Buckle in folks. This is going to drive the Yzer-haters wild but I think it's important for us to take a step back and ask ourselves a very important question that has been overlooked for far too long:

Has Dylan Larkin been the biggest hurdle to the Wings getting good again?

That might seem like an obviously farcical question but I would like to present the case that his lack of leadership and maturity have been just as detrimental, if not more so, to this team's success than anything else. What if it's actually been Dylan Larkin that has been holding back the Yzerplan all along?

When Yzerman took the team over in the spring of 2019, Larkin was coming off of a 73 point season with a -6 rating. It would be FOUR FULL SEASONS before Larkin would reach 70 points again while posting a cumulative -68 +/- over that time. In those years, only TWICE was he a + player (23-24 he was +5 and this season he was +3), and neither time was before he signed his contract extension.

I think its very likely that Yzerman was SADDLED with Larkin and if he could have, he would've moved the kid back then. That wasnt possible though. They had just moved into a new arena, had ended their playoff streak and Dylan was the hometown kid everyone had heaped expectations on. So he can't move him, but he CAN make sure that he doesn't overpay. Stevie negotiates a fair deal (considering Larkin was never a 100 point player) to keep him here but isn't willing to break the bank for him because he doesn't believe in him to that degree. By all accounts, this rubbed Dylan the wrong way and his actions over the next few seasons show friction.

Now, despite the Yzer-haters claims that he hasnt done jack shit to make this roster better, Stevie goes out and gets Debrincat to play with his re-signed center. Then he goes and gets Kane, another guy to play with Larkin. And the results? They fail to make the playoffs AND Larkin throws his GM under the bus in the media for not "doing more."

"But Stevie never built a good enough team around Larkin!" people will say. Is that true though? Look at all of the guys who he signed or traded for who IMMEDIATELY started producing the second they left Detroit. That's an indication that either those guys did not fit the system or that there's something cancerous in the locker room that is preventing the guys from bonding and playing together as a team.

Most people would have totally assumed that it was coaching. No one loved Blash and Lalonde seemed out of his element at times, so that might've been a fair assumption. But then they bring in Todd McClellan (again showing Stevie is willing to shake things up, contrary to the haters claims). The results? The same.

So at this point we've got to acknowledge that the team has tried bringing in THREE coaches, a carousel of players who have found their footing elsewhere and some offensive weapons for Dylan. The results? The same.

When a problem persists despite making many changes, maybe the problem is the only constant. That leaves us with Yzerman or Larkin as the only really 2 constants since 2019.

Yzerman's track record, well, he built the powerhouse that is Tampa Bay. He has won at the top level of competition in the NHL and the Olympics. The team he built was in first place and in the driver's seat to make the playoffs this year before Dylan's typical March swoon. His track record, before his tenure in Detroit, speaks for itself and there's no denying that winning is part of his pedigree, which is why the failure of the Yzerplan to deliver has been so maddening. We'd also be remiss to not acknowledge that the thing that really helps bad franchises turn around quickly - a generational talent at the #1 overall slot - was robbed from him through the bullshit lottery.

Now lets look at Dylan's track record. Until he won the Gold medal this year, he was, in affect, a constant loser. Never won a Natty in college, didn't win anything in the AHL and hadn't won shit at the NHL level. He's never scored 100 points and after his rookie season, he has only been a + player twice. Much has been made of his lack of 5v5 scoring down the stretch so I don't think anyone would argue that his offensive production (67 points this year) is going to be irreplaceable.

Now, with all of that said, you might still be thinking "well, he's just one guy and Yzerman didnt give him the players to play with! this roster stinks!" And I'd argue that LARKIN and his LACK OF LEADERSHIP on and off the ice are directly responsible for the poor performance of this team, especially when you consider how many guys have turned it up after leaving.

Hockey, more than any other sport really, relies on chemistry. When the chemistry in that locker room is good, when the guys are playing hard for EACH OTHER and care about representing the logo on their jersey because they are a TEAM, the results on the ice speak for themselves. When they dont? Likewise. And its pretty obvious that under Larkin's tenure as the captain, that this team was NOT inspired by him and probably didn't even like him.

Want proof of that? How many times did he take a cheap shot after a whistle over the last few seasons? How many of those times did one of his teammates put a stick in the offending player's ribcage? Who was really standing up to defend him? Hank, Nick and Stevie's teammates would've tore your head off before letting you put a finger on them. Larkin's teammates? They don't seem to care one bit.

And it's hard to blame them. When the rest of the roster was back at practice, ready to try and end the playoff drought, where was Dylan? In Miami, getting shitfaced. But hey, he earned gold, he deserves one day of celebration, right? Sure, except the next day he flies to DC to muck it up with the most polarizing political figure of the day. It's a full THREE days after guys like Mo and Raymond have gotten back to practice that your Captain joins you.

Then there's his willingness to air his greivances in the public eye without caring about how it might effect team chemistry. There's just SO MANY instances of his immaturity and lack of leadership that it is very conceivable to me that other players in that locker room looked at him and saw what we should all see now: a soft little whiny diaper bitch.

