TRAVERSE CITY — One of the more encouraging signs for the Detroit Red Wings as training camp commenced was seeing Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi on the ice together.
The two haven’t been linemates since January, when Bertuzzi left a game with a sore back and never returned. In mid-April, Larkin suffered a neck injury and missed the last month of the season. Bertuzzi ended up undergoing surgery in April; Larkin avoided that fate, but had a challenging summer of recovery. To be skating with Bertuzzi and Filip Zadina in the structured environment of camp is a welcome return to some degree of normalcy.
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“It felt great to be back out there with the guys,” Larkin said Thursday. “We had been skating for a while at LCA, and just to have an organized practice, to be back up here — see all the familiar faces. We’re excited. Skating with Tyler and playing with Z a little bit today, it felt good.”
Bertuzzi echoed Larkin’s enthusiasm, saying he was “really happy with my progress and my recovery. I stayed in Detroit all summer, worked out and skated. I feel really good.”
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Only so much can be read into lines at camp, especially because a visa issue has delayed Jakub Vrana’s arrival. But however the lines shake out, it makes sense to keep Larkin and Bertuzzi together. They’ve been linemates when possible for the last three seasons and read off one another extremely well.
“I like the two together,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “They’re a pair I’d like to keep together all season if I can. They complement each other. They have real good chemistry on and off the ice, so it’s definitely a pair I’d like to stay together. And then we’ll see who earns a spot with them. That will be determined over time.”
Larkin endured a particularly rough time in the pandemic-shortened 2021 season. He got off to a great start — with three goals and four assists over the first nine games — but when he lost Bertuzzi, Larkin’s numbers plummeted. He picked up only six more goals and 10 assists before he was hurt April 20th. His .52 points-per-game average was Larkin’s lowest since his second year in the league, when he posted a .56 PPG in 2015-16.
During a game against Dallas, Stars captain Jamie Benn used his stick to hack Larkin in the neck. There was no punishment for Benn, but lots of pain for Larkin.
“It was a difficult time,” Larkin said. “The time in hospital, I was in a grey area on what the diagnosis was for a long time. Didn’t really do a lot for a couple months. Pretty much no activities. It was hard. I was in a lot of pain. It was hard mentally as well. I’m glad to be here at camp, with the guys, back on the ice.“
General manager Steve Yzerman said earlier this week that Larkin was not cleared for full contact, but even if he were, teammates aren’t going to take runs at each other. The physical aspect of being ready will come next week, when exhibition season begins.
For now, it’s a relief to have distanced himself from the early part of summer.
“I don’t think I really thought about it much, which is a great sign,” Larkin said. “For myself, why take a risk right now — I haven’t had a hit since the last one I took. I want to go into the season healthy. I want to make sure I’m ready.”
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.