Red Wings Suspend Dylan Larkin Without Pay Amid Trade Push

The Dylan Larkin standoff just went nuclear. The Detroit Red Wings suspended their star center without pay Thursday after his agent called to say Larkin would not be coming to the rink and no longer wanted to be part of the organization, ESPN reported.

That is a stunning place for this to land. Larkin is a Michigan kid who was drafted by Detroit in the first round in 2014 and has spent all 12 years of his career there. He was held out of Thursday's game against Chicago for what sources called "trade-related" reasons, and by the end of the day he was suspended and forfeiting $41,000 a day in salary.

What Detroit Is Saying

Interim general manager Shawn Horcoff did not hide much. "To put it simply, we received a call from Dylan's agent today saying that Dylan wasn't going to be coming to the rink today and no longer wanted to be part of the Red Wings," he told reporters.

Horcoff called trade talks "ongoing" and said his phone "rang a lot today." He also admitted the situation is not simple. "With the teams on his list, a trade is difficult," he said, adding that he could not put a timeline on how long Larkin sits.

Horcoff said it was "a bit of a surprise," but that he could sense Larkin growing more frustrated on the team's recent road trip. Sources told ESPN's Emily Kaplan that Larkin met with his agents, Pat Brisson and Matt Williams, on Wednesday night and decided he had had enough, believing he had handled things professionally since asking for a trade in June while the Wings dragged their feet.

How We Got Here

This has been brewing for months. Larkin requested a trade in June, was stripped of the captaincy in camp, and got booed at Little Caesars Arena during introductions at the home opener. He has a no-trade clause and expanded his list of acceptable destinations from three teams to 10 last week. He is in the fourth year of an eight-year deal that pays $8.7 million a season.

The numbers that matter: Larkin has two goals and six points in 10 games, and he has scored at least 30 goals six times in his career. That is the kind of center contenders call about every single day. Detroit was 5-4-3 entering Thursday, three points behind Toronto in the East.

And it is not like he quit on the ice. Horcoff himself said Larkin "went out and played hard for us." This is a guy who was part of the U.S. team that won Olympic gold in February. Now the only question is where he plays next and how much Detroit can squeeze out of a market that knows he is not coming back.

What It Means for the Red Wings

Detroit is not in a position to wait forever. Every day Larkin sits, the Wings lose their best center while trying to stay in the playoff mix, and every rival GM knows Detroit's leverage is shrinking. The suspension gives the team some cover financially, but it does nothing to fix the hole in the lineup.

The Red Wings host St. Louis on Saturday afternoon and then head to Florida and Tampa Bay early next week. Unless a deal comes together fast, they will play all three without him.

Smacktok Pick Lean

We lean lower on Detroit's scoring Saturday against St. Louis. He is a six-time 30-goal scorer who is not walking through that door, and nobody on the roster replaces that overnight. If you are building around Detroit this weekend, keep it light.