Dylan Larkin's trade request from the Detroit Red Wings is starting to look like a real miscalculation.
Fans were stunned when news broke in early June that the captain had officially asked out, despite having five years left on his contract.
The timing made sense on the surface. Detroit had just missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 10th consecutive season about six weeks earlier.
It was also the third straight year the team failed to hold a comfortable lead in the standings after entering March in decent position.
Three months later, as of September 5, Larkin remains on Detroit's roster with no resolution in sight.
Reports indicated Larkin would only accept a trade to the Vegas Golden Knights, Minnesota Wild or Florida Panthers, a short list by any standard.
That restriction tied the hands of then-GM Steve Yzerman, who vacated his own role in an equally surprising move roughly a month later in mid-July.
Red Wings may force Dylan Larkin to return after trade demand
Detroit still hasn't named Yzerman's successor, even with training camp opening September 17, less than two weeks away.
Every day that search drags on is another day working against any trade actually getting completed before puck drop.
Is Larkin's short list of destinations partly why this has stalled, or is the empty GM chair the real bottleneck here?
It's the hockey equivalent of quitting a job before the new boss even walks through the door. There's nobody left in the room to actually process the request.
Larkin posted 34 goals and 33 assists for 67 points across 74 games last season, still Detroit's most productive forward by a wide margin.
That production makes him a genuine asset, but a genuine asset still needs a GM in place willing to move him.
My take: restricting yourself to three teams while your own front office is in chaos is exactly how a trade request turns into a long, awkward stalemate.
Camp arrives in less than two weeks, and the version of this story where Larkin simply reports to Detroit keeps looking more likely by the day.
Source : Dylan Larkin May Have Greatly Overplayed His Hand With Red Wings Trade Request
Did Dylan Larkin make a mistake by restricting his trade list to just three teams?
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