On the Wings blog talked plenty of Steve Yzerman soon after he announced his retirement including their favorite Yzerman memories and detailed notes from his press conference.
October 9, 2003
After having osteotomy surgery for knee realignment during the summer of 2002, Yzerman only played 16 games in the 2002-03 season. The date was opening night at the Joe, and Steve Yzerman scored with 1.7 seconds left to give the Wings a 3-2 win over the LA Kings. I remember watching that night thinking there was no way the Wings could lose the game, that it was opening night and Yzerman was back at home ready to begin a full season. It was an amazing way to open the season at home and really gave fans a lift, and a feeling that Yzerman was back in great form.
November 26, 1999 - Edmonton Oilers @ Detroit Red Wings - 4-2 W
At 12:30 of the first period, Steve Yzerman picked up the puck in the left face-off circle and took it behind the goalline, looking for someone to pass to. He saw Slava Kozlov on the other side of the net and tried to get the puck to him. It hit Tommy Salo’s glove, however, and then his skate, before going into the net. It was a flukey way to score goal #600. I remember watching that game on our little black-and-white TV in the basement and I remember Yzerman’s reaction: there wasn’t much of one. He skated calmly to the bench as the Joe cheered him wildy and apparently planned to act as though it was nothing special. He had to give in, however, as he saw the reaction of his teammates and fans. He stood up on the bench and let the fans pay tribute to his becoming just the 11th player in NHL history to score 600 goals.
Notes from the July 3, 2006 press conference:
He began by thanking everyone for coming down on a holiday weekend, saying it wasn’t necessarily a planned thing. He said he had mixed emotions and joked that refs around the league would be doing cartwheels after he made his announcement. After some comments about being drafted and having a set plan involving winning a certain number of Cups, he said he was very comfortable in his decision to retire. It was the first time he’d actually said the word and it was like he stepped over a threshold as he seemingly had to force it out.
He went on to confirm Murphy had said earlier, that his plan all along had been to play just one more season (this past one) and hopefully cap off his career with a successful run at the Cup. He said he enjoyed his final season but that this decision was the right one and that he had no doubts about it.
He then began to thank a number of people, beginning with the Detroit sports media. As he was talking, FSN’s audio feed cut in and out as they wrestled with technical difficulties so I missed some of what he said. When they got the sound back, he was thanking them for their fair treatment. He then moved on to thanking the fans for their support, though good times and bad. He called Detroit a special place to play and said he never felt a negative burden of expectation but only a positive one. Apparently, it was more like a “little boy trying to please his parents,” than anything else.
