FRISCO, Texas — Dylan Larkin remains a candidate to be traded before NHL training camps open next week, and the Dallas Stars are still on the Detroit Red Wings captain’s list of destinations. Bleacher Report’s Lyle Richardson named the 30-year-old center among five players who could move before camps open Sept. 16 and 17 in a piece published Tuesday.
Since early July the trade market has been close to dormant. Teams moved through a run of activity between June 16 and July 2, and then nothing involving an NHL player until New Jersey acquired winger Luke Evangelista from Nashville on Sept. 1.
Larkin’s list started with three teams. In June, shortly after the regular season ended, Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reported that he would accept a trade to Florida, Minnesota, or Vegas. Dallas came in July. Ansar Khan of MLive reported that the Stars had been added as a fourth destination, and that Detroit asked for Wyatt Johnston in the framework the two clubs discussed. Dallas said no.
Steve Yzerman still held the general manager job in June, when Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet reported on the request.
“Frustration and lack of playoff games finally got Larkin to a point where he requested a trade from Detroit,” Kypreos said, “with multiple years left on his contract and a full no-trade clause. While Larkin will have some control over his next destination because of that clause, GM Steve Yzerman also has control over whether Larkin gets traded at all.”
Larkin turned 30 on July 30. His contract runs eight years and $69.6 million through the 2030-31 season, with the full no-trade clause attached. Detroit drafted him fifteenth overall in 2014 out of the University of Michigan. In 808 career games he has 276 goals, 367 assists, and 643 points, and last season he put up 34 goals, 33 assists, and 67 points in 74 games. That was his fifth straight season at 67 points or better. The Red Wings went 41-31-10 for 92 points and sixth in the Atlantic Division, and they have not made the playoffs since 2016.
Detroit Red Wings General Manager Search Passes Its Labor Day Target
No one in Detroit currently holds the authority to complete a trade. Yzerman moved out of the general manager role on July 15, six weeks after the trade request became public. He stayed with the organization as a senior adviser to governor and chief executive officer Christopher Ilitch.
“Steve’s lifetime of contributions to the Red Wings has meant more to this franchise than words can truly express,” Ilitch explained in the team’s announcement, “and I have the highest level of respect for his continued commitment to our organization.”
Ilitch hired an outside search firm on Aug. 5 to run the process, St. James reported. The club wants a candidate with an analytics background. Assistant general manager Shawn Horcoff runs day-to-day hockey operations. He cannot make trades. Three names have surfaced in the search: Florida assistant general manager Brett Peterson, San Jose assistant general manager Jeff Kealty, and Detroit Tigers general manager Jeff Greenberg. The target was Labor Day on Sept. 7.
“They were endeavouring to have the next person in place by Labour Day,” Frank Seravalli said on the FAN Morning Show on Sept. 1, “so we’re coming up on that this week.”
Dallas Stars Cap Position After the Jason Robertson Contract
Dallas is over the salary cap, and the largest reason is the contract it handed Jason Robertson in July. The one-year deal is worth $12 million and landed two and a half weeks after he filed for salary arbitration.
“Jason has been a cornerstone of our franchise since he was drafted in 2017,” Stars general manager Jim Nill said in the team’s announcement. “A dynamic and skilled player, he has been one of the league’s top offensive threats since making his NHL debut.”
In 82 games last season Robertson led Dallas with 45 goals, 51 assists, and 96 points. It was his third 40-goal year. He has 213 goals, 277 assists, and 490 points in 456 career games, and his $12 million salary matches Mikko Rantanen for the highest on the roster. Robertson can reach unrestricted free agency for the first time next summer.
PuckPedia projects the Stars at a $105,360,333 cap hit. The upper limit is $104 million. That leaves Dallas $1,360,333 over with a 23-player active roster and 45 players under contract. The Stars can get compliant by opening the season with 21 players instead of trading anyone. Johnston is 23 and carries an $8.4 million cap hit through 2029-30. He had 86 points in 82 games last season.
Dallas opens the preseason Sept. 19 at St. Louis. The Blues visit American Airlines Center on Sept. 21, and Minnesota comes in on Sept. 23. Stars coach Glen Gulutzan is in his second season. Dallas hired him in July 2025.
