While it would be incorrect to view the Detroit Red Wings and Tampa Bay Lightning as mirror images of each other, certainly the similarities between these two first-round Stanley Cup playoff opponents are apparent and the reasons why are obvious.
From the moment long-time Detroit captain Steve Yzerman left the Wings’ front office to assume his current role as general manager of the Lightning, he began instilling several of the qualities into their organization that he was able to witness during more than two decades in Detroit.
Retiring as a player in 2006, Yzerman spent five years honing his managerial skills working as an understudy to Detroit GM Ken Holland and the results are apparent.
“He sat in our amateur meetings, he sat in our pro meetings, he sat in the office on trade-deadline day with us in the room, he sat in the office on July 1 (free agency),… Holland recalled. “I think all those experiences allowed him five years to experience how we do business and decide on his own managerial philosophy and to meet people in the industry.… It also enabled Yzerman to absorb many of the philosophies that the Wings have employed to become the NHL’s benchmark franchise in terms of success and consistency.
Like the Wings, the Lightning prefer to allow their prospects to ripen on the vine, serving long apprenticeships in the minor leagues before getting up to the show. Both teams employ a high-tempo brand of hockey and demand that their players commit to a 200-foot game.
Holland believes that Yzerman was absorbing knowledge like a sponge throughout his Red Wings career, knowledge that he is now implementing in Tampa Bay.
“It’s not like those overnight sensations in the movies,… Holland said. “Steve was a player for 20-plus years and he took that experience and added five years working in the front office with the Detroit Red Wings and he became an overnight sensation?
“It took him a lifetime of experiences and of knowledge to get to the point to where he’s at. He was a warrior. He was a leader. He was a captain. He was the face of a franchise. He stepped up and was the face when we won the Stanley Cup and when also when we lost in the first round.
“He was the face when we had tragedies in the organization. He’s had tons and tons of experiences, getting ready for Game 7s and elimination games and at the end of your career you’re pushing and fighting to try and keep with the young guys.
“Then you get in the front office in the organization you played with and you sit in every day meetings with Jim Nill, Ken Holland, Ryan Martin and Jimmy D at the amateur draft, the amateur meetings, going to the (NHL) combine, being at training camp, being there when we’re picking our team, sitting in after a win, sitting in after a loss, both as a player and in the manager/coaches’ room after the game so that when he eventually got his opportunity with Tampa Bay, he was ready.
“There are no overnight sensations. He’s put a lifetime into getting to where he is today. A lifetime of experiences and it’s a lifetime of information gathering that allows you to make gut instinct decisions of who to hire, and what instincts to believe on when to pull the trigger and when not to pull the trigger.
“I think he’s a fast learner. He’s got incredible passion, but I’m a big believer - you’ve seen how I’ve managed - I believe in experience. You put your time in the American Hockey League. Steve has put in his time, he’s paid his dues.…
Among other common ties, Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper interviewed for an assistant coaching position with the Wings but heeded the advice of Detroit coach Mike Babcock to take an the AHL head-coaching job with the Lightning that ultimately led to his current role.
Two years ago, 10 current Wings - Petr Mrazek, Danny DeKeyser, Gustav Nyquist, Joakim Andersson, Riley Sheahan, Teemu Pulkkinen, Tomas Tatar, Tomas Jurco, Luke Glendening and Landon Ferraro – were part of the Grand Rapids team that defeated Tampa Bay’s Syracuse farm club in the AHL Calder Cup final, adding another layer of familiarity and intrigue to this series.
Six members of the Lightning - Andrej Sustr, Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat, Cedric Paquette, Vladislav Namestnikov and J.T. Brown – played for Syracuse that spring.
“Well there’s a lot of players that were in that series from two years ago,… DeKeyser said. “I think everybody by now pretty much knows each other, both teams know each other.
“So we’re just gong to have to go out there an compete and win battles and try to win the games that way.…
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