Could the Panthers acquire Red Wings center Dylan Larkin if Aleksander Barkov is sidelined again? Did the Maple Leafs try to flip recently acquired forward Miles Wood? Find out in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.

NHL NETWORK: Elliotte Friedman was asked if there was a situation where Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin might become available to the Florida Panthers if their captain Aleksander Barkov is out long-term.

Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin (NHL Images)

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Barkov injured his left knee during Thursday’s game between the Panthers and San Jose Sharks. He underwent an MRI on Friday, and an update is expected on Saturday. Barkov underwent season-ending surgery last September on his right knee, so there’s concern he might be sidelined for a while.

Friedman thinks the Panthers are among the teams on Larkin’s list of trade destinations.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Panthers are on his list, though his rumored preference is the Minnesota Wild.

According to Friedman, the Panthers expect Barkov to miss some time, but the hope is he won’t be out long term. They had interest in Larkin earlier this summer.

Red Wings interim general manager Shawn Horcoff said his club isn’t looking at rebuilding. They want a return for Larkin that will help them right now. Friedman thinks the Wings would point to what the Columbus Blue Jackets got from the Toronto Maple Leafs (Matthew Knies) in the Kirill Marchenko trade earlier this week and will want a comparable return.

Friedman believes the Panthers may have been willing to part with Eetu Luostarinen when they were looking at Winnipeg Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck before settling on Jacob Markstrom. They really like Luostarinen and won’t want to move him, but it could come down to whether he’s the kind of player the Red Wings would want for Larkin.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Red Wings probably wouldn’t mind Luostarinen as part of the return, but not the centerpiece. The Panthers would have to include more to meet the Wings’ immediate needs, but they have limited trade capital.

DAILY FACEOFF TORONTO: cited Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman saying the Maple Leafs attempted to flip forward Miles Wood after acquiring him from the Columbus Blue Jackets in the Marchenko trade.

“I think they were trying to flip Miles Wood that day,” Friedman said during a recent episode of 32 Thoughts: The Podcast. “I think they were trying to work on trades to see if they could move him elsewhere, but obviously that didn’t happen.”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Maple Leafs took Wood as part of the return for salary-cap reasons because the Blue Jackets wanted to shed salary in the deal. The 31-year-old depth winger is in the fourth season of a six-year deal with an average annual value of $2.5 million. He also has a six-team no-trade list.