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Following their 7-4 preseason victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday evening, the Detroit Red Wings returned to the ice Wednesday morning at the BELFOR Training Center inside Little Caesars Arena.
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Joining them for the first time this fall was former captain Dylan Larkin, who had missed Training Camp and the first two exhibition games while recovering from an off-ice injury sustained shortly before Camp began.
Larkin, who participated in multiple drills with his teammates, isn’t ready to return to game action just yet, but has made strides forward in the eyes of head coach Todd McLellan.
“Progress, simple as that,” McLellan said following the skate. “He’s been able to progress enough off the ice in the workout room. The trainers felt good (enough) to let him go. He stayed out for the whole practice; I thought it would be just a portion of it.”
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“Good progress.”
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Head coach Todd McLellan confirmed that Larkin would not play in Detroit’s home preseason opener on Thursday evening against the Buffalo Sabres, but that there was “a chance” that he could play on Saturday in their preseason finale.
“There’s a chance, we’ve got to be smart with it, but there’s a chance,” McLellan said. “I don’t know what the odds are, but there is a chance.”
Larkin, who reached the 30-goal plateau for the fifth straight campaign in 2025-26, sent shockwaves throughout the organization and fan base when he requested a trade over the summer despite having five years left on his contract.
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Former GM Steve Yzerman confirmed shortly after the NHL Draft in late June that Larkin had requested a move, but noted there were no guarantees the request would be granted.
Todd McLellan: Larkin Must Heal, Edvinsson Situation ‘Business Side’
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Nearly three months later, Larkin remains with the Red Wings, albeit without the captaincy he’d held since early 2021 as the official successor to Henrik Zetterberg.
During a press conference last week alongside interim GM Shawn Horcoff, Larkin explained he wasn’t ready to reveal why he asked for a trade or whether he still wanted to move on.
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Following their final pair of preseason games, the Red Wings open the regular season at Little Caesars Arena on Oct. 2 against the visiting New York Rangers.
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