Red Wings' Dylan Larkin Linked to Florida Panthers

The Florida Panthers are going to be without captain Aleksander Barkov for the foreseeable future, and naturally, Detroit Red Wings former captain Dylan Larkin is being heavily linked a potential trade target. Larkin's asked out of Detroit, is currently nursing a lower-body injury, and a lack of motivation, watching from the press box to start the season. Larkin has the Panthers on his trade wish list, so it will be interesting to see if talks intensify with Barkov expected to miss time.

Larkin, 30, is signed through the 2031 season at $8.7 million AAV, and owns a full no-trade clause for two more years. His list has recently expanded from four to roughly 10, but cap space seems to be the biggest hurdle for his desired teams. 

The Panthers have no cap space at the very moment, and would have to work some magic to fit in Larkin, regardless of how long Barkov is out for. General manager Bill Zito has already traded away a ton to acquire Brady Tkachuk, and the Panthers organization certainly lacks a list of trade assets that the Red Wings would consider.

Anton Lundell is target No.1, however, the Panthers have held very firm that he isn't going anywhere. Forward Eetu Luostarinen is owed $3 million this season, and just signed a long-term deal at $5 million per, so at this point, seems unlikely Zito would turn around and ship him to Detroit. 

The Panthers have 10 players with no-movement clauses, so wheeling and dealing for Zito isn't as easy as you'd think. The Panthers also don't have a first-round pick in the next three drafts, so the Red Wings may have to get another team involved to make this Larkin to Florida deal work. 

For what it's worth, Barkov is set for an MRI on Friday afternoon to learn the extent of his leg injury.