Detroit Red Wings’ Dylan Larkin (upper body) on injured reserve, return uncertain

DALLAS — The Detroit Red Wings will be without their captain for at least a week.

That was the update on Dylan Larkin delivered Monday by head coach Derek Lalonde, shortly after Larkin was placed on injured reserve.

“Dylan’s going to the IR, so, no time frame on it,” Lalonde said. “It makes him unavailable for at least a week. We’ll know more as time goes on.”

Larkin left Saturday’s game under scary circumstances. He was injured after it appeared he was punched in the back of the head by Ottawa’s Mathieu Joseph and fell into Parker Kelly who cross-checked Larkin in the face. He lay motionless on the ice while tended to by medical personnel. He was eventually able to rise to his feet, helped off the ice by teammates.

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Dylan Larkin of the Detroit Red Wings is helped off the ice by teammates after being injured in the first period while playing the Ottawa Senators at Little Caesars Arena on Dec. 9, 2023, in Detroit, Michigan.

“I think it was a positive from to see him down unconscious, what goes through your head, and his past history, and to see him go off the ice with some assistance and not on the stretcher,” Lalonde said. “We’ll know more in the next few days.

“Obviously it’s unfortunate to lose a player of that caliber for an extended period of time.”

Larkin was tied with Alex DeBrincat with a team-leading 25 points.

“I talked to him a little bit yesterday,” DeBrincat said. “It’s tough to see that happen. Hopefully he keeps improving every day and will be back with the team soon.”

Lalonde also talked to Larkin Sunday for about 20 minutes and said that “he seems to be in good spirits, but it’s a lot. It’s pretty overwhelming.

“It was just good to talk to him, hear his voice. Kind of take it day-by-day here.”

Veteran Patrick Kane called the incident, “pretty scary. He’s lying facedown while play is still going on and it doesn’t look like he’s really moving. We didn’t really know what was going on, but it was great to see him get up. A scary situation.”

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Larkin has a history of neck injuries. His 2021 season ended with a literal pain in the neck suffered when Dallas Stars forward Jamie Benn pushed his stick into Larkin’s spine after a faceoff in an April 20 game. Larkin spent time in the hospital, could barely walk when he was released and needed a chauffeur for several weeks.

“He’s had a lot in his career, injury wise,” Lalonde said. “He was down, unconscious, motionless, a lot of those thoughts were going through my own head. So I think it was a positive he was able to get up and be helped off the ice rather than a stretcher.”

Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her @helenestjames.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings’ Dylan Larkin (upper body) on IR, timeframe unknown