Where does Dylan Larkin go with Panthers likely out of the mix?
We saw this offseason’s first blockbuster move in the NHL on Sunday, as the Florida Panthers acquired winger Brady Tkachuk from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for three first-round draft picks and a second-round draft pick. It was a move both shocking and foreseeable, as whispers of a possible Tkachuk trade had been in the air for some time.
Apart from the impact this trade will have on the Panthers and Senators, it also will affect the market for Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin. Larkin has requested a trade out of Detroit, and it was reported that Florida, along with the Minnesota Wild and the Vegas Golden Knights, were on his list of preferred destinations. Now that the Panthers have cashed in most of their trade chips for Tkachuk, they’ve removed themselves as serious suitors for Larkin.
On Monday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, hosts Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton discussed where Larkin is likely to be headed with Florida now out of the picture.
Tyler Yaremchuk: Where do you think Dylan Larkin could go as we potentially head into what we’re dubbing Super Team Summer in the NHL?
Carter Hutton: I still like the Wild. I’m sure Bill Guerin was in on Tkachuk, conversations were had with where he’s at. I think Larkin going somewhere with Quinn Hughes where now you’re getting out of the Eastern Conference, you’re going to the Western Conference and it gives you a chance. You look at their depth and where they really need it, I think that would be the team for me. I don’t want to say the Golden Knights are off the table because they always shock and awe us with what they do. They just went to a Stanley Cup Final, but anything is on the table when it comes to the Vegas Golden Knights.
Tyler Yaremchuk: The other thing, just to follow the framework, it’s not identical but Florida moves Mackie Samoskevich, they get a first, and then boom, they got the assets to go to the Ottawa Senators and say “Here’s the three firsts you want for Brady Tkachuk.” Could we see Vegas do something similar? Tomas Hertl’s tough to move because he has a three-team approved trade list, so it’s a tight window of teams you could move him to. But could Vegas stun us and say “You know what, Pavel Dorofeyev, we’re going to trade you somewhere because you have no trade protection, you’re an RFA with arbitration rights. We’re going to trade you and we’re going to get two, three quality assets and then we’ll take that and combine it with whatever other prospect we need to go make a Dylan Larkin trade happen.”
You can catch the full discussion and the rest of Monday’s episode here…