BUFFALO, N.Y. — Dylan Larkin didn’t want to talk about himself, which is part of what makes him the player he is, the top rebuilding block for the Detroit Red Wings.

He matched his career high in goals during Saturday’s 3-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center, scoring No. 23 of the season on a wraparound. It was his third point the last two games, after he sat out a contest with a strained oblique.

“I think first of all with Dylan, it is his compete level every night,” fellow center Frans Nielsen said. “He rarely gets outworked out there, and that’s how you stay consistent in this league. If you compete like him, you are going to be OK even on bad days. He skates with the best in this league and has a good shot. He’s coming into a complete player.

“Nine out of 10 games, he’s our best player. You don’t see that a lot, but again, when you compete like him, even on bad days, you’re going to have good things happen out there.”

It was a bad day for the Wings as a team; they started well enough but couldn’t find the back of the net on any of 12 shots in the first period, and then fell behind, 2-0, before Larkin’s goal.

Their effort lacked after the last two periods. That’s what mattered to Larkin. Asked about his own play this season, Larkin’s first instinct was to fault his play against the Sabres

“I wasn’t nearly good enough,” he said. “There is still the next level for me. Do I know what that is? Do I know how to get there? No, because if I did, I would be there. I do think as my career has gone along I’ve built confidence and become a more well-rounded player, but I do still think there is a long way to go.”

At this point, Larkin hesitated. “I don’t really want to talk about this right now. I have to be better for our team. We have to find a way to step up in games like this. We’re working hard for our chances but when you are giving up chances like we are, you can’t be playing like that.”

Larkin cares foremost that the Wings make the playoffs. They’re all but mathematically eliminated, and the more they lose, the better for their draft lottery odds. That’s good for the organization, as it puts them in the running to draft a difference-maker like Jack Hughes.

But Larkin is the leader of the rebuild, and that’s why it’s so encouraging to see him, in just his fourth year, put on strong performances game after game. It’s Larkin who has filled the void left by Henrik Zetterberg, Larkin who has been the Wings’ best player out of the gate.

“Larks has a determination about him that is very rare,” defenseman Niklas Kronwall said. “He just goes, it’s almost like one of those Duracell rabbits or whatever it is, bunnies, that you wind it up before every game and he just goes. That’s in practice, also. It’s extremely impressive to have the determination that he has. It’s fun to watch every day.

“Whenever Z decided that he couldn’t do it anymore, it felt like he grew, not only as a player but as a person as well. He has taken his game to a whole other level.”

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Jimmy Howard noted that Larkin is “one of the hardest workers on the team. He’s one of the first guys on the ice every single day and he’s one of the last guys off. He’s a workhorse for us. Every single game he brings it for us, and it’s great to see.”

Larkin hadn’t topped 20 goals since his rookie season, when played on a line with Zetterberg. With eight weeks to go this, his fourth season, Larkin leads the Wings with 52 points in 54 games. He has not gone more than two games in a row without producing, and has points all but 15 games.

“It’s been real impressive and I think on a consistent basis, he’s been a real good player,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “He gets lots of ice time with it, too, so there’s lots of responsibility on him, and he understands that and bears that burden.

“I don’t think there’s any question that Dylan has taken huge steps towards being that good, all-around centerman that you have to be to be a successful hockey team. He’s a huge building block for this team because of it. If all you do is score points, you’re not a building block. If you score points and play defense, now you’re a building block.”

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.