NHL Insiders Believe Wild Still Favorites to Land Dylan Larkin, Habs Closing In Fast

This past week on the Nielson Show podcast, NHL insider Chris Johnston added some reports on the state of the situation with Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin, saying he believes there is a clear favourite to land the elite two-way player and to the surprise of no one, it's the Minnesota Wild.

"There's still a feeling out there that Minnesota's gonna find a way to get it done," Johnston said last Friday. 

Other recent reports suggest the same, like on Monday's episode of his 32 Thoughts podcast, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported that pressure is building in the Larkin situation and that the 30-year-old Michigan native is starting to bend, adding more and more teams to his list.

Friedman confirmed that Larkin's trade list is now up to ten teams, though it still does not include the Montreal Canadiens. Larkin's reception when playing in Montreal, coupled with his reportedly growing willingness to accept any deal that gets him out of Detroit, has led Friedman to believe the Canadiens are closer in the Larkin sweepstakes than ever before.

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Teams that have been on the list from the start, like the Wild are starting to feel the pressure, according to Friedman, suggesting they need to start moving quickly before another team comes up with a compelling enough offer. If Larkin continues to bend and expands his list further, it could mean a swift end to the saga, with him landing elsewhere.

TSN’s Pierre LeBrun also reported on Minnesota’s strong interest in Larkin during an appearance on SportsCentre with Jay Onrait, last Wednesday. He noted that the Wild have made the most offers for Larkin, adding that he would “love to go” to Minnesota and that the team views him as “such a missing piece” for its roster.

There have been numerous reports about Minnesota's offers to Detroit and the players discussed in talks. The most common name has been 22-year-old Danila Yurov. Friedman noted Monday that Detroit may be more in favour of adding the former 24th overall pick from 2022, than it was previously, following the Russian import's decent start to the season with five points in 13 games.

Depth forwards Ryan Hartman and Bobby Brink have also been mentioned in talks, likely for salary-management reasons and both could slot into Detroit's top-nine forward group.

Time is of the essence for the Wild and if they hope to land Larkin, they will need to move quickly, and every new report points in the same direction of the former Red Wings captain may be dealt sooner rather than later.

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