USA Today article
December 13, 1996
by Kevin Allen
Detroit Red Wings fans might not have truly appreciated Steve Yzerman until they saw his luggage at the door last year.
Fourteen months ago, the Red Wings pondered trading Yzerman to Ottawa, figuring Sergei Federov was their No. 1 center and a Yzerman deal could fetch a top, young defenseman. But an unanticipated twist developed.
As rumors of the deal surfaced, fans reacted with outrage. Calls to talk shows on radio station WDFN-AM ran 4-1 against trading Yzerman, even though his decade as Red Wings captain was marked by many postseason failures.
What everyone - from the team to media and fans, and even to Yzerman - realized for the first time was that Yzerman quietly had become a Detroit sports icon. Trade talks died, smothered by pro-Yzerman sentiment.
”In terms of popularity, he’s either first or second in Detroit,” says WDFN talk-show host Mike Stone. ”It’s Barry Sanders and him. I don’t even think Grant Hill is there yet.”
Today, the decision not to trade Yzerman looks like the most important aborted trade in franchise history. At 31, Yzerman is playing some of his best hockey. With Brendan Shanahan now as his left wing, Yzerman is back as Detroit’s No. 1 center and is among the NHL’s top scorers with 36 points in 29 games. And he leads the league with a plus-minus ratio of plus-22, which means he has been on the ice for 22 more even-strength goals than his line has given up.
The Red Wings recently rewarded Yzerman with a four-year, $18 million playing contract that should take him close to the end of his career.
Yzerman and the Red Wings also have a five-year agreement in place to cover him when he stops playing. He will receive a job in the organization - one he hopes will groom him to be the Red Wings’ general manager ”10 or 15 years down the road,” he says. ”You have to earn that position. You have to learn the business. You have to be involved in an organization and know what you’re doing.”
The Red Wings knew what they were doing in trying to give Yzerman a deal that would allow him to spend his entire career in Detroit. Not even the incomparable Gordie Howe was able to do that.
“It was the first thing I brought up, before money or term,” says Red Wings vice president Jim Devellano. ”I said we would like to make a commitment to finish his career here. I asked him if that’s what he wanted, and he did. The rest was easy.”
Included in the deal is a no-trade clause that kicks in after next season. ”I enjoy the situation I’m in,” Yzerman says. ”I feel fortunate.”
Yzerman does not seem comfortable talking about himself. When it’s suggested he’s the Gordie Howe of his era, an almost-pained look emerges on his face as he tries to handle the discussion.
”We are all supported really well,” Yzerman says when asked about his popularity. ”The whole team gets great fan support. We are all lucky that we play in a great hockey atmosphere.”
It hasn’t always been a great time for Yzerman. He has endured knee injuries and a herniated disk. He carried a mediocre team on his shoulders for a number of seasons, only to be blamed for their inadequacies. And when the team finally had enough talent to compete, Sergei Fedorov arrived from Russia in 1990. By the 1993-94 season, Fedorov had supplanted Yzerman as the team’s No.1 center. Last year, Yzerman wasn’t even on the fan All-Star ballot.
”He went through one of the hardest learning processes a player has to go through,” says ESPN analyst Darren Pang, one of Yzerman’s closest friends. ”A new coach (Scotty Bowman) came in, his role changed, a team was taken away from him a little bit. He was challenged.”
Yzerman’s exceptional play this season might be proof that what doesn’t kill you does make you stronger.
”He has a tremendous inner drive, resolve, a passion to be the best,” Devellano says. ”He’s a little like Wayne Gretzky. Any time you figure that Gretzky is slipping, he shows the will to prove you wrong.” Opponents’ respect for Yzerman pre-dates the fans’ discovery of their affection for him.
”How long has he been captain? Since Gordie Howe retired?” says Florida Panthers captain Brian Skrudland. ”To me, it seems that long.”
Yzerman has seniority among NHL captains, with 11 seasons at the Red Wings’ helm. He was only 21 when coach Jacques Demers defied conventional wisdom and made him captain in 1986. It was only Yzerman’s fourth season in the league.
”I remember when Jacques said, ‘I want to name him captain,’ ” recalls Devallano. ”I was a bit concerned because I thought he was too young.”
Yzerman is now only one season from tying the record, held by Toronto’s George Armstrong, of 12 consecutive seasons as captain of the same team. Aubrey ”Dit” Clapper was captain of the Boston Bruins for 14 seasons in the 1930s and 1940s, but they weren’t consecutive.
As a leader, Yzerman’s style relies more on professionalism than emotion. He’s more of a statesman than field commander. He doesn’t rally his troops with fiery oration.
”I think every team has many leaders,” Yzerman says. ”And I don’t think I’m the only one who leads this team.”
When Bowman took over as coach in 1993, he began using Yzerman in more defensive roles. Not only did Yzerman not complain, he became one of the league’s best two-way forwards.
You won’t get Yzerman drawn into a discussion about whether Fedorov’s arrival forced him to change his style or role. He says the team has won more with him scoring fewer than 100 points, than it did when he was averaging 122 points a season from 1987-88 to 1992-93.
”We have had more success lately because we have better balance,” Yzerman says. ”We have put more emphasis on playing better defensively.”
What Yzerman is known for mostly is being an old-school pro, a man willing to do whatever it takes to be successful.
”Last year (with trade talk) was a pretty tough time,” Pang says. ”A lot of guys might have gone south in that situation. But Steve Yzerman handles things the right way.”
There is a grace about Yzerman, whether he’s carrying the puck up the ice or answering questions in the dressing room.
”I think it’s good for you to go through some situations that other players go through,” Yzerman says. ”I’ve learned a lot and benefited by them.”
Yzerman recently passed Alex Delvecchio to move into second on the Red Wings’ all-time scoring list. But that feat might not have been as impressive as earning the place he has in the hearts of Detroit fans.
”They won’t let you do anything to a popular guy like Steve Yzerman,” Devellano says.
Not that Devellano would want to. ”Steve Yzerman is to us what Bobby Clarke was to the Philadelphia Flyers,” Devellano says. ”He’s been the franchise.”
Yzerman’s right-hand man not left out.
Steve Yzerman’s re-energized scoring prowess has plenty to do with being paired with the most dangerous linemate he’s known.
Since coach Scotty Bowman decided in October to put Yzerman with Brendan Shanahan, Yzerman has seven goals and 31 points in 22 games. Shanahan has 14 goals and 11 assists.
Shanahan is a right-handed left wing whose specialty is ”one-timing,” shooting the puck without stopping it after the pass. The original expectation was that Shanahan would be a better winger for sharp-passing Sergei Fedorov.
But Fedorov likes to carry the puck down the right side, so he ended up too far from Shanahan to get him the puck. Yzerman likes to carry the puck down the left side, where he can make a much shorter pass to Shanahan.
”Brendan’s shot is dangerous from everywhere inside the blue line,” Yzerman says. ”He shoots the puck in a lot of situations where other players aren’t in position to shoot.”
Last season, Yzerman’s left wing was hard-working checker Bob Errey, who finished with 11 goals. Shanahan has had season productions of 51, 52 and 44 goals in recent years.
Shanahan is an unusual power forward in that he is comfortable, and effective, shooting from 30 feet out. Shanahan says he studied Brett Hull when both played in St. Louis, and he uses a similar stealth-like approach to finding seams in the defense.
”When Steve carries the puck down low, he brings defenders with him, and then he can hit Shanahan,” Bowman says.
