Three teams want Dylan Larkin, per Elliotte Friedman, but it ultimately needs his approval
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Daniel Lucente
Jun 8, 2026 (9:21)
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Photo credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
Elliotte Friedman named Minnesota, Tampa Bay, and Dallas as the three clubs he keeps hearing in the Dylan Larkin sweepstakes.
That sounds like a bidding war forming around the Detroit Red Wings captain.
It isn't one. Not yet.
Re Dylan Larkin trade request: "Minnesota; Tampa; Dallas; those are three of the teams I'm hearing a lot."
- Elliotte Friedman
- Elliotte Friedman
Larkin carries a full no-trade clause through next season on his eight-year, $8.7 million AAV deal signed in 2023.
That clause doesn't soften the trade market - it hands Larkin a veto over it. Three interested teams only become three real options if Larkin's approved list includes all of them.
And there's no guarantee it does. A player requesting a trade while holding a full NTC isn't surrendering control.
He's choosing the terms of his own exit.
Detroit's leverage depends on a list they don't write
Steve Yzerman negotiated that NTC to keep Larkin in Detroit three years ago. Now it's the exact mechanism limiting his ability to maximize the return.
If Larkin's list narrows the field to one team, there's no bidding war. There's a take-it-or-leave-it conversation where the acquiring GM knows he's the only real option.
Minnesota looks like the cleanest fit. Bill Guerin has cap flexibility and a center hole that a 34-goal, 67-point proven number one fills perfectly.
Tampa and Dallas both carry rosters already squeezed against the ceiling, meaning either would need to subtract quality to absorb $8.7 million.
The trade request changed the timeline, not the power
Larkin going public accelerates conversations, but the leverage still sits with the player. Detroit missed the playoffs for a tenth consecutive season.
Larkin won gold with Team USA at the 2026 Olympics and came home to the same losing.
The frustration is real, but so is the patience a full NTC affords him.
Yzerman needs to move fast enough to get fair value and slow enough to avoid a fire sale. That window is narrower than three team names suggest.
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Dylan Larkin will reportedly block trade to Red Wings conference rival
Dylan Larkin will reportedly block trade to Red Wings conference rival