OT: Yzerman set to be Canada GM again in 2014

Submitted by justingoblue on

Title says it all. I'm rooting for a successful (but not too successful) career for Yzerman, as I'm hoping like many of you that he ends up as the Red Wings' GM down the road. This seems like an important step, as did his major activity with Tampa Bay just before the trade deadline.

http://espn.go.com/olympics/hockey/story/_/id/7649266/steve-yzerman-nam…

david from wyoming

March 5th, 2012 at 6:54 PM ^

When Holland retires, Yzerman will be offered the job first. But doing anything at all that would push Holland out the door is criminally insane.

justingoblue

March 5th, 2012 at 7:38 PM ^

I also don't want the Lightning taking any cups in a year where the Wings are still in it.

I was under the impression there was one more person between Yzerman and the Detroit job, after Holland. Am I batshit crazy or is there truth to that? I had thought that was part of the reason he needed to leave (temporarily) in the first place.

JimLahey

March 5th, 2012 at 7:18 PM ^

Can't wait for the boys to bring home another gold medal. I think Stamkos will be our best player in 2014. If he played in a bigger market he would get a lot more attention.

Clarence Beeks

March 5th, 2012 at 8:37 PM ^

What exactly do you mean by "[i]f he played in a bigger market he would get a lot more attention"?  I'm just curious because he gets a ton of attention here and this is a (relatively) big market.  It's just not a "traditional" market.  I'm assuming that's what you were getting at.  I still don't think it's a fair comment, though, to be honest.  I think his far bigger problem is that his team just hasn't been very good almost the entire time he's been in the NHL.  He's been plenty good and his team went plenty far last season, with him playing the starring role in that run.  All of those games, all the way through their playoff run, were on national television in the U.S.  That's not enough, though, considering how the other seasons went.  The other problem that he faces is that, as good as he is, he plays on a team with two other quite good players (i.e. Lecavalier and St. Louis) who are definitely the fan (and community) favorites.  He's never going to win the PR battle with those two as long as they are here.  I still don't know what that has to do with the size of the market, though...

JimLahey

March 5th, 2012 at 9:34 PM ^

He gets attention but if he played for a "traditional" market, as you correctly put it, he would be getting national endorsement campaigns almost as much as Sid does. The first thing companies want to know when you present them a player is what market he appeals to. Tampa just can't compare to TO, Chicago, etc, in that regard.

IMO he is one of the 3 best forwards in the NHL. I'm not saying he doesn't get attention, but he could be getting a lot more given how good he is.

Clarence Beeks

March 5th, 2012 at 11:00 PM ^

OK, yeah, if you're talking about endorsement contracts, no doubt I agree.  I didn't interpret attention to equal endorsements, that's all.  I definitely agree with you.  I still think it's a mistake to blame it on the market just because it's a non-traditional market.  Everyone here (even non-hockey fans) know who Vinny and Marty are.  The fact is, Stamkos, as great as he is, will be in their shadow here as long as they are all here together.

Brendan

March 5th, 2012 at 7:30 PM ^

Congrats to Stevie Y, as he definitely deserves the honor of being named GM of Team Canada.  I just hope that we get the same gold medal game matchup with a different result in 2014.  Maybe the most heartrboken I have ever been after a sporting event, especially given who scored the game winner.

clarkiefromcanada

March 5th, 2012 at 8:00 PM ^

Brendan, why are you so down on Sidney Crosby? The guy is without a doubt the best player in hockey when his head isn't pounding due to concussion. Sadly, I don't think he'll ever make it back to playing full time and his legacy will be a spectacular but shortened career like that of the great Bobby Orr (the greatest player of all time not named Wayne).

Roachgoblue

March 5th, 2012 at 8:45 PM ^

Orr?



Lidstrom, Lemieux, the Rocket, Yzerman, Howe, Konstantinov (my top) would all be way ahead of Orr. Konstantinov carried the puck and made plays like Lidstrom, but nobody would try to skate around him. If they did they were payed out every time and somehow the guy ended up with the puck every single time. He also smoked everyone in +/-.

Perkis-Size Me

March 5th, 2012 at 7:37 PM ^

As a Lightning fan, I could not be happier with the job Yzerman has done so far (re-signing Steven Stamkos for 5 years will do that). This was a team in complete disarray one year, and then the next, it was one goal away from playing for a second Stanley Cup.

I'm a realist and understand that once the Detroit GM spot opens up, he's leaving Tampa, but I'm hoping that doesn't happen for a while.

Clarence Beeks

March 5th, 2012 at 8:43 PM ^

I could not be happier with the job he has done here, either.  I'm not a Lightning fan, but we go to a lot of games here and the difference between the way this entire organization is run is completely different than it was before he took over.  Like night and day different.  We had moved a way for a few years (the transition occurred while we were away) and I cannot speak strongly enough about just how much more professional the entire game experience now feels in Tampa.  I know that's a reflection of the entire organization that came in after the ownership change, not just Yzerman, but I can't help but believe that he has a played a large part in that.  The game experience in Tampa is just top notch now; whereas, I definitely could not say that before.  That's a large part of why I'm not concerned, in the least, about the Frozen Four being "down here".

LIZARD4141

March 5th, 2012 at 9:38 PM ^

Who cares about Canada? Besides Yzerman didn't go to Michigan and since you mentioned Canada it could be considered political. You do understand that Obama wants the USA to be like Canada right? A weak military and a civilian population that depends on government welfare. This thread should be deleted.