Yzerman wants to be contributor in what could be his last season
Tuesday, October 4, 2005
By Ansar Khan
DETROIT -- As he peeled off his equipment after another of new Detroit Red Wings coach Mike Babcock's fast-paced practices midway through training camp, 40-year-old Steve Yzerman sounded like he's ready for a simpler life.
"In some ways, I look forward to retirement," Yzerman said. "I've played a long time. It's getting more difficult to play; the young guys are fast and strong and good. It takes a lot of effort to play, more so than when you're in your 20s.
"But I'll miss it a lot. I like playing the game and I like the routine."
The Detroit sports icon realizes the end is near, but he's not quite ready to pull up a rocking chair.
Few players have the cachet to be able to spend their entire NHL career with one organization and leave the game on their own terms. Yzerman certainly has earned that right.
But before he committed to returning for his 22nd season, more than likely his last, he had to be sure the club wanted him not for what he's already accomplished, but for what he's still capable of doing.
"I want to be a contributing player on this team, a solid contributor," Yzerman said. "I have to go out and produce, or play well. I don't want to be in the way, I want to be a good player.
"I wouldn't come back if I didn't think I could play well. I have to prove that."
He'll have to wait a little longer. A small tear in his groin muscle could sideline him for the first few games of the regular season.
When he returns, he'll be focused on helping the Red Wings thrive in a league with a new economic system and new rules, not on life after hockey.
Yzerman wants to be contributor in what could be his last season
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"He made it very clear he wasn't looking to have a farewell tour," said Wings senior vice president Jimmy Devellano, who drafted Yzerman with the fourth overall pick in the 1983 entry draft. "He said the only reason he'd come back is he feels he can help the team. He said, `Obviously, I'm not like I was 10 years ago, but I know where to go on the ice, I'm a good checker, I can win draws.' We talked about maybe forming a line with him, Maltby and Draper. He seemed to like that."
Before he got hurt, Yzerman was playing left wing on a line with Kris Draper and Kirk Maltby. A dominant offensive player for many years, few superstars could have made such a smooth transition to two-way player status as Yzerman did under former coach Scotty Bowman. He might become more defensive-oriented under Babcock.
"I'm pretty much ready for anything, any way he wants to use me," Yzerman said.

"With his knee injury (reconstructive surgery in 2002), he's lost a bit of his speed, but I think with Kris and I, if we can get in and do a lot of the forechecking and get those loose pucks out to Stevie -- he can make plays or get it to the point," Maltby said. "I still think he's very capable of creating some offense. He still has a lot of skill."
Yzerman had a decent season in 2003-04, with 18 goals and 51 points in 75 games. He was the team's fourth-leading scorer and was sorely missed in the final game of the second-round playoff series against Calgary, after sustaining a broken orbital bone and scratched cornea in Game 5, when he was hit in the face with the puck.
"My hope is he can play to where he was two years ago," Wings general manager Ken Holland said. "I thought he was an important player for us. If he can play similar to what he did in '03-04, we'd be very, very happy."
His facial injuries healed long ago and he actually enjoyed his time off during the lockout. It made him think long and hard about hanging up his skates over the summer. But, he didn't want to leave and always wonder if he had another good year left in him.
Yzerman will be remembered as one of the two greatest players in franchise history (with Gordie Howe), he's the longest-serving captain in NHL history (19 years), he's a certain first-ballot Hall-of-Famer, and he owns three Stanley Cup championship rings.
Yzerman said he won't decide on his future until after the season. At least he won't announce anything during the season. He's not the type who wants any kind of emotional bon voyage at every arena he visits.
"No interest in that," Yzerman said. "I don't think it's necessary or warranted. And maybe it isn't (his last season)."