Detroit thanks Yzerman; so do I
3 January 2007
I’ve uploaded some photos to Flicker of Steve Yzerman’s retirement celebration before the Red Wings game tonight. I’m not usually one to make a big deal out of sports I’m not playing, but I make an exception for the former Red Wings captain.
As a leader, Yzerman represented everything to which a person could aspire. Selfless, quiet, and leading by example. He doesn’t Guanranshee. He doesn’t dance.
He scores goals. He passes. He spent fifteen minutes of his acceptance speech thanking everyone—his family, coaches, players, retired stars, the Illich’s, Detroit hockey fans—except himself.
Yzerman, and the turn-of-the-century Red Wings are more important than games or goals or money. The franchise is a crucial part of Detroit’s rebirth. Before the Tigers and the Pistons became great teams, the Red Wings were the one thing Detroiters had to be proud of, something they could rally behind. My family took vacations all across the country, and everywhere I went in my blazing red jacket, former Michiganders and traveling ones would greet me.
In a city of floundering industry giants, where the mayor buys $4000 suits and the most decorated football player silently abandons his team, Steve Yzerman represented a quiet, humble and straight-laced role model. Detroit needed this man, and Detroit will miss him.
