TAMPA, Fla. – His name will be forever tied to the famous “flying wheel”. He built the team that took home Olympic gold in Vancouver. His stats earned him induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009.
Now Steve Yzerman can add the title of general manager to his resume.
Tuesday afternoon, the Tampa Bay Lightning introduced the 45-year old Yzerman as its new G.M., the first hire under new owner Jeffrey Vinik. For the long-time Detroit Red Wing captain and front office “face“, running an NHL team was a life-long dream that now has come true.
“I’m extremely excited to be here in Tampa Bay. Throughout my playing career and into my first four years of retirement, I always had a goal to run a hockey team,” Yzerman said at an afternoon press conference. “I’m thrilled today that Jeff (Vinik) has shown the confidence in me to offer me this opportunity to share his vision in building a hockey team, an organization here in Tampa Bay, one that the community, sports fans and everyone in the Tampa Bay area will be proud of and excited to follow.”
Yzerman’s hiring by Vinik, who officially bought the financially-struggling franchise in March from OK Hockey, is the beginning of the rebuilding of a team that in 2004 won the Stanley Cup. Since that time, the franchise has regressed both on the ice and in the eyes of the fans who at one time couldn’t get enough of the game.
“Over the last several weeks, I’ve met a number of extremely qualified candidates for the G.M. position. I’ve really gotten to know a lot of terrific people, hard working people who I thought would do great with the job here,” Vinik said. “I’ve gotten to know Steve very well over the last several weeks and upon getting to know him really well and talking to people in the industry, really came to the conclusion – very strong conclusion – in my mind that Steve is the right man to bring a winning culture back to Tampa Bay and also to build a world-class hockey organization here.”
Yzerman, who spent 27 years as a member of the Detroit Red Wings’ organization as a player and vice president, took the position in Tampa after several weeks of discussions with Vinik. He replaces Brian Lawton who was fired by Vinik on April 12 after two years in the position and is just the sixth general manager in Lightning history.
According to Vinik, Yzerman will answer to him but the new general manager will have complete authority on all hockey-related decisions.
“Steve is going to be responsible for all decisions related to hockey. He has full reign. My decision was to hire this guy and I have full confidence that he will make the right decisions to accomplish the vision and bring us a great hockey team over a period of time and a great hockey organization and he‘ll do it in the right manner with character and integrity,” Vinik said. “Steve will be reporting to me but again he will be making all hockey-related decisions. I’ve had to make this one decision and as I’ve gotten to know him its been a slam dunk from my perspective.”
Yzerman noted that both he and Vinik agree that remaking the Lightning will not be an overnight process.
“There is no easy fix. I don’t sit up here with the notion that I can wave a magic wand, make changes and we’re a Stanley Cup contender. My intention is to improve the Tampa Bay Lightning immediately for the upcoming season but with a long term goal of making this a perennially strong team that can compete and contend on a annual basis. That takes time,” he said. “Jeff and I, in our discussions, have an understanding of what needs to be done and a general process for how that will be done.”
Yzerman said that one of the first things he wants to do is take a look at the entire hockey operation and analyze what works and what needs to be changed.
“I intend to review every aspect of the hockey operations and make the necessary changes to assure that the Lightning are efficient, professional and successful over the long run,” he said. “My goal is to provide the proper environment for our coaching staff, our players and our trainers to develop our young players, our prospects, to give our current veteran players every opportunity they can to be successful.”
It was hoped by many in Detroit that Yzerman would move into the G.M.’s position when Ken Holland, who has had the job since 1997, retires. That timeline was extended out recently when it was learned that Holland and assistant G.M. Jim Nill were in line for contract extensions, putting Yzerman in a much longer holding pattern. Given Yzerman’s successful construction of Canada’s gold-medal winning Olympic team, he began to look outside the organization with the blessings of Detroit owner Mike Ilitch and the Wings’ staff.
Yzerman said that the decision to leave the only team he had worked for far from the easiest he had ever had to make.
“It was very difficult to leave the Red Wings. I’ve been there my entire career and I was very safe there. I was surrounded by good people that really protected me and looked after me. We had a lot of success,” he said. “That’s my home. That’s where my children were born so this was a major decision, one I thought about for a long time.”
As he and Vinik continued to talk, Yzerman became more and more comfortable with leaving Detroit because of Vinik’s ideas, many of which were very close to his own.
“With each conversation we had from our initial one, I’m not sure if intrigued is the right word but I found it more interesting and more of something that I like. Then we had a second conversation and more questions and more thoughts would arise,” he said. “With each conversation that Jeff and I had, I thought I like his plan and this is somebody that I think I would enjoy working for. In my opinion and my knowledge of being in the game, I believe Jeff has a complete understanding of what needs to be done here. I like his approach to running this team and I became convinced that this was a person I want to work with.”
Vinik was just as impressed with the concepts and traits that Yzerman brought to the table. He was also in awe of just how like-minded he and his new general manager are.
“As I’ve gotten to know Steve and just learned about him, I’ve realized just the integrity of this man and that he shares those values and the same way of building, doing things the right way,” Vinik said. “I’ve come quickly to learn that that’s what he’s all about and that’s what I’m trying to accomplish here.”
Following a trip to the draft combine and meetings with the scouting staff, Yzerman will return to Tampa to begin the process of remaking the Lightning into a contender. The first big decision will be on a head coach and staff. Yzerman has definite ideas of what he would like in a bench boss but he is in no hurry to make a choice before the amateur draft in late June.
“I’m looking for a strong leader, a guy who’s been a head coach, who’s had success at some levels,” he said. “Do I need a coach before the draft? No. I don’t think there’s a particular timetable for that. I think heading into unrestricted free agency or the free agency period July 1, ideally I’d like to have a coach in place by that time. I’m not necessarily going to set a date here when it has to be done by in the event things you don’t really know over the course of time how the process will go. Certainly my intention is to get to work right away and figure out who the right people are.”
Given the issues that dogged the team over the two seasons that Oren Koules and Len Barrie owned the team, the same-mindedness of Vinik and Yzerman was more than a breath of fresh air. Vinik, noting Yzerman’s long and storied career in Detroit (he was the first ever draft choice after Ilitch bought the team 28 years ago), said that he hoped his relationship with Yzerman would be just as long and fruitful.
“Steve and I have had several conversations over the last few weeks talking about how great it would be if 27 years from now, he and I are still working here and still working hard on the Lightning and I’m the owner and he’s the G.M. of a championship hockey organization,” he said. “That’s our goal here, to be sitting here 27 years from now.”
Contact the author at don.money@prohockeynews.com
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