The Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin is the heart and soul of the team. He does not take a game off and his offense is consistent year after year. He leads by example and does not let his team quit. However, he does have a bit of an injury history up to this point and one wonders if another trip to injured reserve could hinder the team's playoff chances.
Larkin and his injury history
Larkin has been the biggest influence on this team and their confidence. He does what a captain should do and that is lead by example. That is when he plays. In his career, he has played 735 games out of a possible 902. While he has 577 points in those games, the team has lacked direction without him in the lineup. Their play has suffered and that kind of play has cost them valuable points in the standings.
Last season, the Red Wings were 37-22-9 with Larkin, and are 303-339-93 with him in the lineup all-time. He has been placed on injured reserve 16 times during his 11-year career and the Red Wings missed the playoff last season by five points. Detroit tied for the previous wild card spot in 2023-24 and he missed 14 games. If he can play between 70 and 80 games this season Detroit may finally break that playoff drought.
What the team lacks in his absence
The Red Wings do have Lucas Raymond, Patrick Kane, Moritz Seider, and others to help fill that scoring void. He is the captain. He is their leader and without him, the overall play is not the same and it shows on the ice. They look lost. They do not have the center depth with scoring. He is also the emotional leader and is willing to get things stirred up to rally his team.
Larkin needs to be injury-free or as close as possible if the Red Wings are going to make the playoffs. Every game he misses is a possible two pints in a difficult Atlantic Division and the team loses confidence. Red Wings fans hope he will be healthy all season which could happen. However, based on his history and the way he plays it is bound to happen. It is not if but when he will be on the shelf. It is how the team responds that will make the difference.