The Voice

Issue date: 2/12/07 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Photo by Dave Reginek, Red Wings team photographer Former Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman speaks to a sold-out crowd at Joe Louis Arena during his retirement ceremony on Jan. 2.

What the Eiffel Tower is to Paris, what peanut butter is to jelly, what Ricky Martin was to Menudo, Steve Yzerman may be to the city of Detroit.

The 2006-2007 NHL season began a new era for the Detroit Red Wings as they marched forward without "The Captain" on the ice. He now holds a spot as a team vice-president after announcing his retirement in July 2006.

Drafted fourth overall in the 1983 NHL draft at just 18 years old, Yzerman had an immediate impact on the franchise, scoring 39 goals and totaling 89 points in his rookie season en route to being the second youngest player to play in the All-star game.

In 1986 he was named the team's captain, a position he would hold for 20 years. During that time, he helped lead the Wings to their first Stanley Cup in 42 years when the team captured the crown in 1997.

In 1998 the Wings won their second in as many seasons and Yzerman led the way and was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy, an honor reserved for the playoff's most valuable player.

Yzerman's impact on the Red Wings is immeasurable. The Wings were the cream of the crop in the days of Gordie Howe, Sid Abel, and Ted Lindsay, but later years were not as kind.

The "Dead Wings" era, between 1967 and 1983, saw the team make the playoffs just two times. The Wings needed a young star with athleticism and leadership. With the fourth pick in the 1983 NHL draft the Detroit Red Wings selected Steve Yzerman and the rest, as they say, is history.

The Red Wings still remain one of the perennial favorites to win the Stanley Cup, with much of that attributed to Yzerman's legacy. They are the most recognized team name in a sport rich in history and Steve Yzerman helped bring back one of sports most storied franchises back to prominence.

Yzerman helped produce a winner in Detroit and brought hope to millions of people.

The city of Detroit, just like the Red Wings, flourished in its early years, only later to suffer a downward spiral to the bottom.

Yzerman gave people a team to rally around in a city that gravely needed it.

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