Detroit Red Wings name Dylan Larkin the team’s 37th captain
Dylan Larkin #DylanLarkin
Dylan Larkin, a homegrown player who has come to embody the face of the rebuild, has been named the 37th captain in Detroit Red Wings history.
He joins a list that boasts Hockey Hall of Famers in Steve Yzerman, Nicklas Lidstrom, Gordie Howe, Ted Lindsay, Sid Abel, Red Kelly and Alex Delvecchio, and fills a position left open when Henrik Zetterberg retired in September 2018.
[ Here’s who Dylan Larkin has to live up to as Detroit Red Wings captain ]
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The announcement was made Wednesday, a day before the Wings open the 2021 season.
“Dylan is an extremely competitive and driven player who sets the standard for dedication and conduct for the Red Wings,” Yzerman said in a statement. “This is the right time to name our new captain and we’re certain Dylan is ready to take on the responsibility. He will be an outstanding leader for us, both on and off the ice.”
Larkin, 24, was the clear-cut choice. Since making the Wings out of training camp in 2015, a year after he was selected at 15th in the 2014 draft, Larkin has shown the signs of a captain. He has tremendous inner drive, pushes himself hard on and off the ice, and takes pride in being a Red Wing, all the more so for having grown in Waterford.
The plan had been to name Larkin captain before the 2019-20 season, but that was under former general manager Ken Holland. When Yzerman took over in April 2019, he wanted to get to know the players better before making a decision.
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Yzerman and Larkin bonded during the 2019-20 season.
“I’ve enjoyed my conversations with him and our discussions about hockey and our team throughout the season,” Yzerman said last May. “I am very impressed with him. I think being a member of the Wings and improving this team is very important for Dylan, and he takes it seriously. He’s an excellent player for us, he’s a very important player.”
Larkin has worn an ‘A’ since 2018. At the time, management wanted to give Larkin a year to grow into the role, especially considering the Wings were in for tough times because of their rebuild. Before last season, the Wings made Luke Glendening an alternate captain, adding him to a group that also included Justin Abdelkader (no longer with the team) and Frans Nielsen.
No player stood before the media more than Larkin last season, as the losses piled up to 49 — one of the most thankless jobs of being a locker room leader.
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 book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.
Detroit Red Wings’ Dylan Larkin hasn’t talked with Steve Yzerman about captaincy – yet
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings name Dylan Larkin the team’s 37th captain