No captain in Detroit this season
Dylan Larkin asked out of Detroit in the spring. He will be at training camp next week anyway, and he will be there without the letter on his sweater.
The Red Wings and their center of eleven years put out separate statements this morning, a few days before camp opens Thursday at Little Caesars Arena. Neither closed the door on anything. Both made clear that nothing gets settled until the club hires someone to make hockey decisions.
“The Red Wings will begin the 2026-27 season without a captain being named,” the team said. “Any further discussions or decisions regarding this topic will be made once new hockey operations leadership is in place.”
Larkin had worn the C since 2021.
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A trade request stuck in limbo
The holdup is structural. Steve Yzerman moved from general manager to senior adviser in July, and Detroit has not replaced him. Nobody in the building currently has the authority to move the franchise’s best forward, so Larkin’s request sits untouched. He has reportedly handed the club a list of teams for which he would waive his no-trade clause. His contract runs eight years and $69.6 million through 2030-31.
That same month, Patrick Kane went back to Chicago in free agency. Roster and front office are turning over at the same time.
“Over the past couple of weeks, Red Wings leadership and I have had several in-depth discussions. I’ve appreciated those candid conversations, and I will be at training camp with my teammates,” Larkin said. “When new leadership is in place, we’ll talk further about the direction of the team.”
Eleven years, five playoff games
One number explains the frustration: five. That is how many playoff games Larkin has played across 808 career appearances. Detroit has missed the postseason ten years running, and the Michigan native has spent his entire career inside that drought.
He is not fading, either. Larkin posted a career-best 34 goals and added 33 assists in 74 games last season, then won Olympic gold with the United States in Italy. At 30, he sits on 643 points since Detroit took him 15th overall in 2014.
Whoever the Red Wings hire inherits that file on day one.
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