Dylan Larkin out 1-2 weeks with strained oblique

Maybe the last thing the Red Wings wanted to hear — rising star Dylan Larkin will be out 1-2 weeks with a strained oblique, per head coach Jeff Blashill. The club is hoping it will be closer to one week.

Larkin sustained the injury in overtime against the Toronto Maple Leafs. In a foot race for a loose puck with speedster Mitch Marner, Larkin went down in pain and immediately went to the dressing room. The video can be seen below:

This is obviously a huge blow to the Red Wings. Larkin is the best player on the team by a wide margin and loosing his presence for the lineup won’t bode well. Over the course of the next two weeks the Wings play six games. Andreas Athanasiou is expected to take over first line center in his absence. If they can come away win three wins I would call that a success.

Larkin was closing in on eclipsing his career high is goals and was on track to past his career high point totals over an 82 game season. He should still be able to past both milestones, but his quest to be the first 30 goal scorer for Detroit since 2008-09 will be more difficult. Larkin currently sits on 22 goals for the year. The Red Wings own the NHL’s longest active 30 goal scorer drought.

Here’s to hoping for a speedy recovery for D-Boss!