Former Red Wing Sean Avery Praises Yzerman’s Leadership, Detroit’s Scouting Team in Recent Interview

Jake Tye

Sep 24, 2025, 14:21

Jake Tye

Sep 24, 2025, 14:21

Updated at: Sep 24, 2025, 14:21

Former Red Wings winger Sean Avery comments on Steve Yzerman, Detroit's Scouting Department in recent interview on the Spittin' Chiclets podcast.

On Monday, hockey legend Sean Avery appeared on the popular hockey podcast Spittin' Chiclets hosted by former NHLers Ryan Whitney and Paul Bissonnette. During the interview, the three discussed how building a championship team through free agency is a rare and that teams still need to draft and develop players more. Bissonnette turned the conversation over to Avery and the Detroit Red Wings when asking on if Avery believes in what Steve Yzerman is doing as a GM.

Avery played with the Red Wings for the first two years of his career as a rookie from 2001-2003 and spoke firsthand to the relationship between Yzerman and then-GM Ken Holland and how their bond helped cement a better dynamic in the locker room when it came to accountability.

"When Stevie was the captain, Stevie and Ken Holland had a relationship like that, so when guys rolled into camp, if a guy came into camp and he was a big ticket guy and he wasn't ready to go, that conversation between Steve and that player, it was rock solid, because the player that wasn't bringing it knows that if Stevie goes to Kenny and says he's done, he's out, then he's gone, and they had that relationship, because you can't just build a team from the press box," Avery said.

The conversation continued into the Red Wings scouting department filled with former NHLers like Kris Draper, Jesse Wallin, Boyd Gordan and Kirk Maltby.

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"As Stevie's scouting room, I'll go to war with that scouting room, and I think they're going to get it done," Avery said "Draper, even a guy like Jesse Wallen, I mean me and Jesse played in the American League when it was murders row and [Wallen] played like he knows guys that play hard he knows."

Detroit has found notable success in the first round with prospects like Lucas Raymond, Moritz Seider, Marco Kasper and Simon Edvinsson that are finally paying off years after being drafted. However, the Red Wings seemingly routine late round success for finding hidden gems like in the past with Hall of Fame talents like Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg under Ken Holland hasn't translated to Yzerman's tenure.

Red Wings legend Darren McCarty added to the conversation via social media, posting to his Instagram story commenting "Couldn't agree more" to Avery's comments. Avery played with Detroit for 75 games and posted seven goals and eight assists for 15 points along with 118 penalty minutes. In March 2003, he was traded to the Kings as part of a deal that sent forward Maxim Kuznetsov, along with a first and second-round draft pick, to Los Angeles alongside Avery in exchange for defenseman Mathieu Schneider.