More Yzerman and A Few Other Nugs

By Adam W Parks

24 hours after Steve Yzerman was inducted into the hockey Hall of Fame and I'm still buzzing. After all the reading, writing, and remembering, I woke up this morning and watched his speech from yesterday...again. Here it is in case you missed it:



When Stevie Speaks

The line that really captured my attention during Yzerman's monologue was when he, as always, deflected praise about being a natural born leader. "I don't believe, matter of fact I know I wasn't a natural born leader. I was molded into the leader of the Detroit Red Wings by my teammates, friends, my coaches, everyone. So I stand here representing you." Typical #19! Though, perhaps he is right, modesty and all. He was never the vocal leader, never appeared comfortable in front of the microphone, especially when asked to talk about himself and his own accomplishments. Even last night he was more at ease when talking about others, when thanking his peers and coaches, former Wings general manager Jimmy Devellano who drafted him, current GM Ken Holland who trusted him, and owners Mike and Marian Ilitch who believed in him. Yzerman did not need to talk to lead the Wings on the ice. He led by example, by sacrificing himself every night for 22 seasons, busted knees and all.

Despite the song from Bush playing over top, this is the best Stevie Y tribute video I could find on Youtube. Enjoy the chills.



Listen to an interview with Yzerman from The Starting Lineup with Bret Bakita and Michael Grey on the first FM sports radio station in Grand Rapids, MI, 107.3 WBBL-FM.

News From The Rumor Mill: No Help For Broken Wings

Mike Babcock is facing the first real regular season adversity of his tenure as head coach of the Wings. It should have been assumed by everybody that Detroit would suffer a bit in the scoring department this season, having lost so much fire power during the summer. An offense that led the league last year is ranked just 15th this season, and Babcock has had to find a way to cope with the losses of Johan Franzen and Valtteri Filppula (and now Jason Williams). And there does not seem to be any help coming from the trade front either. Due to salary cap restrictions, Ken Holland's hands are cuffed. Essentially, the only type of player that the Wings can afford are those on a two-way contract between an NHL and an AHL team. The Wings already have plenty of those guys in Grand Rapids.

The Legace Goes On

Manny Legace has a new job. The former Wings goaltender recently signed a deal with the Carolina Hurricanes to help with the loss of Cam Ward (lacerated leg). Legace, who has also played with the Los Angeles Kings and the St. Louis Blues, was most recently in Chicago with Chris Chelios on a professional tryout with the Wolves in the AHL. He posted a 2-2-1 with a 3.21 goals-against average, but his last game for the Wolves was an ugly affair Friday in Grand Rapids. I was there, a $1 beer in each hand, and watched Legace get pulled in the second period after the Griffins chucked four pucks past him on just 14 shots. Would he be a better option as a backup to Chris Osgood than Jimmy Howard?



First Murph, Now Mac?

We have all seen former Wings defenseman Larry Murphy adding commentary down on ice level in between the benches for Fox Sports Detroit, or in the studio for the Versus Network during the playoffs. On November 23 we will have the opportunity to witness the possible launch of the next great Red Wing-turned commentator: Darren McCarty. That's right, the still yet-to-be-retired Mac will be on the Versus team during Detroit's game against Nashville. McCarty's story has had its fair share of skyscraper-like ups on the ice, and abyss-like downs off. Good luck to him in this new endeavor. Hopefully he will find as much success talking hockey as he did playing it.

Peace.