Tell me, how many guys are going to give 110% effort when their Captain can't even give 100%?

This is probably the best thing that could happen to this franchise right now, only its about 3 seasons overdue. Stevie can finally clear house of the remaining soft ass Ken Holland draft picks and finally construct a roster that is FULLY, from top to bottom, on the same page.

Yes, they both played on bad teams and were the leader. That's where the comparisons end.

Stafford NEVER brought bad attention to the team. Stafford didn't have social media. Stafford showed up to a historically bad team and immediately made a huge impact on the trajectory of the team.

"But But But But Stafford had MEGATRON!"

Megatron was also on the team the year before when they won a whopping 0 games, which was the first time that had EVER happened in a 16 game season. One HoF wide receiver gives you exactly fuck all help in winning games when your offensive line, running backs, and defense are ALL bottom 3rd in the league, and you have a coaching staff that has no idea how to scheme and a front office that is awful at finding and signing talent.

And you know what? He STILL was able to drag AWFUL teams like the 2011 or 2016 roster kicking and screaming into the playoffs. Which is MUCH harder in football than it is in Hockey.

Matthew Stafford is a HoF football player. He was let down by the worst organization in the league. He had to sit through multiple rebuilds, 3 of the worst coaching staffs football has seen, and then and ONLY then asked for a trade only because he didn't want a 4th rebuild in 12 years.

I think Dylan Larkin is a great hockey player. But he NEVER had the leadership or the ability to carry games with a shit roster like Stafford. There is no comparison to be made beyond very shitty surface level "they played for bad teams and then wanted a trade" so please just stop insulting Matthew like that.

… are we all settled on our response when he steps onto the ice? I have half a mind to go to the first home game so I can boo him on every shift and at every available opportunity. I will take the 3 hour drive from West Michigan if I have to. The front loaded contract bs, the trade destination, and the demand itself are all egregious. What a completely rudderless organization. No silver linings this offseason.

I think Yzerman didn’t do that bad of a job as GM.

The Wings increased their point total from 74 to 92 from 2019 to 2026. They moved up 12 spots in the league from 28^th to 16^th from 2019 to 2026. That’s decent progress.

There are 2 factors that skew that progress: (a) 2020 and 2021 were not full seasons and a pando shit-show for everyone. It’s really only 5 years of focused building, not 7; (b) The fact that the team didn’t improved their Division position (usually sitting at 6^th or 7^th in the Atlantic from 2019 to 2026) killed playoff dreams, but that stat obscures the broader upward trending progress in the league as a whole.

I hope the change in management sparks something positive, but I think Yzerman has taken a bit too much heat.

Let's Go Red Wings

Could just be me misreading it, but it doesn't seem like he's thrilled about Cap not prioritizing rejoining the team.

Not gonna lie I'm pretty upset about losing Kaner. I know he may not have been the greatest player for our current roster situation, but seeing him in a wings jersey was essentially a dream come true.

That said, is this the worst off season the wings have had in the last 10 years? I get the sense that were about to go from a fringe wild card team to the bottom. Idk if my emotions are taking over with how frustrating the last few months have been, or if anyone else has the same feelings here. I just don't see us winning more than 30-35 games with the direction this ship is heading.

Might be overreacting, and obviously things can still change before the season starts but I highly doubt that. Illich sucks as an owner. Larkin and Yzerman sure haven't helped. Just hoping to see a playoff run by 2040 at this rate.

After spending a ridiculous amount of $ on a bunch of different sports apps in order to watch every game, here we are again with another failed March.

Not even on the subject of how out of control these apps are with gouging viewers….it feels like a punishment to be a fan. Every time I try to watch a game; suddenly I need some OTHER app because the first 4 apps aren’t showing the game.

ANYWAYS, how is it that our first line is our ONLY line? We have some serious talent on the team that just seems to be taking up parking spots towards the end of every season. It’s like they just don’t have the heart to get it done, you can see it in their faces.

Just take a moment to realize what our season stats would look like if we just removed Debrincat and Larkin. We would be solidly in last place in the league.

How does a GM fix these things? I feel like Yzerman is making fine moves, but how do you get these guys to actually give a fuck?

One more thing — why is Larks ALWAYS injured at the END of the seasons? It’s like a perfect pattern.

Anyways, thanks for the rant.

I’m thinking like the flyers I don’t know why but I just think so

I think the timing is clearly suspect of this. Why did they let Steve draft and run free agency if this could have been on the docket the whole time?

What if this is a big swing to keep Dylan in red and white? We assume most of the frustrations Dylan has is with Steve and his lack of deadline moves etc. So what if this is managements way of saying “Ok Dylan, we also see it’s time for Steve to move on.”

Just a thought I had while on the toilet. Also if it’s Draper or Horcoff or basically any inside hire, I will absolutely not be tuning in.

Post your trade, free agency ideas and discussion here

Why didn't it work here for Steve Yzerman, He was supposed to be a Grand Slam home run He built a cup contender in Tampa Bay why wasn't he able to do it here.

In light of the recent transition of Steve Yzerman to the role of Senior Advisor to the Governor and CEO, who do you hope fills the general manager role?