Insider reveals Dylan Larkin's trade destination list
Photo credit: Brian Bradshaw Sevald-Imagn Images
From three teams to eight to nine or 10. That is the path Dylan Larkin's trade list has taken since the Red Wings forward asked out of Detroit, and Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic has now put a fresh number on it.
The size of the list is not the real story. The makeup is. LeBrun described the problem this way:
They wanted apple-for-apple in a trade, not a futures return; the teams on his list...nine or 10 teams, are all contenders that don't really want to take away from their cores
Put simply, Detroit wants players who can help now, while every approved buyer is a team trying to win now. Nobody is eager to pay in kind.
How the List Got Here
The first version reportedly held only the Minnesota Wild, Vegas Golden Knights and Florida Panthers. Elliotte Friedman later described a group of roughly eight, adding the Colorado Avalanche, Washington Capitals, Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Friedman also reported that Dallas is Larkin's top choice and that no Canadian club is under consideration. LeBrun's count suggests another name or two has since joined.
Why a Longer List Has Not Produced a Deal
More options usually mean more leverage, but this case works differently. Larkin carries an $8.7 million cap hit through 2030-31 and a full no-trade clause through 2027-28, so any buyer must absorb salary and surrender a roster piece. Contenders with tight cap sheets and settled lineups have little room for that in October.
Detroit has drawn its own line too. Reports indicate the Red Wings will not accept a futures-only package, which removes the easiest route: a prospect-and-pick offer from a team with a deep pipeline.
The outcome is a standoff with plenty of interested parties and few workable fits. A third team retaining salary or reshaping the return is one possible workaround, an idea LeBrun floated in June.
Until a creative structure appears, Larkin remains a Red Wing, and the list keeps growing without producing a deal.
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