Last night, the Detroit Red Wings held what might have been the most awkward home opener in frachise history.
It started with the whole crowd booing Dylan Larkin, and from there, it quickly snowballed into chaos. Fans collaborated to show Simon Edvinsson's name on the live broadcast. Chants of "sell the team" boomed throughout Little Caesar's Arena. The crowd was nothing short of merciless. Worse yet, the team in front of them failed to perform, surrendering a 2-0 shutout loss to the New York Rangers' third string goaltender.
There weren't a whole lot of winners (and plenty of losers) but, needless to say, the 101st season in Detroit Red Wings history started off with an emphatic bang.
Winner: The kids made their presence known
Only one rookie made his debut on opening night: 2022 fourth round pick Anton Johansson cracked the roster, bringing with him a handful of young players from Michael Brandsegg-Nygard to Axel Sandin-Pellikka to Nate Danielson. Were it not for the incompetency of the front office, the burgeoning youth movement could be something exciting.
While none of the kids scored tonight, they all showed NHL readiness in their own right. Michael Brandsegg-Nygard's tenacity, Nate Danielson's relentless, Axel Sandin-Pellikka's creativity and Anton Johansson's quick thinking were all on full display. As far as first games go, Johansson looked about as NHL ready as a 22-year-old can be -- which is to say he performed admirably.
Loser: Dylan Larkin ran away (again)
For those who haven't caught the video yet (or weren't at the game), take a look at Larkin's response to the boos he received:
Dylan Larkin was introduced at the Red Wings home opener and received a whole lot of boos pic.twitter.com/fOsgr1FzMZ
October 2, 2026Moments after the boos rained down, Larkin turned tail and made his way toward the tunnel. To be fair: nobody likes to be booed. It must have felt brutal to hear the fans that cheered him on for over a decade let him have it. Larkin is well within his rights to request a trade, of course, but his insultingly short trade list and tone deaf press conference is what led fans to their frustration with him. It wouldn't be a shock to imagine that last season was Larkin's last in Detroit.
Sooner or later, the Red Wings will move on from him. There will come a day where he will no longer be anywhere near the Winged Wheel. But, until then, the fans are going to rain boos upon him.
Speaking of the fans...
Winner: The passionate fanbase
Through all the chaos and the craziness of the offseason, no one can deny it: the Red Wings have the best fans in sports. They've seen tragedy, triumph and everything in between and still come back to support the team.
But they don't support incompetency.
Sometimes, the only thing a disheartened fanbase needs is a common enemy. It began with Dylan Larkin, then quickly evolved into Red Wings CEO and owner Chris Ilitch. From petitions to concerned fan letters, the fans aren't afraid to let their voices be heard.
If there's anything that can convince this front office to act quicker (besides money), it's the voice of the fans. Between calls to sell the team, booing the former captain and chanting "we want Simon", the fans showed their passion the only way they could: righteous indignation.
Loser: The team
It shouldn't come as a shock to see the team that got shut out by a third string goaltender in the "loser" column. The Rangers were down multiple injuries and came off a back-to-back game. They should've been exhausted. Instead, they looked like the only team that cared at multiple points of the game.
Sure, the Red Wings had a few flashes of excellence, but flashes are meaningless if you can't capitalize on them. It's clear that the Red Wings are missing a top center and their second best defenseman -- there's no doubt about that. But one would hope that some of the more seasoned players could step up to the plate.
The only players that seemed to care were under the age of 25 (and Alex DeBrincat). So many of the older players on long term deals looked like they'd taken the day off, constantly remaining a step behind the rest of the roster.
Sooner or later, interim general manager Shawn Horcoff needs to do something about that.
Well, he's got to do something about a whole lot of things, but let's take it one day at a time.
The Red Wings have a chance to make up for a lot of this on Sunday against the Winnipeg Jets, but, as it stands right now, this is going to be quite a tough season to get through.
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