s played the game. You’re fine; take your time.’ We always rush this. I mean, we prefer as an agency, usually, like we want all our guys signed by the second or the third of July because then otherwise you’re chasing stuff. But Patrick, whether he signs on the first or the 10th or August 20th, it didn’t make a difference. We knew he had many seats still.”

Brisson largely let Kane be during that time. He checked in and gave Kane input where needed, but he gave Kane his space. Brisson handled the people calling and texting about a decision. Brisson later learned Blackhawks chairman Danny Wirtz was asking Davidson often whether it was a real possibility that Kane could sign.

Finally, Kane began getting closer to a decision recently. He notified Brisson he’d like to choose a team this week. But then early Tuesday, Kane said he might take another week. By that night, Kane felt like he had made a decision. On Wednesday, Kane let Brisson know he’d like to sign with the Blackhawks.

“History has something to do with it, but more importantly, the fact that he’s playing well,” Brisson said. “Let’s not forget the last 25 games of the year in Detroit; I think Pat had 28 points or something like that. He’s feeling great. So what he can do as a player, what he could bring to this franchise and all these young players. … Pat is going there to be Patrick Kane at the best level he could be. At his age, he’s still very efficient. So the hockey part is everything to do with it or most of it.

“Three years (since Kane left), they were able to pick high and get a few really good young players. And now, it’s pretty clear that, in my opinion, they don’t want to be a lottery pick next year. … It’s like he belongs in a Hawks jersey, too, ‘PK 88,’ there’s nothing (like it). It just makes so much sense.”

Continued (paywall); take from all of that whatever you will.

Press release: Trey Augustine, Carter Bear to take part in NHLPA Rookie Showcase in Chicago

From the NHLPA:

2026 NHLPA ROOKIE SHOWCASE, HOSTED BY NHLPA AND UPPER DECK, SET FOR JULY 28 – 30 IN CHICAGO

….Gavin McKenna, Porter Martone, James Hagens and Cole Hutson among group of over 20 scheduled to attend the annual event

TORONTO (July 23, 2026) – The National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) and Upper Deck will host the 16th annual NHLPA Rookie Showcase from Tuesday, July 28 to Thursday, July 30 in Chicago, Illinois with over 20 NHL® prospects and rookies scheduled to attend. This unique event serves as an entry point for the players into the business of professional hockey, where player identity, content creation, and commercial opportunity begin to take shape, connecting the players with NHLPA partners Upper Deck, Electronic Arts, Fanatics and CIBC.

Over the course of the event, Upper Deck – the official trading card partner of the NHL and NHLPA – will work directly with players to capture photos and video in their official team jerseys for upcoming trading cards, memorabilia, and promotional materials. The content collected will be used by Upper Deck to create the players’ first NHL and NHLPA licensed rookie trading cards, as well as additional promotional materials throughout the season and beyond.

NHLPA Rookie Showcase gives Upper Deck access to the league’s next generation of talent while giving players a first look at how their name, image, and likeness can connect with fans and collectors beyond the ice. The players will also get an opportunity to connect away from the ice, at the “Welcome to Chicago” dinner, hosted by CIBC.

Continue reading Press release: Trey Augustine, Carter Bear to take part in NHLPA Rookie Showcase in Chicago

If the Red Wings want to reinforce their roster, they have the salary cap space with which to make a move

The Athletic’s James Mirtle discusses 5 NHL teams which still have the salary cap space to make “big offseason moves,” and the Red Wings’ inability to retain Patrick Kane’s services make them a prime contender for making a trade or signing of some magnitude over the course of the balance of this summer:

1. Detroit Red Wings, $20 million

All that cap space, plus an $8.7 million captain who wants out and a GM search that’s just underway. There’s clearly a lot going on with the struggling Red Wings, who are trying to avoid an 11th straight postseason whiff.

Other than dealing with the Dylan Larkin situation, RFA Simon Edvinsson needs a contract, and he’s offer-sheet eligible. I’m a big fan of the big man’s game; might a team throw Detroit into further chaos by throwing a huge bag o’ bills his way?

The bigger intriguing question for Detroit is what should be the plan here? Is there a world where they can turn all this extra cap room into being competitive right away? Or are they better off building around their young players — led by Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond — and eating some more short-term pain in 2026-27? Probably?

Regardless, whoever takes over for Steve Yzerman has a difficult challenge ahead here. And more financial flexibility than almost anyone.

Continued; the Red Wings don’t have much of a cachet right now in terms of swaying big names to come to Detroit, but the money is there for sure.

Whether there’s an appetite to help the roster or to simply “eat some short term-pain” is uncertain at this point.

And the concept of the Red Wings not matching an offer sheet for Simon Edvinsson is simply silly at this point.

Losing Patrick Kane helps the Red Wings ‘rip off the band-aid’ as the rebuild begins to move on

Whoever becomes the Detroit Red Wings’ next GM will need to get aggressive in a hurry.

Between the still looming break-up between disgruntled captain Dylan Larkin and this team, and Patrick Kane signing a 2-year, $16 million contract to return to the Chicago Blackhawks, the Red Wings will be entering the 2026-2027 campaign down a top-line center and a strong 5-on-5 scorer, and while there aren’t many free agents available out there who can provide scoring…

There’s no reason to not swing for the fences on a “lateral move” free agent signing like Eeli Tolvanen, for example, and it’s going to be important for the Red Wings to determine what to do regarding Alex DeBrincat’s future with the team as soon as possible, too. DeBrincat was very happy playing in Detroit with Kane, but he was very happy playing in Detroit, period, and if the Red Wings can sustain that relationship, combined with a solid return for Lakin…

There’s at least a possibility that Detroit doesn’t take a significant step back this upcoming season.

Detroit’s young players soaked up inspiration from Kane’s talent and especially his “rink rat’s” work ethic over the past three seasons, and the team’s young core should be better off for having had Kane in on the ice, on the bench and in the locker room. For better or worse, Kane is gone, but the concept that the Red Wings deserve to walk out onto the ice with some swagger came with Kane and doesn’t have to exit alongside the actual player.