Detroit Red Wings top-line center and captain Dylan Larkin has reportedly requested a trade — which means Kyle Dubas and the Pittsburgh Penguins should be on the phone.
When teams continuously fail to get over the hump or meet expectations, there comes a time when its best players decide they've had enough.
There are a handful of situations beginning to reach that threshold in the NHL. Toronto Maple Leafs star center Auston Matthews has been the subject of some trade chatter. The same goes with Ottawa Senators forward Brady Tkachuk and Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid, who each have two seasons until becoming unrestricted free agents and whose teams have fallen short.
But it appears one player in a similar situation may be primed for a breakup with his current team sooner rather than later.
According to NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman, Detroit Red Wings captain and top center Dylan Larkin has requested a trade. Larkin, 29, is an elite top-six center option and is signed at a cap hit of just $8.7 million through the 2030-31 season.
Up to this point, there has been no comment from Larkin, agent Pat Brisson, or Red Wings management. However, according to Friedman, it seems the apparent request stemmed from a rocky relationship between Larkin and Detroit management - more specifically, general manager Steve Yzerman - dating back to contract talks in 2023.
Of course, if Larkin is available, every contender and every team aiming for contention will want his services.
And if he is available, the Pittsburgh Penguins should be one of them.
It's been repeated countless times at this point, but Penguins' GM and president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas said in his season-ending press conference on May 12 that he wanted Pittsburgh to take a "big step toward sustainable contention" next season. He also reiterated - on several occasions - the need for the team to acquire high-end talent in their mid- to late-20s any way they can, which includes through the trade market.
Larkin turns 30 this summer, so he isn't exactly the youngest option available. Someone like Robert Thomas is 26 and is also a legitimate top-six center signed long-term at a bargain cap hit, and someone like Matthews (28 years old) is, obviously, one of the best in the league but will come at a very steep price.
In some ways, it could be argued that Larkin does not fit the long-term picture for what the Penguins are trying to do. However, if they are trying to contend "as urgently as possible," as Dubas has alluded to on several occasions, the team is going to be hard-pressed to find a better option - especially one who is locked up for the next several years - than Larkin.
And make no mistake: Larkin is a legitimate difference-maker.
The 6-foot-1, 204-pound veteran center has put together five consecutive seasons of 30 or more goals, hovering just below the point-per-game mark. He has also represented Team USA for years, with his most recent representations being at 4 Nations and the 2026 Olympic Winter Games, where he helped lead Team USA to a gold medal.
Again, he is going to come at a premium. First-line centers in the NHL don't grow on trees, and he is a good one. However, one thing working against the Red Wings in this scenario is that Larkin has a full no-movement clause, meaning he entirely controls where he goes. Because of this, they will lose a good bit of leverage in any negotiations, and a bidding war shouldn't ensue because teams can't really bid for a player who gets to select exactly where he wants to go.
The return will still be substantial, though. Detroit does not own a first-round pick this summer, so that will be part of it. They also do not own a second-round pick in 2027, so that's almost a given, too. A player like Rickard Rakell, Bryan Rust, or Erik Karlsson going the other way is almost guaranteed.
And the Penguins can pretty much say goodbye to one or, more likely, two of Bill Zonnon, Rutger McGroarty, Ville Koivunen, Harrison Brunicke, Will Horcoff, Tanner Howe, Avery Hayes, and Owen Pickering, too.
But that's the price you pay for an impact player like Larkin, who will probably play out the remainder of his current contract at a pretty high level. He's the type of late-20-something player that Dubas was referring to in his press conference, and the fact that he is a center makes paying a hefty price for him far more palatable.
If Larkin is truly available, Dubas should be picking up the phone. Of course, Larkin would have to want to come to Pittsburgh, which is a whole other conversation. But, if a trade is possible, the Penguins should pull out almost all of the stops to get it across the finish line.
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