The Detroit Red Wings are bracing for probably their most important offseason in quite some time. That's because team captain Dylan Larkin requested a trade to another team, which would bring an end to his Red Wings tenure after 11 seasons. It goes to show just how brutal of a situation it is in Detroit if the captain of the franchise wants out and to join a contender after 10 consecutive seasons without a playoff berth. That, and Larkin had a deteriorating relationship with general manager Steve Yzerman.
With fans speculating where Larkin could end up, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reported that Larkin has three teams on his wishlist — the Vegas Golden Knights, Florida Panthers, and Minnesota Wild. There is a possibility that list grows, but for now, those are the three destinations Larkin would waive his no-movement clause for.
Grading potential Dylan Larkin trades with his reported three-team wishlist
For the Red Wings, they will have a difficult decision ahead of them. With Larkin wanting out, would they continue to make a push for the playoffs next season? Or, would they use this opportunity to rebuild the roster to correlate with the post-Larkin era?
Let's take a look at the three teams on Larkin's trade wishlist and see which ones would help them the most in a potential five-year rebuild.
Vegas Golden Knights earn the lowest grade
The one team that probably caused a collective "of course Larkin wants to play their" from Red Wings fans were the Golden Knights. Vegas has shown that they are willing to do whatever it takes to build a Stanley Cup contender and they will bring in stars to do so. Look no further than their trades for Jack Eichel and Mitch Marner. Oh, and their currently competing for the Stanley Cup in the Final.
While Larkin wants to go to the Golden Knights, they just don't have what the Red Wings would want in return if they do go the rebuild route. Vegas has just $4.6 million in cap space heading into the offseason, not leaving them much wiggle room to squeeze Larkin's $8.7 million annual cap space through the 2030-31 season. The easiest way for the Golden Knights to facilitate a trade for Larkin is to give away some of their players with high cap hits. Forwards Tomas Hertl ($6.75 million) and William Karlsson ($5.9 million) would probably be players the Golden Knights would like to offload onto another team. There's also goalie Adin Hill, who holds a $6.25 million cap hit.
As for draft capital, the Golden Knights don't hold a first-round pick 2028 or a second-round pick until 2030. That's not ideal for the Red Wings.
Let's just say for Red Wings fans, they better hope that a Golden Knights trade for Larkin isn't announced because they don't have much to offer, especially when it comes to assets that can help them rebuild.
Potential Larkin trade grade for Golden Knights: D
Minnesota Wild offer the best balance
The Wild made the biggest splash of the entire 2025-26 season by trading for Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks. To do so, they gave up three of their young players in Marco Rossi, Zeev Buium, and Liam Ohgren, along with their 2026 first-round draft pick. The Wild didn't sign a contract extension with Hughes at the time (they can't do so until July 1), but general manager Bill Guerin still made the move to help Minnesota's chances to win a Stanley Cup, which they fell short of after losing to the Colorado Avalanche in five games in the second round.
Minnesota's prospect pool has depleted a bit after the Hughes trade, but they can offer a decently enticing trade package for the Red Wings. Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman discussed a potential offer for the Wild could include forwards Charlie Stramel and Danila Yurov. Stramel was supposed to get some playing time late this season before suffering an injury at Michigan State. Meanwhile, Yurov had been reported as off limits by the Wild, especially in talks for New York Rangers center Vincent Trocheck. Another player that could be included is goalie Jesper Wallstedt. While the team does have a deep pool of goalie prospects, Wallstedt showed he could be any team's netminder of the future during Minnesota's playoff run.
As for draft capital, Minnesota has first round draft picks in 2027 through 2029. Minnesota doesn't hold a second-round pick until 2029.
Even though the Wild did give up a ton for Larkin, they do have some enticing players and draft assets to help build a contender in the future.
Potential Dylan Larkin trade grade for Wild: B
Florida Panthers have the most to prove
Red Wings fans, and fans of Atlantic Division teams, had to feel good about the Florida Panthers missing out on the playoffs altogether this season. That can be attributed to the plethora of injuries across their roster. It was a one year blip on the radar, with fans and media expecting them to return to the playoffs.
Given the talent across that roster on paper, why wouldn't Larkin want to play for them? Sure, it'd be hopping on the bandwagon, but you'd understand they'd give him a legitimate chance at winning the Stanley Cup. Let's not forget he can reunite with Olympic teammate Matthew Tkachuk. But for the Red Wings to hand their star to a division rival? They'd need to make a tremendous offer to make that happen.
The Athletic floated a potential trade package from Florida, which included forwards Eetu Luostarinen and Sandis Vilmanis. However, it was headlined by the Panthers' ninth-overall pick in the upcoming NHL Draft, which could be used by the Red Wings to replace Larkin at center. Even so, it doesn't feel like quite enough for Yzerman to trade away Larkin to their division rival and potentially watch him win the Stanley Cup over the remainder of his current contract.
Potential Dylan Larkin trade grade for Panthers: C
