January 3, 2007

BY HELENE ST. JAMES

FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER

But on Tuesday night at Joe Louis Arena, Yzerman, for a change, listened. Former teammates and coaches, famed alumni of the franchise, joined together to send Yzerman's No. 19 to the rafters before a sell-out crowd that spent most of the nearly 90-minute ceremony on its feet. Fan after fan after fan wore a Wings jersey; jersey after jersey after jersey was Yzerman's.

Former coach Scotty Bowman, who has coached numerous hockey luminaries, was the first to speak.

"The one word that comes to my mind when it comes to Steve is 'responsible,' " Bowman said. "Whether we needed a tying or winning goal, or an important face-off ... or any kind of a big play, he was generally responsible for it."

Bowman's next comment stirred the crowd to another round of applause.

"No player I ever coached," Bowman said, "could play with a pain threshold like Steve Yzerman."

Nicklas Lidstrom, who succeeded Yzerman as captain, came next.

"He's been a great captain, a great teammate and a great friend," Lidstrom said, and then, on behalf of the current team, gave Yzerman and his family a trip to the Euro Cup soccer finals in Austria in 2008.

Yzerman was named the youngest captain in franchise history Oct. 7, 1986.

"What you don't see in the record books is how Stevie won the respect of his teammates by doing the right thing day after day," team owner Mike Ilitch said. "He led without arrogance or self-indulgence. ... Steve Yzerman, you helped build Hockeytown."

It was senior vice president Jimmy Devellano who decided to draft Yzerman in 1983, and "Oh, what a cornerstone he turned out to be," Devellano said.

Then, it was Yzerman's turn.

"Thank you," he began, stopping as fans yelled his name, clapped, yelled some more, whistled.

A minute went by, then another. Yzerman turned, waved; clutched his hands. The "Ste-vie, Ste-vie" chants ebbed, then rose again.

"You never disappoint me," he said.

Among those Yzerman thanked were his wife, the evening's opponents from Anaheim, former teammates, the club itself.

"The Red Wings organization," he said. "I'm not sure I can fully express my pride, my gratitude. They allowed me to grow up. They supported me when I was down. They encouraged me when I needed encouragement."

Just before his jersey went up, Yzerman made a plea to fans.

"You look up there, give yourselves a pat on the back because I really feel you're a huge reason, a big reason why it's up there," he said. "From the bottom of my heart, I am sincerely grateful to you all."

Then all that was left was for the banner to soar.

Yzerman became the sixth player in team history to have his jersey retired, joining Terry Sawchuk's No. 1, Ted Lindsay's No. 7, Gordie Howe's No. 9, Alex Delvecchio's No. 10 and Sid Abel's No. 12.

Howe was among the dozens at center ice, seated on chairs on a red carpet that formed a giant "C" in the neutral zone. Former teammates were there: Danny Gare, the man who was captain before Yzerman. Bob Probert got a tremendously enthusiastic response, second only to the heart-warming cheers that greeted Vladimir Konstantinov, the fierce defenseman whose career ended in a limousine crash in 1997. Brett Hull came, as did Igor Larionov. So did former coaches Jacques Demers and Dave Lewis.

Current Wings came out wearing Peterborough Petes jerseys, honoring the team Yzerman played for when he was drafted; Team Canada jerseys from the 2002 Winter Olympics; Campbell Conference jerseys in recognition of Yzerman's 10 All-Star appearances, and regular Red Wings jerseys.

There was a video montage featuring Yzerman as a boy, as a teenager. Two decades worth of memories in the NHL, set to various songs by U2, Yzerman's favorite band.

Yzerman, 41, retired July 3 after 22 seasons, all of them with the Wings, 19 of them as the captain. He won three Stanley Cups, an Olympic gold medal, scored 692 career NHL goals, going about it all with a humility that belied his immense talent. He never sought the spotlight but his hockey renown won him fans all over North America and beyond.

Before the ceremony, assistant general manager Jim Nill described a scene from his trip to the World Junior Championships in Sweden last week. Yzerman, now a team vice president, was with Nill, as has become habit. Just recently the two were at a game in Windsor, where Yzerman needed a police escort to get out of the building. It wasn't any different in Sweden.

"We're in these small little rinks in Leksand and Mora, I figured, 'Who's going to know Steve Yzerman?' " Nill said. "Wouldn't you know it, a couple of kids recognized him in about two minutes."

By the end of his career, Yzerman's 19 was so entwined with him, so much a part of him, its trip to the rafters was a given. Tuesday night, it became official, and one man summed up the night and its meaning better than anyone.

"No one will ever wear No. 19 for the Red Wings again," Bowman said. "Congratulations."