The Detroit Red Wings have been doing a lot of winning lately, thanks in large part to their future captain.
Dylan Larkin scored the overtime winner past goaltender Henrik Lundqvist Friday night for Detroit, capping a comeback that saw Detroit overcome a 0-2 deficit to earn their sixth win of the year after starting the season winless in their first seven.
Larkin has continued to show why he’s one of the best young players in hockey and a key piece to the future successes of the Red Wings. He can play in all situations and is averaging 21 minutes of ice time per night. He’s also scored 16 points in 16 games.
“He wants to be the guy that everyone is counting on in this room and be an impact player night in and night out,” said goaltender Jimmy Howard. “I think he’s done that for the majority of most games for us – he’s probably been our best player.”
Following the announcement of captain Henrik Zetterberg to retire, Larkin wanted to bear some of the responsibilities of leadership for the team, and head coach Jeff Blashill has definitely noticed.
“He wants that,” Blashill said. “It’s important to him. He wants to be a go-to guy, always has. He’s got the great inner drive. I think the biggest thing with Dylan is he recognizes that you can’t be a great player if you’re not a great two-way player. When he starts to get loose on the one end, we can have a quick meeting and it’s an easy fix because he understands that ultimately, you get your best offense from checking, and if you check great, you spend tons of time in the o-zone.
“I think he’s really taken steps – if you look at the course of the last number of six, seven games, he’s been real good.”
The Red Wings battle the Carolina Hurricanes this afternoon at 5:00 PM EST.
