Dylan Larkin let raw emotions show as he reviewed a 24-hour period that brought immense joy — and sadness.
He was driving to Little Caesars Arena Thursday morning, the day after signing an eight-year, $69.6 million extension that likely means he will play his entire NHL career with the Detroit Red Wings, when his fiancée called and said Tyler Bertuzzi had been traded to the Boston Bruins.
It was the second trade in two days made by general manager Steve Yzerman, who Wednesday evening sent defenseman Filip Hronek and a 2023 fourth-round pick to the Vancouver Canucks for a conditional first-round and second-round pick in the 2023 draft. The Bertuzzi trade, in which the Wings retain 50% of his salary, yielded a conditional first-round pick in 2024 and a fourth-round pick in 2025.
“The last 24 hours are probably one of the hardest days of the business side of it,” Larkin said. “Being excited about it, happy about it, talking to Tyler yesterday, him being happy for me. And then I saw him this morning and he was upset and I am, too. It’s difficult.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING:Reaction to trade of Tyler Bertuzzi: ‘Big gamble’ by Boston Bruins
“It’s pretty clear we have traded guys to get draft picks for the future. It’s something that hopefully could pay for us in the long run and build a sustainable winner. It’s for the future, we understand that. But there’s 22-23 guys in that room there that we’ve put a lot of work in this year. We don’t want to go out last 22 games just to throw our sticks and skates out there. We want to play meaningful hockey down the stretch here.”
Larkin’s extension show his importance to the team, but the trades show how far Yzerman still thinks the rebuild has to go. It was only last week that the Wings rose far enough in the standings to slide into a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, but the ugly losses at the Ottawa Senators that began this week laid bare Yzerman would be a seller for a fourth straight year.
It was on the way home from the airport that Larkin got the good news that he was about to sign his extension.
“Steve called me on he way home from the airport, after the Ottawa game,” Larkin said. “He ran the logistics by me. It was a day off so it was nice to be able to stay home.
“With signing an eight-year extension, I am putting a lot of trust into Steve and the people I believe in that are running our organization, our owners are great. The Ilitch family gives us a lot of and more of what we need to be a hockey team and I thank them for that and I trust Steve.”
There never was any risk that Larkin would not remain, but getting the contract signed ahead of Friday’s trade deadline was a relief.
“It’s really nice to get it done,” Larkin said. “It’s always been where I wanted to be and I’m really happy. I see Lucas and Mo coming in and making an impact and additions to be made. Some tough news today, but I really believe the future is bright here and I always wanted to be a part of it. I always dreamed of playing my whole career here.
“To be captain of this team is something that I don’t take lightly. I got to play and watch with Henrik Zetterberg, someone I look up to. Of anyone in my life, he’s up there on the list of people I look up to. To be in the same category is something I don’t take lightly and I am very honored to be captain of this team.”
Larkin had a team-leading 22 goals, 35 assists and 57 points after 59 games.
“For Dylan, his play speaks for itself,” coach Derek Lalonde said. “The things we’ve asked of Dylan in closed doors, he’s done. He’s been a great leader. I was absolutely ecstatic. Like, I maybe jumped athletically about two inches in the air, and a fist bump, just because I know how significant that is. I enjoy working with him and what we are trying to build here. That was exciting.”
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her latest book, “On the Clock: Behind the Scenes with the Detroit Red Wings at the NHL Draft,” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.