Dylan Larkin linked to blockbuster trade for another NHL star: Frank Seravalli shares new rumor

Dylan Larkin trade rumors are back, and this time the Detroit Red Wings captain is linked to Dallas Stars winger Jason Robertson.

The chatter picked up steam this week when insider Frank Seravalli said there was talk on June 30th about a straight up Larkin for Robertson swap.

Seravalli, speaking on Frankly Hockey on July 1st, said he'd caution against calling it straight up. But he confirmed the exact notion was floating around out there.

The stat lines explain why anyone would even float this. Larkin put up 67 points in 74 games this season, with 34 goals and nine game-winning tallies.

Robertson, three years younger, finished with 96 points on 45 goals and 51 assists, then added eight more points across six playoff games with Dallas.

Cap-wise, Larkin carries an $8,700,000 hit in Detroit. Robertson sits at $7,750,000 for a Dallas team that just went 50-20-12 and finished third overall.

Would Dallas actually pull the trigger on a 26-year-old coming off a 96-point year? That's the part of this rumor that still feels shaky.

The numbers that make this trade so lopsided

Detroit closed the year at 41-31-10, missing the push it needed down the stretch. The Red Wings went 2-6-2 over their last 10 games.

That skid ended about as badly as it could. Detroit dropped its finale 1-8 on the road to the Florida Panthers on April 15th.

Dallas closed things out very differently. Robertson's final act came in a shootout win over Buffalo on that same April 15th date.

The two teams actually split their season series. Detroit won in overtime at home 4-3 on December 23rd, then lost in overtime 2-3 in Dallas on March 14th.

Trading a 26-year-old, 96-point winger for a 29-year-old center is a hard sell no matter how respected Larkin is around the league. Dallas fans would not love that math.

It's a bit like swapping a sports car with low mileage for one that's been driven hard for a decade, even if that older car still wins races.

Nothing here is close to official. It's rumor-mill talk from late June, floated again on a podcast, with no indication either general manager has engaged.

Steve Yzerman and Jim Nill both have history making bold trades. Whether either man is willing to move a top-line piece this summer is the real question hanging over this one.