Austin Konenski
The Detroit Red Wings made a trade on July 1, but it wasn’t Dylan Larkin. The Red Wings acquired forward Keegan Kolesar from the Vegas Golden Knights for a 2027 seventh-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick. Now that Detroit is officially active in the trade market, what is the latest on Larkin?
The Red Wings would have a problem trading Larkin to the Minnesota Wild if the organization is willing to include forward Matt Boldy, as reported by Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos. Other than Boldy, Kypreos says Minnesota has nothing else that Detroit general manager Steve Yzerman is too interested in.
If the Wild aren’t willing to include Boldy, what other packages could work for Larkin?
Other potential trade packages for Dylan Larkin between Detroit Red Wings, Minnesota Wild
If Yzerman is interested in anything other than Boldy in Minnesota, a trade involving Larkin could become really difficult. Ultimately, the Red Wings might have to take the Wild’s best package if nothing emerges. If so, what could Detroit acquire from Minnesota?
One trade that makes sense is Charlie Stramel, Danila Yurov, and multiple first-round picks. It wouldn’t give the Red Wings an adequate replacement for Larkin during the 2026-27 NHL season, but it would bring back a lot of future value. Stramel has been compared to Minnesota center Joel Eriksson Ek.
There could be another avenue in a three-team deal. Depending on the Vancouver Canucks‘ value for Elias Pettersson, this could be an opportunity for Yzerman to acquire a first-line center. Minnesota could send what is needed to pry Pettersson out of Vancouver and route him to Detroit with the leftovers from the initial future value package.
Yzerman has been clear that Detroit wants to compete for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, so acquiring Pettersson and future value would be one of the best-case scenarios. Since the Canucks would likely consider moving Pettersson, this ultimately could be the end result for the Red Wings.
Detroit isn’t going to trade Larkin for a package it doesn’t see fit. If the Wild want the 29-year-old center, trading Boldy or a package surrounding Pettersson could be enough for the Red Wings.
