By Kevin Allen, USA TODAY
DETROIT — Just before training camp in 1983, Detroit Red Wings executive vice president Jimmy Devellano says he warned top draft pick Steve Yzerman that the 18-year-old might be returned to junior hockey if he was not "strong enough" to compete at the NHL level.
"He's 155 pounds, and within the first five minutes and three shifts in training camp, he's the best player on our team," says Devellano, laughing. "Here we are, 23 years later, and we are still watching him play for the Red Wings."

Even in the post-lockout NHL, anew with supposedly fresh stars, modern rules and more speed, one of the central themes of the playoffs that begin this weekend is whether Detroit's 40-year-old captain can lead the top-seeded Red Wings to their fourth championship under his leadership. They take on the Edmonton Oilers starting Friday in Detroit (7 p.m ET on OLN).

"I think Steve is playing as well as he was five years ago for us," says Detroit general manager Ken Holland.

Yzerman, still playing while some of his contemporaries have left the NHL, has 14 points in his past 13 games. More important, he has looked like his vintage self, threading a pass through skates, cutting back against the grain to create more skating room, changing his speed so traffic can move past him to produce a passing lane.

"It took a while to catch up," Yzerman said Wednesday in a media conference call. "I felt the more games that I played in, the more comfortable I got, and just gradually, ice time increased."

It's quite a turnaround from before Christmas and even into January, when Yzerman, bothered by nagging groin injuries, appeared to be surviving more than thriving. Three times during the season, Coach Mike Babcock played Yzerman less than seven minutes a game. There were 10 other games when Yzerman played less than 10 minutes.

"I think the pace of the game, because of the new rules, caught a lot of veterans like Steve by surprise," says Phoenix Coyotes TV analyst Darren Pang, a former NHL goalie and Yzerman's close friend. "He clearly didn't have the jump, and when you can't get around the ice, you will lack in confidence."

The quickened pace led older players into retirement. The Tampa Bay Lightning forced Dave Andreychuk, 42, into retirement. Brett Hull, 41, retired in Phoenix because he found he couldn't be as effective in the new NHL. Even Pittsburgh owner/player Mario Lemieux, 40, said his inability to stay with the pace was one reason why he retired.

Yzerman also considered quitting: "It was difficult to get going in late November, early December. It was a struggle."

But he has never been about quitting. Once an $8 million player, he took just over $1 million this season because of the salary cap.

Babcock, in his first season in Detroit, understood it was major news when the ice time of Hockeytown's most popular player was cut. With 692 goals and 1,063 assists, Yzerman is the NHL's sixth leading point producer. This is a player who once produced 155 points in a season (1988-89), and he's a two-time 60-plus goal scorer.

In Detroit hockey history, two players are in a class by themselves — Gordie Howe and Yzerman.

Yzerman is such a revered name that Team Canada boss Wayne Gretzky said he would be on the Olympic team if he wanted to be. Yzerman declined the invitation to Torino, because he didn't think his game was up to his standards.

Yzerman "would be the first to tell you that leadership isn't easy," Babcock says. "Sometimes when you are captain and you have to say something to a teammate, it isn't easy. And sometimes when you are coach, the decisions aren't easy. But they are right.

"He met with me this summer, and he flat out told me, 'I want nothing for free,' " Babcock says of the 20-year Wings' captain. "He made it very clear. That's a challenge for me. He's saying, 'I'm one of the guys.' But I know he is not one of the guys."

Issue of ice time slowly resolved

Babcock believes the year off from hockey during the NHL lockout hurt Yzerman, who said he didn't skate much during the time off. The early-season groin injury also set him back.

Clearly, the Olympic break from Feb. 13-27 seemed to help him. But Babcock says he isn't completely sure why Yzerman suddenly looks sharper.

"He is such a competitor that he's not telling you how he is feeling," Babcock says. "He's thinking, 'I can fight through it. I can fight through it.' I think you can fight through it in a playoff run. But I don't know if you can fight through it 82 games."

Still, Yzerman's point total increased as Babcock started to play him more on the power play in the closing weeks of the regular season. "What's the right amount of time for him? I don't have an answer for that yet," Babcock says.

Yzerman's legend was nurtured in the postseason, where the captain has been a shot-blocking, point-scoring, big game-winning threat. When Yzerman transformed himself from an offensive dynamo into a two-way warrior, he put Detroit on the path toward the three Stanley Cup championships they have secured since 1997.

He has played 192 playoff games for the Red Wings, with 70 goals and 111 assists. But Yzerman is as much about presence as numbers.

"If you are a Red Wing, and you see how hard Steve works to be successful, you can't help but give it your best effort," Holland says.

Team admiration recurring theme

Babcock took over a team that was rich in skill, but what impressed him the most was the reverence Detroit players have for Yzerman, the longest tenured captain in NHL history.

"There is so much respect and admiration for him," Babcock says. "What I keep thinking is how impressive it is that he has impacted people to the point that they feel like this about him. It's unbelievable the respect he has here."

Detroit players concede it was agonizing to watch Yzerman struggle early in the season, when he frequently seemed a stride behind.

"He's an important part of this team, and it really didn't look like he was going to get the form back," Detroit winger Kirk Maltby says. "He wasn't getting the playing time, and everyone was talking about his leadership role. 'Blah. Blah. Blah.' But Steve wants to help us with his play, not just his leadership. And now he's one of our best players again."

Even when Yzerman was struggling, Detroit defenseman Nick Lidstrom believed Yzerman would still be there at playoff time.

"He's been a fighter his whole career," Lidstrom says. "He has had major injuries that never finished him, and that's what we saw this year. He just didn't give up."

Nor did Yzerman give up on his team's potential, despite the preseason pundits who believed the effect of the new salary cap would diminish the Red Wings' ability. Adhering to the new cap forced the club to buy out impact players Derian Hatcher, Darren McCarthy and Ray Whitney.

"He has been talking about the playoffs since training camp," Lidstrom says. "He has been real determined to get back playing playoff hockey."

Babcock says Holland kept telling him that Yzerman was going to rise again, primarily because of his history and his strong skating — albeit not up to his satisfaction — at the pre-Olympic camp last summer.

"All I know is that I've been around here a while and I see Yzerman doing what he does best," Holland says. "And that's all that matters."

Surmounting injuries nothing new

In 2002, Yzerman had an osteotomy, a radical surgery in which the knee is realigned. It's usually done on elderly patients to give them increased mobility. At the time of Yzerman's surgery, it had never been done on an athlete of his caliber. He was back playing again in eight months.

His return is even more of a triumph given he was knocked out of the 2004 playoffs when he was struck by a deflected puck. He suffered multiple facial fractures and a scratched cornea and wears a visor as a concession.

"I think with the injuries he's had from his career, it's definitely frustrating for him," teammate Brendan Shanahan says. "But he channels that frustration in a good way. He doesn't sulk about injuries. He just works harder."

Yzerman has always been a quiet leader, not someone who holds court with the media daily. When he talks, he's articulate and insightful, but he has never been comfortable talking about himself. He prefers to let his performance level make the statement, which might explain why he has been so driven.

Yzerman isn't saying whether he will retire this season, but the presumption is he will. Through the years he has talked about getting into team management and staying in Detroit.

"This year I just focused on playing and haven't put a lot of thought into what I might do next year or the year after," he says. "But I definitely would like to stay within hockey"

Babcock would like nothing better than for Yzerman to go out on top the way running back Jerome Bettis got to experience a Super Bowl championship in his hometown of Detroit in his final season with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"I'm hoping Steve is our Jerome Bettis," Babcock says. "In sports, you always need something to get you over the top. Could that be it for us? I hope so."