Sports Blog

I hope you caught the Retirement Tribute last night in Detroit for Steve Yzerman. We all know Yzerman is a class act, but last night the Detroit Red Wings showed all professional sports teams how to properly show their appreciation to a retiring player. I’m not writing today to talk about Steve Yzerman. If you’re a hockey fan, you know all about his contributions to hockey and to the Detroit franchise in particular.

I carefully listened to Steve’s words of gratitude to everyone who played a part in his career – his family, teammates, the Detroit Red Wings organization and the fans. It was his focus on the Detroit Red Wings organization that turned my head.

Clearly, Captain Steve Yzerman had a very close relationship, a verbal pipeline if you will, with both the ownership and management of the Detroit Red Wings from the very beginning of his career. There was a clear vision of the steps required to turn the franchise around. He half joked that the five-year plan took 13 years to complete, but the organization never deviated from the grand plan.

As a Toronto Maple Leaf fan, I now clearly understand one of the fundamental flaws with the Leaf organization. As all Leaf fans are aware, our team has been in shambles for years. One of the many gripes many Leaf fans have is that our captain, Mats Sundin, has never been surrounded by players of his caliber. The organization also year after year has abandoned the notion of building a solid foundation for player development, opting instead for the quick fix at the trade deadline, throwing money at the best free agent available.

I also remember many free agents over the years who opted to pass on offers from the Leafs, signing for similar money with other organizations. Steve Yzerman made it crystal clear last night that the open lines of communication and the clear strategy in place to build a winner played a key role in his decision to spend his entire career with the Red Wings.

If I could have one wish for the Toronto Maple Leafs it’s that someone like RIM (Research In Motion) owners Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis would swoop in and make an offer to purchase the Leafs that Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment ownership couldn’t refuse. The Teachers Pension Plan clearly has no interest in bringing a Stanley Cup to Toronto. When was the last time you heard anyone from the Leafs organization verbalize that the goal is to win the Stanley Cup? The goal is to make the playoffs – ie, money for the coffers equates to happy investors. Nothing else matters. They are only too aware that the seats at the Air Canada Centre will never be empty – no matter how bad things get. The Detroit Red Wings got it right – did anyone in Toronto notice?

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