Now that Tarik Skubal has been traded from the Detroit Tigers, is Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin the next high-profile Motor City athlete to be moved?
Late on Saturday evening, the Detroit Tigers made a monumental trade, sending ace pitcher Tarik Skubal to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for prospects River Ryan, Zyhir Hope, and Brady Smith.
Skubal, who has won consecutive American League Cy Young Awards, joins a stacked Dodgers roster looking to become the first MLB World Series three-peat club since the New York Yankees from 1998 to 2000.
That leaves many sports fans in the Motor City wondering - is Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin the next high-profile athlete to be moved?
Of course, Larkin's stunning trade request went public in early June, and it had a major ripple effect on the organization from that point on.
General manager Steve Yzerman stepped down from his role just over a month later in mid-July, while future Hall of Fame forward Patrick Kane chose to return to the Chicago Blackhawks despite expressing interest in what would have been a third straight extension to stay in Detroit.
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Like Larkin, Skubal was a homegrown talent (although not a Michigan native) who was drafted by Detroit and developed through the organization before eventually becoming the face of the franchise, and arguably the top player at his position in the Majors.
While Larkin may not be considered a superstar on the level of players such as Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Macklin Celebrini, or Nikita Kucherov, he remains a highly productive top-six forward coming off his fourth consecutive season with at least 30 goals.
However, their contract situations were vastly different.
Skubal entered salary arbitration before the current season and defeated the Tigers in his case, setting him up to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2026 campaign.
Larkin, meanwhile, has only completed the third season of the eight-year contract he signed in 2023, keeping him under team control through 2031. However, his no-movement clause significantly limited Detroit's ability to secure what it believed would be an acceptable return package in a potential trade.
Initially, Larkin reportedly would only approve a move to the Vegas Golden Knights, Florida Panthers, or Minnesota Wild. None of those teams, however, were able to provide general manager Steve Yzerman with the level of compensation he was seeking for a player of Larkin's caliber.
As of now, Larkin’s trade request remains unresolved, and that situation may not be settled anytime soon. The Red Wings are currently focused on finding Steve Yzerman’s replacement, and it's possible their search could extend until shortly before training camp begins in mid-September.
Detroit's next general manager will be tasked with either convincing Larkin to rescind his trade request or continuing the transition by dealing him for current or future assets.
Now that Skubal is officially a former Detroit athlete, all eyes are now on Larkin's future.
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