Emily Kaplan reports the Red Wings will get the return they want for Dylan Larkin, and Steve Yzerman is willing to bring the captain to camp if no deal lands.
The report has teeth. On ESPN, Kaplan said Detroit is confident it'll get its price, and that Yzerman has signaled Larkin would report to camp if necessary. Kevin Weekes weighed in alongside her.
Then she put a number on the ask. Kaplan is thinking multiple first-round picks and/or younger players, a steep, futures-heavy return.
Look at the player commanding it. Larkin is the 29-year-old captain on an $8.7M deal, coming off 34 goals and 67 points. That kind of player should cost a fortune.
It also builds on her earlier note. Kaplan had said Detroit was underwhelmed by the Wild's offers and might need a third team. Now we know the bar.
She laid out where it stands.
-
Why bringing Larkin to camp is Yzerman's leverage
The camp piece is the whole point. A GM who can credibly wait isn't pressured into a weak deal by July 1, and Yzerman signaling Larkin would just report changes the math for every suitor.
It also confirms a read that's been floating around. The notion that Yzerman might let this run to camp was speculation days ago. Now it has Kaplan's reporting behind it. Detroit isn't blinking.
There's a cost to that posture, though. A captain reporting amid trade limbo isn't ideal for anyone. It's leverage, not a preferred ending, and it could get awkward in a hurry.
The price tells you the market, too. Multiple firsts and/or young players is a contender-level haul, the kind only teams willing to pay big, possibly with a third club involved, can assemble.
Here's my read: Yzerman is doing this right. You don't give away a 34-goal captain, and signaling you'll wait into the fall is how you hold the line. The ask is steep, but a player like this earns it.
So the standoff now has a defined price and a patient seller.
Whether a team clears that bar before camp, or this drags deep into the offseason, is the thread to follow. Yzerman set the number. Someone has to meet it.
Is Yzerman right to risk a camp standoff to get his Larkin price?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Major Vancouver Canucks info confirmed and fans are on the edge of their seat
