Can anybody blame Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin for his brutal honesty? In case you missed it, Larkin recently shared his thoughts on the team’s near-idle stance at the 2025 trade deadline on March 7th, saying, "We didn't gain any momentum from the trade deadline, and guys were kinda down about it. So it'd be nice to add something and bring a little bit of a spark on the ice and a morale boost as well.
"You gotta come up with wins and I think, especially March, it was hard that we didn't do anything,"
Yeah, I’d be down about it, too, if I were on that roster. I mean, here are the Red Wings, a team that had some momentum coming out of the 4 Nations Face-Off break, and started seeing it slip during the week of March 7th.
Instead of Steve Yzerman saying, “Hey, we got a chance to earn a trip to the playoffs, let’s make something happen,” he made, at best, minimalist moves. Yeah, it was cool to see Petr Mrazek back in Detroit, but your team was right there, and don’t tell me they were worse than the Montreal Canadiens this season, because you’d be lying.
Dylan Larkin needs to bump up the pressure on Steve Yzerman
If I’m Dylan Larkin, I’m going to Yzerman and saying, “Look, I’m sick and tired of wasting my career here.” Larkin’s in his prime, and that prime’s lasting another five seasons tops, meaning he already spent a significant portion of it watching his team start, stop, sputter, and stall their way to back-to-back heartbreak seasons amidst a perpetual rebuild.
And before that, the Wings were less than mediocre. So yeah, I can sympathize with what Larkin’s trying to say here and to be frank, I’m letting Yzerman know my thoughts about every offseason move if I’m him. I’d like to see results and I’d like to see a team I’d spent so many years doing all I could to improve and reach the postseason if I’m Larkin.
Nobody on this Red Wings franchise has more of a right to let his feelings be known. And also, if I’m Larkin, and if this thing doesn’t improve by February 2026, I’m going into Yzerman’s office and telling him I want out. That he’d had about seven years at that point to fix this mess and it didn’t work. That would be my ultimatum, so we’ll see if Larkin’s thinking along the same lines.
Steve Yzerman must make bold moves regardless
Yzerman also needs to answer to a fanbase that’s growing frustrated by the year, especially with the Wings getting close in 2023-24 and this past season. I get that there’s an Yzerplan in place, but the NHL doesn’t operate on Yzerplan time, and it seems like Yzerman forgets that, believing that everything’s alright and is on the right track.
Well, Mr. Yzerman, there are problems. Numerous problems. If there weren’t, then Dylan Larkin wouldn’t be kindly sharing his thoughts. And if Larkin’s sounding this way, I’m sure he’s not the only one in that locker room voicing his frustration. That said, Yzerman is just about out of excuses: Either give this team some help or start looking for another job before your players turn against you.