Larkin and the future of the Red Wings

Larkin+and+the+future+of+the+Red+Wings

Photo credit: si.com

By Billy Steigelman, Staff Reporter

Fresh off the ice is Dylan Larkin, who will be the only rookie positional player and Red Wings player competing in the National Hockey League (NHL) All-Star Game on Jan. 31. He will be the first rookie Red Wing since Steve Yzerman (in 1984).

Larkin, who was drafted in 2014, signed a three-year contract with the Red Wings after only one year playing for the University of Michigan, foregoing his final three seasons of eligibility.

At 19, Larkin became the first Red Wings teenager to score in his NHL debut since Yzerman in 1983. Larkin also became the second Red Wings teenager to score in four straight games (take a wild guess who was first).

Larkin is currently ranked in the top two for the Red Wings in points, goals and assists and is also first on the team and fourth in the entire NHL in plus-minus.

He is proving not only to be a force on offence, but someone who has an effect on both sides of the game. Already one of the Red Wings best players, Larkin is showing that he could be the next super-star in the new generation of Red Wings. Fan favorites and usual stats leaders Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk are getting up there in age, with Zetterberg at 35 and Datsyuk at 37, one can only wonder how much longer we can rely on them.  

The Red Wings, who have the longest playoff streak in the NHL (24 straight seasons) will look to keep it alive with younger talent such as Tomas Tatar, Gustav Nyquist and Larkin. Both Tatar and Nyquist were key parts of the success the team had last year, ranking third and fourth in points among Red Wings. They have kept up their form this season, once again ranking third and fourth, only behind Zetterberg and Larkin.

With three of the top four points leaders under 26, including the 19-year-old rookie all-star, the 24 seasons streak doesn’t look like it end anytime soon.