Steve Yzerman

Steve Yzerman (born May 9, 1965, Cranbrook, British Columbia, Canada) is a Canadian American professional ice hockey player who—as the longest-serving captain in National Hockey League (NHL) history—led the Detroit Red Wings to three Stanley Cup championships (1997, 1998, and 2002).

From 1981 to 1983 Yzerman played centre with the Peterborough Petes of the Ontario Hockey League, where he became noted for his offensive play. In the 1983 NHL draft he was selected as the fourth overall pick by the Red Wings, a storied franchise that had struggled in recent years. Yzerman had a stellar rookie season (1983–84), scoring 39 goals and 48 assists and earning a number of accolades. He was named runner-up for the Calder Trophy for best rookie in the NHL, and he played in his first of 10 All-Star games. At the beginning of the 1986–87 season, Yzerman became the youngest player to be named captain of the Wings. Two seasons later (1988–89), he recorded 155 points (65 goals and 90 assists) and received the Lester B. Pearson Award for best player, as decided by fellow players.

In 1993 Scotty Bowman became coach of the Wings and helped develop Yzerman’s defensive game. Two years later Yzerman’s strong all-around play led the Red Wings to the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in nearly 30 years. Detroit, however, was swept by the New Jersey Devils. The Wings returned to the finals in 1997 and defeated the Philadelphia Flyers to win the Stanley Cup. The team repeated as champions in 1998, and Yzerman was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as most valuable player of the playoffs.

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With Yzerman as captain, the Wings became one of the sport’s dominant teams, winning the Presidents’ Trophy—awarded to the NHL team that registers the most points during the regular season—in 2002, 2004, and 2006. In 2000 Yzerman received the Frank J. Selke Trophy as best defensive forward, and two years later he helped the Red Wings defeat the Carolina Hurricanes to win the franchise’s 10th Stanley Cup. In 2002 Yzerman was also part of the Canadian team that won a gold medal at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. Injuries limited his playing time in later years, and he retired after the 2005–06 season. His regular-season career totals included 692 goals and 1,755 points.

Yzerman was later named vice president of the Detroit Red Wings, and in 2008 the team won another Stanley Cup. In addition, he served as general manager of the Canadian national team at the 2007 and 2008 world championships, where the country won gold and silver medals, respectively. He was subsequently named executive director of Canada’s Olympic hockey team, which won gold medals at the 2010 Games in Vancouver and the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia. He stepped down from his position with the national team after Canada won the 2014 gold medal.

In May 2010 Yzerman became general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning. He soon rebuilt the Lightning into one of the premier teams in the NHL, with Tampa Bay advancing to at least the conference finals in four of the eight seasons under Yzerman, including a trip to the Stanley Cup finals in 2014–15. Yzerman surprisingly resigned in September 2018 but stayed with the franchise in an advisory role. The following year, however, he was named executive vice president and general manager of the Red Wings. His return came as the team was struggling, having missed the playoffs in the last three seasons. Yzerman was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009.