According to Gord Miller of TSN, the Detroit Red Wings will name Steve Yzerman to become their next general manager. Yzerman is expected to be introduced as the new GM in a press conference later this afternoon. Ken Holland who has been the Wings GM since 1997 will stay with the team as their Senior Vice President.
JUST ANNOUNCED: The #RedWings will hold a press conference today at 3 p.m. EST with Christopher Ilitch, Steve Yzerman and Ken Holland.
Watch live on https://t.co/JeI97PrF2L, the Detroit Red Wings Facebook page and the Detroit Red Wings Twitter page.
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) April 19, 2019
The former Red Wings captain spent eight seasons as the GM of the Tampa Bay Lightning before moving into a consultant role for his last season. In his nine years with Tampa, he led them to the playoffs six times. The final year in Tampa was the club’s best year where they picked up a franchise-best 62 wins and won the President’s Trophy. However, the Bolts would end up being swept in the first round by the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Bolts also made it to the Stanley Cup Final in 2015 where they would lose in six games to the Chicago Blackhawks.
Steve Yzerman Back in Detroit
Yzerman spent his entire 22-year playing career in Detroit winning three Stanley Cups over that period. He finished his career with 692 goals and 1,063 assists for 1,755 points in 1,514 career games. His 65 goals and 90 assists for 155 points during the 1988-89 season gave him the franchise record for goals (65) and points (155) in a single season. Steve Yzerman was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2014. After retiring as a player Yzerman moved into the front office with the Red Wings. He spent four years as the Vice President of the Wings before heading to Tampa.
What This Means for Detroit
Detroit is currently in a rebuilding phase after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs the last three seasons. The future does look bright for Detroit after they drafted Filip Zadina in last year’s draft. They also got to take a look a Taro Hirose after signing him to an entry-level deal in March. Hirose had a goal and six assists for seven points in 10 games with the Red Wings this season. With Holland and Yzerman leading the charge in Detroit expect the team to look to get back into the Stanley Cup Playoffs very soon.
