The Detroit Red Wings have missed the playoffs for ten straight seasons. This has led Dylan Larkin to be disgruntled with his situation. Larkin has now requested a trade away from the Red Wings. Now, Larkin has reportedly given a list of three teams he would be willing to be traded to.
Among the list of teams that Larkin could be interested in are the Vegas Golden Knights, Florida Panthers, and Minnesota Wild. The three teams have seen significant success in recent years, unlike the Red Wings.
Since the Red Wings last made the playoffs in 2016, the Golden Knights have come into existence, made the playoffs eight times, are playing in the Stanley Cup Final for a third time, and are currently looking for their second Cup.
At the same time, the Florida Panthers have made the playoffs six times, played for the Stanley Cup three times, and won the Cup twice. The Wild have yet to play for a Cup, but have made the playoffs in eight of the last ten years. The Wild would like to end their streak without playing for a Cup, and trading for Larkin would be a massive step in the right direction. Still, in order to get Larkin to the Wild, it is going to have to take a perfect trade package.
The Wild sends their top prospect to Detroit
The Wild tried to make a major move during the regular season to trade for Robert Thomas from the St. Louis Blues. In the trade, the Wild offered Jesper Wallstedt and Danila Yurov in a package. Yurov would likely need to be a part of the package for Larkin. The Wild have traded away many of the top prospects they had heading into the 2025-26 season, moving Zeev Buium and David Jiricek, but Yurov remains.
The forward was the 24th overall selection of the 2022 NHL Draft by the Wild, and played in both the MHL and KHL before heading to the NHL. Yurov showed his scoring ability at the KHL level. He lit the lamp 41 times while adding 47 helpers in 209 KHL games. This year, Yurov was solid in his first season at the NHL level. He played in 73 games, finding the back of the net 12 times while adding 15 helpers. He played just 13:57 of ice time per game, but the 22-year-old has a high ceiling.
Further, the contract of Yurov could be attractive for the Wings. He still has two years left on his entry-level contract, which pays him just $950 thousand per year.
The Red Wings get a top goaltender
With Cam Talbot an unrestricted free agent and John Gibson having just one year left on his contract, the idea of adding a netminder of the future could be a major attraction for the Red Wings. The team does have Sebastian Cossa on the roster. He was the 15th overall selection of the 2021 NHL Draft, but has played in just one game at the NHL level. Still, with how Talbot played this year, the fact that the Wings did not use Cossa may show he is not ready for the NHL level.
Gibson was solid this year, going 29-22-4 with a 2.72 goals agaisnt average and a .901 save percentage. He is also turning 33-years old this offseason. The Red Wings will likely want Jesper Wallstedt in a trade package, but with his breakout performance in the playoffs, the Wild may want to keep him. This would leave Filip Gustavsson as the option for the Wings. The Red Wings should be excited about that prospect.
Gustavsson just turned 28 years old and is under team control through 2030-31. Further, while he makes $6.8 million in AAV, it is less than the salary of Larkin, making the trade work for both sides, considering cap restraints. Gustavsson may not be ready for the start of the season due to a hip injury requiring surgery, but with one year left of control for Gibson, they can start with him. Then, when they could let Gibson walk in free agency or trade him, bringing Cossa up to be the backup to Gustavsson
Gustavsson has also been a consistently solid netminder since coming over to the Minnesota Wild. In the last two years, he has started 107 games, going 58-34-12 with a 2.63 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage. He would bring that consistency to the Wings and help them build for the future.
Detroit receives a high-potential prospect
Yurov and Gustavsson are not going to be enough for the Red Wings to part with Larkin. The Wild will need to add another part. For a team attempting to rebuild, players like Ryan Hartman, Nico Sturm, and Jonas Brodin, who could be options for the Wild to move, will not be attractive. It will need to be a solid prospect. The best option may be Ryder Ritchie. Ritchie was the 45th overall selection by the Wild in the 2024 NHL Draft.
He was great the following season with the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL. That year, he scored 29 times while adding 32 assists in just 53 games. In the playoffs, he added another 18 points in 18 games. He also played for Canada at the U18 level in 2024, scoring four times while adding four helpers in seven games. Still, he was not great playing for Boston University this past year. He found the back of the net just seven times with ten assists in 36 games.
While Ritchie struggled more at Boston this past season, he has shown a ton of promise overall. This is a player who could play out his sophomore season with Boston University and then sign his entry-level contract at the end of next year, adding another positive aspect to a trade for Larkin.
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