Dylan Larkin is the primary subject of the first main 2026 NHL offseason intrigue after officially requesting a trade from the Detroit Red Wings last week.
Larkin, the captain of the Red Wings, has a full no-trade clause in his contract and made further headlines after it was revealed that he had submitted a list of only three NHL teams he would accept a trade to. Now, it appears those tides have shifted: according to The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun, Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman met with Larkin’s agent, Pat Brisson, and seemingly made some headway in getting the star center to expand his list.
“Yzerman went back to Brisson and asked to expand their original list of three teams, and my sense is that Brisson was receptive to that to some degree,” LeBrun writes. “So I don’t think we’re just dealing with the Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights, and Florida Panthers anymore.”
Larkin still has five years remaining on the eight-year, $69.6 million contract ($8.7 million AAV) that he signed with Detroit during the 2022-23 campaign. Larkin recorded 67 points (34g, 33a) in 74 games this past season, marking his fifth straight year scoring at least 30 goals.
The Red Wings captain has only played in five career playoff games, all of which came at the end of his rookie 2015-16 season. The lack of progress since then is thought to have led Larkin, a Michigan native, to call it quits on his hometown team.
Outside of the Wild, Golden Knights, and Panthers, rumblings have started that Larkin may be willing to include teams like the Dallas Stars and the Tampa Bay Lightning on his list. Other clubs, like the Los Angeles Kings, Montreal Canadiens, Carolina Hurricanes, and Philadelphia Flyers, are also thought to have interest, but Larkin may not want to land with them.
LeBrun also muses that the Red Wings may try to get a third team involved in any trade so that the assets they receive back from Larkin better fit his true value. The teams currently rumored to be involved are all Stanley Cup contenders and don’t have the high-end future assets that other clubs around the league do.
Larkin will be one of the biggest available prizes of the offseason, as the NHL’s free agency market is set to be incredibly shallow.
