Detroit Red Wings need to extend captain Dylan Larkin

The Detroit Red Wings may not be in the frame of mind looking too far in the future, but there’s a looming decision to be made on the horizon. It seems like an obvious choice and something that will happen in due time, but Dylan Larkin is a free agent after this season.

It’s early; I get that. However, there has to be some discussion about Larkin and his future with the Detroit Red Wings. Larkin has taken a step forward on and off the ice. His performance has looked much better on the ice, staying healthy and producing offense on this breakout team.

He’s also settled into the captaincy, even more, this season. If the Red Wings were smart, they would ensure they keep their captain around for a few more years at a minimum. The Red Wings are getting to a point where they will be competitive, and losing their captain seems like it may cause a little bit of a shakeup.

Once again, it’s early. The team realistically has until the end of the 2022-23 season to get a deal done, but the Red Wings front office has to be thinking about making this happen. The Red Wings have to start laying the groundwork to keep this core together.

Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin deserves an extension.

So far in 2021-22, Larkin has played in 47 games with 26 goals and 28 assists for 54 total points on the season. He’s heading towards the 60- or 70-point mark on the season, which should be considered a definite step in the right direction.

Larkin is currently on a 5-year, $30.5 million contract that carries a $6.1 million annual cap hit. That being said, they will have to shell out a similar value for Larkin, looking at an extension and what that may look like.

He’s 25 years old, and another five-year deal is likely going to be in the cards for him. I may be stretching the length, but as the team’s captain, keeping him around is a quality option, one that should fare well.

There’s still a lot of time before Larkin likely gets an extension, but the Red Wings need to get this done eventually. Even though they have all of next year, they got an extension done with forward Robby Fabbri that does not start until next season, so getting a deal done early is not the worst.

Getting a deal in motion is something the Red Wings must do.