Detroit Red Wings
· 2026-07-06
The Detroit Red Wings are trying to keep captain Dylan Larkin from being traded, and they made some moves in NHL Free Agency to convince him to stay.
The Red Wings sent Sebastian Cossa to the Utah Mammoth for a first-round pick and signed winger Viktor Arvidsson to a two-year contract.
The team is currently on a L3 streak and has a 41-31 record, standing 10th in the Eastern Conference.
Larkin has requested a trade, but GM Steve Yzerman has not pulled the trigger yet, leaving open the possibility that the captain could be swayed to stay by offseason moves.
And the Red Wings would rather not have the trade request hanging over the team heading into a new season.
The one move the Red Wings could make that would convince Larkin to stay is trading for Zach Werenski, a Michigan native and 2026 Olympian.
But the Columbus Blue Jackets said the Norris Trophy winner was no longer available in a trade.
So far, Yzerman's tenure as the Red Wings GM has been a disaster, but he has a chance to make a move that changes the franchise's fortune immediately.
The Red Wings do not have a ton of assets to trade for Werenski, but whatever they do have should be on the table, including Nate Danielson, Marco Kasper, and Axel Sandin-Pellikka.
For a player like Werenski, a massive haul of picks and prospects would work, and adding him to the team could be enough to keep Larkin.
But the Blue Jackets could also try to land Larkin in a trade to placate Werenski, which would be a worse scenario for the Red Wings.
The team needs to start winning now, and making a move for Werenski could be the key to convincing Larkin to stay and turning the franchise's fortune around.
The Red Wings have five years left on Larkin's deal, but they would rather not have the trade request hanging over the team.
And with the playoff drought in its second decade, the team needs to make a move to change its fortunes.