GM Refusing to Trade Dylan Larkin to Minnesota Fired
The Minnesota Wild have been negotiating with the Detroit Red Wings and their executive vice president and general manager Steve Yzerman for months now, as Bill Guerin continues his pursuit of their Captain centerman, Dylan Larkin.
To this point, negotiations have proven fruitless, which has forced the Wild to fill out the 2026-27 roster with limited cap space and zero draft picks in the first three rounds of the draft.
Meanwhile, things aren’t any better in Detroit. From the outside, Yzerman has been unflappable — almost cocky — since Larkin demanded a trade earlier this offseason, apparently holding out for Minnesota’s budding superstar, Matt Boldy.
However, it appears that behind the scenes, Red Wings leadership has been far less-unified in Yzerman’s approach this offseason, and the direction he was taking the organization, in general.
Detroit Red Wings fire/demote Steve Yzerman
How do we know? Because Wednesday morning, in the shocker of the offseason to date, Detroit announced that Steve Yzerman is out as vice president and general manager.
The longtime Red Wing player (1984-2003), and lead executive since 2019, will remain with the organization. In the interim, he will also continue in his role general manager, at least until Detroit’s owner, Chris Ilitch, finds a new GM.
The Detroit Red Wings today announced a change in hockey operations leadership, with Steve Yzerman transitioning from his role as Executive Vice President and General Manager. Yzerman will continue serving the organization as senior advisor to Governor and CEO, Chris Ilitch. A search for a new head of hockey operations is underway.
“Clearly, we are not where we and our fans expect to be as an organization” said Ilitch. “I’m looking forward to bringing in new leadership to build the championship-caliber organization Hockeytown deserves.”
Detroit Red Wings Press Release
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Yzerman played for the Red Wings his entire 22-year career, and according to the press release, his No. 22 is one of just nine numbers retired by the historic NHL franchise. He retired in 2006 and, after a nine-year stint in Tampa Bay, held the GM position in Detroit since 2019.
What’s most shocking about this move is the timing, which (former NHL star defenseman, now hockey analyst) Chris Pronger pointed out, couldn’t be more interesting.
Not only is the NHL Draft over, along with the brunt of free agency, but as we previously mentioned, this is happening amid failed trade negotiations surrounding the Red Wings’ soon-to-be 30-year-old star center, Dylan Larkin.
Steve Yzerman is OUT as President/GM of the Detroit Red Wings 🤯
— Chris Pronger (@chrispronger) July 15, 2026
Where do they go from here? What’s the plan? Let me know what you think 👇 pic.twitter.com/MOABwcGzst
What’s next for Dylan Larkin trade talks with MN Wild?
While this certainly doesn’t mean that Larkin is on the verge of being traded to Minnesota, you have to imagine figuring that out will be the new GM’s first task, after being hired.
Then again, if the hiring process is going to drag out, could Chris Ilitch force Yzerman to move on from Larkin, before hiring the new guy?
Over in Detroit, though, fans and media members are probably wondering the opposite. Could a new GM or president of hockey ops change Dylan Larkin’s mind about leaving?
Steve Yzerman is out as the GM of the Detroit Red Wings pic.twitter.com/qhVj1dVvy2
— 97.1 The Ticket: (@971theticketxyt) July 15, 2026
Related: Minnesota Wild Sign “Monster” 2026 Draft Pick
Of all the possible scenarios that could play out, this seems the most unlikely. If the longtime Detroit Red Wings captain was looking for a more stable organization, before Yzerman was fired, then I can’t imagine a change in leadership (and new rebuild plan) is going to change that.
As Guerin has probably reminded Yzerman many times, Dylan Larkin isn’t some mid-20’s kid. He’s about to be 30 years old (July 30). If he didn’t have time to wait for whatever the old GM was building, I doubt he wants to sit around to hear out what a new one will look like.
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