Red Wings: Future looks bright under Steve Yzerman’s leadership

The Detroit Red Wings brought in Steve Yzerman to take command of the organization, and the future looks real bright under his leadership.

While the 2019-20 season was an absolute nightmare for the on-ice performance of the Detroit Red Wings, it was a chance for General Manager (GM) Steve Yzerman to start transitioning. He has his work cut out for him, but since April of 2019, things have changed for the better since he was announced as the new GM.

The organization saw former GM Ken Holland step out and head over to the Edmonton Oilers, trying to create success with arguably two of the league’s best talents in the form of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

The Tampa Bay Lightning’s success may not have achieved a Stanley Cup Championship during Yzerman’s time there, but the remaining core of what he built was crowned champions of the 2019-20 season. While this does not mean the Red Wings have a Stanley Cup coming sooner than later, it offers a sign of hope for the future.

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As the Red Wings continue through the rebuild with Yzerman at the helm, there is no reason not to support him and the dubbed Yzer-plan.

The Red Wings are in a spot where they are breeding a plethora of young talent, which comes from Yzerman’s leadership.

While Holland’s end of tenure in Detroit may not have been the prettiest, Yzerman reinvigorated the organization and got things rolling once again.

While the on-ice product may have been worse, the big-picture looks continue to get better.

Being a Red Wings fan as a youngster in the early 2000s, I did not see much of Yzerman’s playing days.

Well, as a somewhat competent hockey fan, rather than just being intrigued by a player’s celebration or a cool goal.

I have seen all the stories in the past, read about, watched, and enjoyed the Red Wings that were dominant from the 1990s into the early 2000s, and seen the mastery of roster construction that came with it.

Now, in 2020, preparing to see what the future holds in the 2020-21 season and beyond, the fans are returning to Yzerman, trusting him once again. The simple fact is, he has the tools to make this work, the ability to craft a postseason contender given what he was left with.

When Holland stepped away, the Red Wings were far from what they once were, far from what they were before Henrik Zetterberg or Niklas Kronwall retired. The worrisome contracts and the lackluster draft talents left Yzerman with an interesting situation to walk into.

Steve Yzerman has already done plenty for the Detroit Red Wings, helping turn this team around and get headed in the right direction.

So far, he has had two successful drafts, one where he shocked many after selecting Moritz Seider at sixth overall in 2019, and then another where he capitalized on an abundance of draft picks in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.

He has made free-agent signings that have helped make the team better. In the 2020 offseason that is underway, Yzerman addressed needs, made cost-effective decisions, and is bridging gaps rather than committing long contracts to veterans who may not fit the system after the rebuild ends.

On top of that, Yzerman’s trades have panned out well, the most notable being the Robby Fabbri trade with the St. Louis Blues. The trade for Brendan Perlini does not look as exciting in hindsight, but Yzerman still has been able to make trades that leave the Red Wings with investments or players who will help the organization’s future.

As the Yzerman-era continues here in Detroit’s front office, he should be able to craft an incredible hockey club. It may take time, but with the pieces being brought in from the draft classes, players being signed, players being developed, and Yzerman’s abilities as a GM, the future is bright.

The leadership transition from Yzerman to Holland may have taken a year, as expected, but Yzerman has finally started to make moves to craft HIS organization. The Red Wings have an incredibly bright future; the hope would be they can get back to competition courtesy of Yzerman.

Detroit Red Wings fans need to trust in General Manager Steve Yzerman and let him go to work with his Yzer-plan and bring back the team to a state of competitiveness.