There is no question that the biggest mistake the Detroit Red Wings could make is bringing back Dylan Larkin as captain next season.
No, the mistake is not bringing back Larkin. The huge blunder lies in allowing him to continue wearing the “C” after his highly publicized trade request.
It’s not enough that Larkin made it clear he wanted out. It was the optics of the whole thing as team captain that just made the entire situation awful. And even if he does somehow come back next season, there’s no way he should retain the captaincy.
Why should he?
Even if his issues with the organization pertained to Steve Yzerman directly, there could have been other more diplomatic avenues to broach the situation. Instead, Larkin asked for a trade, and, well, unfortunately, everything blew up in the Red Wings’ face.
The organization is now essentially adrift without a GM, all the while Larkin takes in soccer games this summer. That’s fine, it’s the offseason. But you have to wonder just how concerned Larkin is about his future this upcoming season.
The Red Wings face enormous pressure as the holders of the NHL’s longest playoff drought. That’s something that the organization just can’t allow to continue, especially when it’s been a decade since playoff hockey was last played in Detroit.
Larkin is just as much to blame for Red Wings playoff drought as Yzerman
Larkin should bear as much of the blame for the Red Wings playoff drought as Yzerman. It’s unfair to blame one or the other, considering that the entire situation is very much a team effort. While Yzerman was the architect of the entire rebuild, it was ultimately up to Larkin to execute the vision.
Yes, Larkin can’t single-handedly win a championship. Great players like Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews have proven that one great player does not a Stanley Cup champion make.
That said, Larkin can’t just sit idly and allow Yzerman to take the fall. Larkin has to be as accountable as everyone else on the team. Surely Larkin can score more than a single 5v5 point during the team's most important stretch of the season. Certainly, the factors affecting the team have played a crucial role in holding it back. But it’s completely unfair to make one-sided assessments of who’s to blame.
The bottom line is that, if Larkin does return, he must shoulder his share of the responsibility. And if that costs him the captaincy, so be it. Although, you have to think that Larkin might not be willing to confront that reality. That’s why there may be no other way out but to jettison the still Red Wings captain.
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