Dylan Larkin heard the Bell Centre chant his name Saturday night. Canadiens fans want him, and he admitted the welcome caught him off guard.
"We want Larkin" rang out early in the game. Signs carrying the same message showed up during warmups, before the puck even dropped.
According to TVA Sports insider Renaud Lavoie, that reception was exactly what the situation needed.
Lavoie's read is simple. The former Red Wings captain has nothing against Montreal, and the people who need convincing are the ones around him.
"I think Dylan Larkin has absolutely nothing against the Canadiens, quite the opposite. But it's his entourage that will need convincing," Lavoie said before Saturday's game.
His theory? Applause at the Bell Centre might get those close to the player saying, "You know what? They seem to like him in Montreal."
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Kent Hughes still faces a price problem with Detroit
Montreal fans handled their part. The rest lands on Kent Hughes's desk, and the hard parts of this file haven't moved an inch.
The 30-year-old asked Detroit for a trade over the summer. His no-trade clause covers only a handful of teams, all of them American for now.
Then there's the money. He carries a cap hit of $8,700,000 on a contract that runs through 2031.
Think of it like a family weighing a cross-border job offer. The salary can be perfect, but if the spouse says no, nobody packs a single box.
His start hasn't moved the needle either way. Larkin has dressed for three of Detroit's five games, with a goal, an assist and a -1 rating.
The Red Wings sit at 1-3-1, last in their division. Saturday closed out a back-to-back that started Friday at home against Seattle.
Montreal won 1-0 in a shootout, the only meeting between the clubs so far, and moved to 2-2-1 on the season.
Shawn Horcoff isn't obligated to do Montreal any favors. A player asking out doesn't automatically drop his price, and every GM in the league can see the Canadiens' need down the middle.
The numbers make that need obvious. Nick Suzuki has seven points and a +3 rating, while Kirby Dach and Jake Evans have combined for one point through five games.
Montreal's goals against tell the other half. The Canadiens are giving up 3.8 per game, and they've won just once in three tries at home.
Here's my problem with it. Paying Detroit's full asking price for offence won't fix a club that's leaking goals, and Hughes would be solving the wrong issue first.
Tuesday brings Buffalo to the Bell Centre, followed by a trip to Washington the next night.
Martin St-Louis has to win with the centres he has. And nobody in the Larkin camp has promised that no-trade list stays American forever.
Should Kent Hughes pay Detroit's full price to land Dylan Larkin?
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