The Toronto Maple Leafs are only three games into the season, but rookie Gavin McKenna is already under the microscope.
Toronto’s 1-2-0 start has plenty of moving parts behind it, yet McKenna has become a talking point for a different reason. The 18-year-old still hasn’t recorded a point and, by several underlying measures, the early results have been rough.
That part comes with the territory for a rookie. What has drawn more attention is his attendance record at optional skates.
McKenna has missed multiple optional practices, including a skills session that featured Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Kirill Marchenko, John Tavares and Easton Cowan. He previously said one absence was tied to trying to keep his body fresh during a back-to-back.
Even so, the pattern has become a story in Toronto. McKenna did return for Tuesday’s optional practice, but the scrutiny around his preparation isn’t going away anytime soon.
Elsewhere, the Edmonton Oilers are reportedly working on the market for a young center from the Eastern Conference. Darren Dreger said on The Nielson Show that Edmonton has been in conversations for several weeks and was viewed as a front-runner in the talks. He described the player as a young center with upside who is still trying to build his NHL value.
The name that has surfaced as a fit is Boston Bruins forward Matt Poitras. A 2022 second-round pick, Poitras has 27 points in 70 NHL games and recently returned from injury.
The Oilers, though, are not believed to be in a hurry to force a move, especially with injured players such as Jason Dickinson nearing returns. No deal involving Poitras has been confirmed.
In Detroit, Simon Edvinsson is drawing growing attention on the trade front. Elliotte Friedman reported that the Philadelphia Flyers are among the teams interested in the 23-year-old defenseman, and the Seattle Kraken are also monitoring the situation.
Edvinsson is reportedly frustrated with the length of his contract talks in Detroit and may want a trade if the two sides can’t find common ground. The Flyers would fit the profile of a team willing to chase young talent aggressively, especially after their attempt to offer sheet Leo Carlsson.
Edvinsson, who stands 6-foot-6, has 60 points in 175 NHL games and posted 51.2 percent of shot attempts last season. Detroit still believes a contract agreement is possible, but the situation has clearly gotten more complicated.
The Red Wings are also dealing with another name that keeps hanging over the roster: Dylan Larkin. The captain skated in Detroit’s morning session before Tuesday’s game against Ottawa after missing the first two games of the season with an upper-body injury.
At the same time, Larkin has reportedly widened his no-trade list to roughly nine or 10 teams. That creates a tough path for Detroit, since many of the clubs on that list are contenders and may not have the cap space or the appetite to pay the kind of price a blockbuster would demand. For now, that narrows the field and keeps the speculation alive.
In Other News...
Dylan Larkins Return Came With A Reality Red Wings Fans Cant Ignore
Dylan Larkins return to the Red Wings lineup after missing two games with an upper-body injury gave Detroit a familiar jolt, even if the circumstances around him remain anything but simple. He had already been through a summer trade request, and the noise around that decision has not faded, but he was back on the ice and helped the Red Wings beat the Ottawa Senators 5-3 with the kind of night Detroit needs from one of its most important players.
The return also came with a reminder that the situation is still uncomfortable for everyone involved. Larkin heard boos from fans and took some chirping from opponents, but he said his focus is on playing and helping the team win until a trade happens. For now, the Red Wings are getting production from a player whose future has been a topic all season, and that reality is hard for their fans to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Fans Got A Response That Only Deepened The Frustration
The early-season mood around Little Caesars Arena has already turned sour, and Chris Ilitch tried to meet that frustration head-on with a letter posted on LinkedIn. After a 1-2 start, Red Wings fans have made their displeasure clear with chants to sell the team and boos directed at captain Dylan Larkin, and the organization is now leaning on promotions to help fill the building while the noise around the club keeps growing.
What made the response land so awkwardly is what it left unsaid. Ilitchs note addressed the frustration, but it did not touch on Steve Yzermans removal or the ongoing search for a new general manager, and the questions around the front office are only getting louder as the situation around top defenseman Simon Edvinsson adds another layer of uncertainty for a team already trying to calm its fan base. [Read more 🡒]
Dylan Larkin's Return Gave The Red Wings Something They Desperately Needed
Dylan Larkins first game back gave the Red Wings the jolt they had been waiting for. Detroit looked more composed from the start in its home meeting with Ottawa, staying out of early penalty trouble and playing with the kind of urgency that had been missing during a winless stretch that dragged on for nearly six months. Alex DeBrincat led the way offensively with three points, and head coach Todd McLellan had plenty of reason to like the way his team responded around its captains return.
Larkin made the kind of immediate impact Detroit needed, scoring in a game the Red Wings controlled on the way to a 5-2 victory. It was the teams first lead of the season, a small but meaningful marker for a club trying to reset its tone after a frustrating start. The bigger question now is whether this was a one-night spark or the beginning of the Red Wings finally finding the steady play they have been searching for. [Read more 🡒]